Sister Mary Rufinia, a member of the Sisters of St. Francis of Perpetual Adoration, received early art instruction in Berlin before emigrating to the United States, where she began work as a nurse at St. Elizabeth Hospital in Lafayette, Indiana, in 1906.
[1] After a back injury suffered while lifting a large patient onto a bed in 1920 she gradually abandoned nursing for painting, eventually becoming a teacher.
In 1936 she studied with Wayman Adams,[3] before receiving her master of fine arts degree from Syracuse University in 1938.
She exhibited widely during her career, including at numerous Hoosier Salons,[4] and won a number of prizes as well.
Sister Mary Rufinia favored still lifes and religious scenes for subject matter, and worked in oil and watercolor.