Creating a Legacy

Student success at Moravian depends on a collective effort among faculty, administrators, and the generosity of donors. Studio art major Faith Morales ’25 is making her own donation to support the philanthropic community in the form of illustrations for the university’s giving societies. Her drawings are timeless, intentional, and uniquely Moravian.

“I’m honored to have the opportunity to use my passion for art to contribute to the new society graphics,” Morales says. “I have had such a positive experience at Moravian and want to give back.”

Morales is using her structured and graphic style of drawn portraiture to depict people and places significant to Moravian and the giving societies, which recognize the university’s most dedicated supporters as partners:

• John Amos Comenius, whose innovations and methods of teaching recommend him as the face of the Comenius Society; 
• Nikolaus Ludwig von Zinzendorf, a German religious and social reformer and a bishop of the Moravian Church, signifies the Zinzendorf Family Fellows;
• Anna Nitschmann, one of America’s first philanthropists, who helped establish the Girls’ School that became Moravian University, represents the Anna Nitschmann Society;
• Evangeline Bahnson Smith, who supported the building of Moravian Theological Seminary’s Bahnson Center, served as a life trustee, and established multiple scholarships to support students, marks the Bahnson Society;
• Street lamps on Main Street, stand for the Main Street Society;
• The 1742 pillar, denotes the Cornerstone Society;
• The Moravian star, symbolizes the Via Lucis Society; and
• The Lark Building, named after the Lark Family, who for generations has supported and influenced Lancaster Theological Seminary, represents the Lark Society.

“I crafted these images with drawing pencils, a ruler, and the reference image of each graphic,” she explains. “I start by lightly visually mapping out the image onto the paper, and as I draw, I slowly build on detail and try to become more exact through each passing,” she says. “Once I feel like I have a good base, I go in with bolder pencils to highlight the dark parts of the image. I also use the ruler at this stage to achieve more exact lines where I feel they should be.”

Throughout the entire process, Morales has been consulting with Director of Development Communications Ashley Csaszar and Art Director Brooke Porcelli on how she can improve the images to suit the giving societies’ message.

Morales’s passion for art and drawing had its beginnings in her childhood. But it was when she painted an acrylic portrait of her grandfather for fun in high school that her love for painting and drawing bloomed. “I saw his and the rest of my family’s reaction and realized I might be able to make something of it,” she says.

With the continued support of her family, Morales drove full speed ahead in her artistic pursuit. “At first, this was a bit unexpected since it was an unpaved path in my family, but my family members have been my biggest supporters outside and inside of art,” she says.

Along her path, Morales has won several awards and accolades for her art, including an award for Hope and Healing, an event held by Healing Through the Arts in high school, a drawing award in her sophomore year at Moravian, and of course now the invitation to create the pieces for Moravian’s giving societies.

Although the giving societies’ images were done with a ruler and pencil, Morales says her favorite artistic medium is oil paint. “I love how it can blend and create seamless transitions,” she says. “There’s something very beautiful about how oil paint sits on canvas—it makes paintings feel more authentic and real.”

This appreciation of oil paint came from her painting class at Moravian with art professor Natessa Amin. “It was my first time using oil paint, and I found navigating the medium to be so fun. And everyone in that class was motivating and magnetic.”

Morales says her subsequent art classes at Moravian University have been just as fulfilling. “As each year passes, I learn more about myself and my style in art, and I’m thankful to have had this experience of self-growth in such a welcoming and stimulating environment.”

Morales’s completed giving society drawings will make their debut in fall 2024. With these works, she is supporting Moravian’s mission to educate students to discover their brilliance and become transformative leaders—a mission she will continue after her graduation in 2025. She plans to take her fifth year at Moravian University for her teaching certification, then apply to the School of Visual Arts in New York City to earn her master’s degree.

“I am a firm believer that a person should follow what she loves,” she says. “If you work hard and believe in yourself and put that passion into what you want to pursue, you will find your path.”