What's Happening

April 24, 2026, Adrian, Michigan – The new iteration and venue of the Adrian Dominican Sisters’ long-time INAI art gallery opened in Madden Hall with an artists’ reception and the opportunity for featured artists and others to view Engaged: The Art of Women, the new gallery’s first exhibit. The reception was held on the afternoon of Sunday, April 12, 2026.

The INAI at Madden Gallery occupies an area of Madden hall near the entrance to Holy Rosary Chapel and the Congregation’s historical area and is accessible through Weber Retreat and Conference Center. The original INAI Gallery was adjacent to Weber Retreat and Conference Center.

The new space “was an excellent choice” for the site of the new INAI, explained Sister Suzanne Schreiber, OP, long-time coordinator of INAI. “I could envision it as a nice place for art.”

Other aspects of the former INAI have also been recreated in Madden Hall. A meditation area is part of the gallery and what had once been a formal dining room has become a quiet room, with a library of books on art and spirituality, comfortable chairs and sofas, and a table to offer Weber Center guests, Sisters, Associates, and Co-workers a quiet place to read and reflect. “We want to create a space where people can come and be quiet, be inspired, appreciate art, and give some thought to what [the artists] are saying,” Sister Sue said.

The first exhibit at INAI at Madden was created by a committee. The late Sister Barbara Cervenka, OP, a member of the Congregation’s Women’s Enactment Circle, “proposed that there would be some aspect of that Enactment that would not just deal with the problems women struggle with but also with art and women’s expression through art,” Sister Sue explained. She involved Sisters and Associates who were artists, as well as women from the Adrian Center for the Arts, to develop the first exhibit. 

“I felt that, after its closing, INAI needed to be resurrected in some way,” said Connie Meyer, who served on Sister Barbara’s committee that planned and organized the INAI at Madden Gallery. “Having this space in this beautiful building used for women artists is a beautiful expression of the Adrian Dominicans’ mission.”

Connie expressed her hope that INAI at Madden would be “a special place for the community and the extended community, for those who come to Weber Center for retreats and for the community of Adrian.”

Julie Klein, an artist who specializes in watercolor, found the new gallery to be amazing. “It’s a beautiful room for art and a beautiful building. [Madden Hall] itself is a piece of art.” She described the former INAI gallery as a “beautiful, peaceful place,” which she periodically visited.

Jim and Amy Anderson, resident ceramicists with the Adrian Center for the Arts – a partner of INAI – were also pleased with the new INAI gallery. Amy, a member of the committee that planned the new gallery, especially likes the space and lighting of the new gallery.

“I’m glad Sister Sue is continuing her involvement with the gallery and shows, and I think she picked a really good topic” for the first exhibit, Jim said. “There are a lot of really thoughtful reflections on the pieces that she chose to put in the show.”

Many of the artists featured in the first exhibit expressed gratitude that their artwork was included. “There’s a saying among artists that ‘Anonymous’ was a woman,” said Judith Engel, an Associate. “In earlier times, women were considered inferior [in art]. Our sense with this is, ‘Women are not anonymous.’ The whole focus [of the exhibit] is on the voices of women and the thinking and the feeling and the imagery … of what it means to be a woman in the arts. I’m very delighted and happy and pleased to be part of that.”

Sister Janet Wright, OP, an artist who focuses on watercolor, said she is delighted with the new space. “When we heard that INAI was going to close, we knew we had to rebuild it…. Once we got over the shock of INAI closing, we thought, ‘Where could we go?’ This is just perfect. It’s a natural.” 

 

Caption for above feature photo: Guests of the INAI at Madden Gallery Artists’ Reception converse and examine the artwork of the opening exhibit.

February 9, 2026, Adrian, Michigan – Engage: The Art of Women, the first exhibit of the new INAI at Madden Art Gallery, will open on Sunday, April 12, 2026, with an artists’ reception from 1:00 p.m. to 3:00 p.m.

The new gallery moved to Madden Hall from its original home on the Adrian Dominican Sisters Campus. The original INAI, founded by the late Sisters Barbara Chenicek, OP, and Rita Schiltz, OP, offered exhibits for more than 40 years. The INAI at Madden Gallery has space near Holy Rosary Chapel and is accessible from Weber Retreat and Conference Center at the Motherhouse Campus. 

Sister Sue Schreiber, OP, who coordinated INAI from 2018 to 2024, is working with others to bring about a new feel. “We cannot reproduce the physical ambiance of INAI, but in Madden, we have developed a quiet room, a meditation area, and a small gallery,” she said.

Engage: The Art of Women was chosen as the first exhibit to focus on the Adrian Dominican Congregation’s Enactment on Women, approved by the Sisters in 2022. The Enactment reads, in part, “Valuing human dignity and aware of the injustice of patriarchy … we strive to attain gender equity and women’s full and equal participation and decision making in Church and society.”

Exhibiting artists include Amy Philp, Kris Schmidt, Doris De Nudt, Pi Benio, and Amy Anderson; Adrian Dominican Associates Laura Law and Judi Engel; Sisters Janet Wright, OP, Kathleen Voss, OP, Alice Van Acker, Nancyann Turner, OP, Sue Schreiber, OP, Barbara Quincey, OP, Aneesah McNamee, OP, Cheryl Liske, OP, Janice Holkup, OP, and Carol Fleming, OP; and deceased Adrian Dominican Sisters Mary Irene Walker, OP, Sarajane Seaver, OP, Rita Schiltz, OP, Ursula Ording, OP, Pauline Opliger, OP, Virginia Hafey- Wells, OP, Barbara Chenicek, OP,  Barbara Cervenka, OP, and Celeste Bourke, OP. 

INAI (pronounced in-EYE and meaning “within” in Japanese) is a contemplative space 
and art gallery on the campus of the Adrian Dominican Sisters. Offering the beauty and thoughtfulness of artistic expression in its art exhibitions, as well as a peaceful space for 
personal reflection, INAI supports the Adrian Dominican Sisters’ Vision to seek truth, make peace, and reverence life. 

 

Caption for above feature photo: Danish Circles, a quilt created by Sister Barbara Quincey, OP, is one of the many artworks on display in the opening exhibit of INAI at Madden.