Collaborative artistic effort honors legacy of Ursuline Sisters

When it came to honoring the history of the Ursuline Sisters in Chatham, Sister Anne Denomy didn’t want to see bronze anywhere it sight.

So when she heard a legacy mural was planned to celebrate the contributions of the Ursulines, Denomy said, “I was very excited because it was going to be a work of art, not a plaque.”

The four panel mural was unveiled earlier this month during a ceremony at Chatham’s only Catholic high school.

“It was quite stellar presentation” when the mural was revealed to students, parents, staff, alumni and sisters, said UCC principal Lisa Harnarine.

Twenty Ursuline Sisters, who wounded the mural, were among about 500 guest who packed the school’s theater and overflow room for the ceremony.

Harnarine said most schools have something that anchors their history, but at UCC “I thought that was lacking.”

Harnarine said the mural was a collaborative effort to document the history of the Ursulines from when the sisterhood started and into the present day Ursuline Sisters.

“This art mural was a collaboration of student voice, staff, alumni and the sisters from all different vantage points, all with their experiences being part of Ursuline College,” she said.

These participants all created separate works of art then Harnarine commissioned an artist to bring them together to tell the various stories in four mural panels.

The mural starts with Angela Merici the founder of the Ursuline Sisters, moves to Mother Xavier Le Bihan, who founded Ursuline College in 1860, the third panel is representative of the current UCC and the fourth panel is what the future might look like, Harnarine said .

Denomy said the more you look at the mural, the more you see.

“It’s exhilarating and exciting. It’s just lovely,” she said.

The effort to honor the Ursulines “it really exciting,” said Sister Noreen Allossery-Walsh.

“The idea of ​​doing the art project meant that so many people would be involved, so it was a really inclusive, social art project.

“The project was perfect because it was inviting all that community that’s been touched to participate in this — students, staff, alumni, sisters, and friends of UCC have left their mark through the mural.

“I think we’re aware our Ursuline life is changing, so the wisdom to capture the story of the Sisters now while there were still many of us to tell the story was really critical.”