What's Happening

August 26, 2025, Adrian, Michigan – Dominican artists – sisters, friars, laity, and associates from diverse congregations and provinces – came together in late July for the annual Gathering of the Dominican Institute for Arts (DIA) at Weber Retreat and Conference Center in Adrian.

Under the theme, “Preaching for Times Such as These: Preach the Word of God through Your Art,” the Dominican artists gathered to listen to inspiring input, participate in art workshops, share their art and experiences, pray together, form community, and celebrate together.

DIA members include “painters, musicians, dancers, sculptors, film makers, potters, poets, actors, composers, writers, designers of sacred space, dramatists, and any other art form you can imagine,” as well as those who appreciate and support the arts, according to the DIA website.

Awards were presented on the first evening with Adrian Dominican Sister Rosemary Asaro, OP, receiving the 2025 Spirit Award. The award is given to a DIA member who has “enriched the organization by going the extra mile, who does the chore unbeknownst to many, who does the little, insignificant jobs that seem unimportant,” said Sister Elizabeth Slenker, OP, a Sparkill Dominican Sister and then President of the DIA. 

Sister Rosemary became involved in the DIA through photographer Adrian Dominican Sister Joella Miller, OP. She first attended a DIA gathering four years ago and served on the planning committee for the 2024 gathering in Adrian. An art supporter as well as a musician through her cantoring, Sister Rosemary said she was surprised to receive the award, which recognized her willing presence and ability respond when needed. “I’m grateful that I still have the time and energy to be able to be of service to others,” Sister Rosemary said. “I’ve learned that often it’s the small things that count more than the big things.”

During the opening session, Pat Daly, an Associate of the Dominican Sisters of Peace, received the Fra Angelico Award. Named for the great 15th-century Dominican Renaissance artist, the award is the highest bestowed on a DIA member. 

“This award is presented every year to an artist who has exemplified Fra Angelico’s dedication to preaching through the arts,” Sister Elizabeth said. “The artist exemplifies the ideals of the DIA.” She noted that Pat “always said yes to working hard and enabling the DIA to grow and flourish.” She added that Pat is a “phenomenal preacher, authentic, very inclusive, faithful to the Dominican pillars [of prayer, study, community, and ministry or preaching], and has worked to create art.” Pat is a Past President of the DIA and preaches through poetry and nature photography.

Pat learned that she had received the Fra Angelico Award while attending the gathering virtually and expressed her surprise and gratitude for the award.

The first full day of the gathering began with prayer and a keynote address by Sinsinawa Dominican Sister Joeann Daley, OP, whose artistic work includes etchings, monoprints, lithographs, mixed media, and photo collages. She focused her talk on thresholds and milestones, noting that her first thresholds were her youth, growing up on a far and “being close to earth,” her call to Sinsinawa, Wisconsin, and from there to her ministry in Anaconda, Montana. 

Sister Joeann recalled transforming Anaconda – a town where the principal work was smelting copper – into a place where art was created and treasured. During a nine-month strike in Anaconda, Sister Joeann organized an art center and encouraged the residents to become involved in art. 

Sister Joeann also organized a traveling exhibit of the art created by the people of Anaconda. This caught the attention of the State Art Council, which hired her to travel around Montana – driving 100,000 miles in six years – to discover or foster art in the small towns.  

“It was an exciting time, because there was so much in some of the farthest, out-of-the-way places,” Sister Joeann recalled. “I feel very privileged to go to towns that most people go through on their way to somewhere else. I’ve seen dreams actualized.”  

She encouraged the artists to use their artistic vision to make a difference. “The nature of the artist is to see things in a different way,” she said. “We have a role in the broader community because our eyes are important and we can see possibilities.”

In the afternoon, the Dominican artists took the opportunity to explore new forms of art. Workshops at Weber Center focused on sacred movement and receiving poetry, while the nearby Adrian Center for the Arts hosted workshops by DIA members on glass fusion, clay creation, and metal smithing. 

On the final day, DIA members elected a new Board for the coming year: Associate John Mascazine (Peace), President; Sister Nancy Murray, OP (Adrian), Vice President; Sister Elizabeth Slenker, OP (Sparkill), Treasurer and Membership; Sister Rosemary Asaro, OP (Adrian), Secretary; and Sister Xiomara Méndez-Hernández, OP (Adrian), Father Rudolf Lowenstein, OP (Province of England), and Associate Mark Hanes (Peace), members at large.

The event concluded with liturgy and an evening of celebration and karaoke. 

Membership to the DIA is open to Dominican sisters, friars, laity, and associates who are committed to preaching through the arts in any art form, or to those who are supportive of the arts. More information is available on the DIA’s membership page.
 

Caption for above feature photo: Participants in the 2025 Dominican Institute for the Arts Gathering.