Barcelona (Spain), 03/02/2017, Srs. Gemma Morató and Conchi García.- Certainly our Congregation has created and will continue to create persons of history. Sister Marie Séraphie is one of them. This woman, a Dominican Sister of the Presentation, an artist to the very marrow died on last March 2nd at La Grande Bretèche, Tours (France) at the age of 101 and 76 years of religious profession.

 

Sr. Marie Séraphie with one of his worksSister Marie Séraphie (Odile Tchakirian, 1915) made profession on November 21, 1940. She has received many medals and decorations for her work on sculptures and paintings. We underline that for 25 years she was a member of the International Academy of Lutèce, for 10 years as member of the International Jury of Fine Arts and 9 years as member of the board of directors of the International Academy of Lutèce. In 1991 she received the “Médaille de Vermeil” from the City of Paris. She was made Chevalier of the “Ordre National du Mérite” in 1999 and received the “Médaille de Vermeil” from New York.

　

She herself has explained about her vocation to be an artist: : “It was on October 1, 1968 that something extraordinary and transcendent changed my life. It was twilight, after the celebration of the Vespers. I was overcome by a great struggle that was going on in my heart and I was overwhelmed by an inner war. My cloudy eyes fell on an iron container filled with clay. It was there, at that instant that I was seized by a strange power; the earth called me and I was pushed by Him towards the clay; water was running; I threw myself forcefully toward the clay, I held it in the palm of my hand, my fingers were tightly closed pressing them towards me. What am I going to do? Near me there was a small pen knife; at that time something happened; the clay and the water got mixed together in my hand with the penknife I held in my hands. Then all on a sudden, in front of my eyes, in the palm of my hand, a face of clay looked at me. This look was at the beginning of my unexpected pilgrimage through stones (Sculpture) and colors (Painting). Here is the beginning of God’s creative work through my hands, led by his face on that twilight.”

 

 

"Philosophie-Nostalgie"