November 20 would mark the 100th birthday of Sister Corita Kent. As a graphic artist, Sister Corita contributed a signature style to the political art of the ’60s. As a bold reformer, she pushed the Church to modernize until breaking with the order in 1968. And so, to celebrate her centenary, we’ve commissioned a group of artists, curators, and admirers to reflect on her work and its influence. Our first contributor to the series, which we’re calling Sister Corita Keeps It 100, is artist Poli Marichal, who has created a print especially for X-TRA Online and offers a few words about what Corita means to her. As Marichal puts it so well: her legacy lives on.

Poli Marichal, Nature/Nurture, 2018. Monotype and relief print, digitally modified version, 13 x 13 in. Courtesy of the artist.

My first introduction to the work of Sister Corita Kent was through my father, artist Carlos Marichal. He was a gifted printmaker and set designer and was always buying art books and magazines and sharing them with his family. I had an affinity to all works that explored printmaking techniques. Sister Corita’s unique use of color, shapes, and text caught my eye. Her innovative and successful ways of blending form and content is still a source of inspiration. Her bold and playful style inspired me to experiment and to find joy in artmaking.

Although I grew up in San Juan, Puerto Rico, I was well informed about the civil rights movement and the artists who created posters, prints, and paintings depicting the racial and class struggle in the USA, like Antonio Frasconi, Ben Shahn, Mauricio Lasansky, and Sister Corita. All of these artists, as well as local artists like Lorenzo Homar, José R. Alicea, Myrna Báez, and Antonio Martorell, led the way for me and many other incipient artists to follow.

In 1989, I moved to Los Angeles and met Sister Karen Boccalero, one of the founders of Self Help Graphics & Art (SHG) and also an accomplished artist. She had been close to Sister Corita and was also involved in the civil rights movement. The political and social struggles that ensued in the ’60s and ’70s inspired Sister Karen and other artists to establish an art center where disenfranchised Latinx and Chicanx artists could develop their skills and show their work. In the early ’90s, I became an instructor at SHG. Since then, I’ve been a supporter of this prestigious institution that has survived through thick and thin and that, finally, now owns its own building in Boyle Heights.

Sister Corita Kent’s influence on all artists that address issues of social justice, environmental conservation, global solidarity, and spiritual exploration is still considerable. I consider myself fortunate to have come in contact with this prodigious artist whose work still looks as fresh and inspiring as when it was first made.

In the summer of 2018, my husband and I moved back to Puerto Rico. We’ve come full circle. I’m currently teaching at the Centro Para El Grabado Y Las Artes Del Libro, another art center that follows similar tenets to Self Help Graphics & Art. I consider Sister Corita Kent and Sister Karen Boccalero as influential mentors in my life. Their legacy lives on. x

Puerto Rican visual artist Poli Marichal utilizes printmaking, painting, animation, film, and video to make works that explore existential, social, political, and environmental issues. Her aim is to create works that engage both the heart and the mind of the viewer. After thirty years in Los Angeles, she recently moved back to Puerto Rico where she is currently setting up her new studio.