Renowned Christian artist, Salesian Missionaries of Mary Immaculate Sister Claire died on February 11 in Bengaluru. Her funeral took place in Bengaluru on February 12. Sister Claire had created more than 2,000 Christian paintings using watercolor, enamel paints, posture colors and color pens. She also drew more than 1,000 Christian and Easter greeting cards. Her paintings have been featured in several art books and exhibited in art museums and churches and institutions across India and abroad.
Last year, the SMMI opened an art museum in her honor at the convent in Bengaluru. Late Pope John Paul II and Pope Benedict XVI have admired and promoted her paintings. Pope Benedict XVI once invited her to the Vatican with a view to felicitate her. But, she was unable to make it. Sr Claire was a recipient of the lifetime achievement award, the Assisi Art Award in 2012, instituted by the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India.
She was a Hindu and was converted into Catholicism. A turning point in her life came when she watched a movie on Christ’s suffering and love that moved her deeply. She felt Jesus had a special message for her and wanted her to become a Christian and join a convent. With special permission from the then Archbishop of Bengaluru, she was baptized and joined the SMMI with her new name, Sr Claire.
Source: www.matterindia.com
