Sister Corita Kent — Love is Here to Stay
Picture an artist whose work exists somewhere along the spectrum between Andy Warhol and Ed Ruscha. Picture her from 1960’s Los Angeles. Picture her working at a screen-printing table, crafting images filtered through a sun-soaked kaleidoscopic mind. Imagine a flower-child with an unwavering dedication to the many expressions of love, set inside the jumble and noise of a radiant city, full of life. Picture her as a nun. You may now see Sister Corita Kent.
Vibrancy, in most visual works, speaks to colors and compositions. In her vibrant works, Sister Corita seems to breathe the urgency and warmth of life itself. Colors radiate typographic forms whose content is just as powerful as their look. One piece reads “come alive! you can make it. the blue cross way is very simple. we walk together. don’t you need somebody to love? jefferson airplane. the glory of christ is man fully alive. man fully alive is the glory of god.”
These images are headlines, billboards, and unmistakable banners for the major events of existence. Hope never seemed as bold as it does here, in her hands.
Teacher. Sister. Artist.
Sister Corita Kent teaching screen-printing to students at the Immaculate Heart College in Los Angeles.
Her work is visually arresting. Awesome, is an accurate term. Inspiring awe.
Overlaid texts, morphing typographic forms, split-font prints and reversals are all common elements in the mind of Sister Corita Kent.
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