Sister Anita Kristofco dreamed of becoming an artist as a child growing up in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, where the mountainous landscape inspired her.
Years later, she began painting while serving in Atlanta. One day, while sitting in church, she decided to move beyond thinking about painting to actually doing it. After the service, she asked a parishioner if he knew anyone who could teach her to paint. The man pointed to the woman in front of Sr. Anita and said, “She can teach you.”
At that moment a friendship formed between Sr. Anita and Lucille Linder, her 83-year-old teacher.
Every Saturday at 2 p.m. Sr. Anita studied under Lucille and learned the various art mediums: oil, acrylic, watercolor, and pastels. Acrylics became her favorite medium because she could paint over any mistakes.
At age 86, Lucille became ill and stopped teaching. She gave Sr. Anita her canvases, paints, and art papers as a parting gift.
Sister Anita is the daughter of a master bricklayer and stone mason who was trained in the Italian style of masonry. As a child, she watched her father lay bricks and stones layer upon layer, anticipating what his masterpiece would look like. He left a lasting impression on his daughter. Today Sr. Anita enjoys watching how her paintings develop layer by layer.
“I never know how a painting will turn out. I don’t anticipate the end result and just go with the flow,” she said.
Sister Anita fell and broke her hip last October. Her six-month recovery from surgery and rehabilitation prevented her from painting. She is just getting back into her art form and finds it challenging.
“When you don’t paint for a while, you lose some ability. You have to play around to get back into it,” she said.
As a way to ease back into her creative flow, Anita is working on a painting that has been calling out to her for a long time. It’s Jesus meeting Mary at the Stations of the Cross. The art piece captures Sister
Anita’s attention, but roses are her true passion. She is determined to paint rose petals in full bloom with the perfect depth, highlights, and shadows.
Sister Anita is a member of the Mason Pointe community.
By Jeanette McDermott | May 2023