"A One-Man Show"

Bro. Carl Tiedt, CSC, a brother in the Congregation of Holy Cross, shares a bit of his life story with us.  Read this fascinating account of how he became both a teacher and an artist . . .                

Farmers Threshing Wheat

Bro. Carl Tiedt, CSC was inspired to become a Brother of Holy Cross by the example of his two aunts:  Sister Jovita Skalitzky and Sister Grace Ann Skalitzky of the Congregation of School Sisters of Notre Dame to “follow Jesus Christ in Poverty, Chastity and Obedience.”  He was born on a farm of forty acres in the township of Sun Prairie, Wisconsin.  His most masculine accomplishment before he came to religious life was going threshing with the farmers of his neighborhood and working along side with them.

Postulate, Watertown, Wisconsin

               In September 1945, Bro. Carl entered the Postulancy (Candidate Program) at Sacred Heart College, Watertown, Wisconsin and was completely satisfied with the visual and spiritual aspects of the Brothers of Holy Cross.  Time went rapidly on, and by February 1945, he was accepted as a novice.

               His novitiate year was a happy, spiritual year.  He began his college at the University of Notre Dame in the Spring of 1946 with a course of Physical Science.  The degree was earned by the end of the Summer of 1949.  Bro. Carl was assigned to teach at Notre Dame High School in Biloxi, Mississippi in the Fall of that same year.  There, he taught all of the Science and Math classes and one Religion class.  He was also the yearbook advisor for all four years that he taught in this Gulf Coast city.

               Bro. Carl's next assignment was to teach at Cathedral High School, Indianapolis, Indiana. He was also allowed to teach an art class with the other classes.  In the summer of 1965, he opened a letter at the roadside in Sun Prairie and  was surprised to read, “Assigned to Notre Dame High School, Sherman Oaks, California."  Bro. Carl was happy to teach Mechanical Drawing and one Art class.  One can perceive that he was very interested in Fine Art, and relished even building cabinets for the Art Room.

               In Sun Prairie at Sacred Heart Church, the Pastor, Rev. Herbert Waldkirk, was completing the building of a new grade school.  Bro. Carl was invited to display his paintings at the dedication.  As a result, he was also asked  to design a new statue for the front of the new school entrance.  Bro. Carl conceived a statue with the Mother of God as the central figure and Jesus as a boy on the left.  Both Mother and Child had reliefs of Sacred Hearts on their breasts, and a school girl is standing on the opposite side of Mary.  The  boy  Jesus holds a bird in both of his hands, and the girl  holds  books in her left arm and a bouquet of dandelions in her right hand.  Both of the children are about 11 years old and are the same height.  The  drawings were done in projected views and sent to Italy where the sculptures were crafted in white Carrara marble and then brought by boat down the St. Lawrence River to Milwaukee and by truck to Sun Prairie.  Hugo A. Tiedt, Bro. Carl’s father, was making ample money as head mechanic at Oscar Meyer Meat Plant in Madison, Wisconsin, and was happy to pay for the sculpture and pedestal that stand over eight feet tall in front of the school.

               Then, in the Fall of 1946, Bro. Carl was assigned to teach at St. Anthony High School, Long Beach, California.  He taught there for two years, and then received an unusual  permission to pursue a Bachelor’s Degree in Fine Art at San Fernando Valley State College.  He completed the degree in 1970 and in the Fall of that year was assigned to teach at St. Francis High School,  Mountain View, California.  He relished the position that he was given:  Head of the Fine and Practical Arts Department. He remained at this  school  for five years, and earned a Master of Arts degree from the University of Notre Dame, studying during the summer months.  In the Summer of 1976,  he traveled in Europe on a 25th Jubilee trip. He also traveled on Jubilee trips in Europe on his 40th and 50th Jubilees.  On account of his art education, he visited many of the major art museums of Europe.

  

               Next, Bro. Carl applied to the University of Notre Dame for admission for the Master of Fine Arts,, and was accepted.   He worked at Notre Dame in the Mestrovic Studio using the pulleys on the ceiling for his work entitled “Coral Sea,” a sculpture made of cast polyester resin.

Rev. Theodore Hesburgh, CSC and Ivan Mestrovic, Artist

            
               In 1980, he was assigned to teach at Holy Cross High School, San Antonio, Texas, where he taught Art and Math classes.

              Then, in 1985, Bro. Carl was assigned to be housekeeper and Artist in Residence at St. Joseph Farm, Granger Indiana.  The old milk house became his studio because it was heated and was supplied with  running water.  Brother Carl now worked on a number of cast resin works until he could go to Chicago and seek out a gallery that would give him a "One-Man Show."  The Joy Horwich Gallery on Ontario Street opposite the Modern Art Museum  gave him a show in the Spring of 1990.  Only one sculpture sold, but it was a satisfaction to Bro. Carl.  The "Coral Sea" was also shown in a exhibit in the Elkhart Museum.

               The St. Joseph Farm was closing in the Summer of 1995, and Mrs. Lillian Tiedt, now a widow, had a stroke, so Brother received permission to take care of her.  He still continued to make cast resin sculptures and to exhibit at the Basedow Gallery in Stoughton, Wisconsin.  His mother, who worked as an account all her life, lived until she was almost 102 years old.

               Then Bro. Carl returned to the community house, St. Joseph Hall, on the campus of St. Edward’s  Universty, Austin, Texas, where he was able to continue to make art work in a separate room from his bedroom.  During this time, one of his works, “Exaltation," was accepted by the Provincial, Bro. Richard Critz, to adorn the atrium at the Provincial House.

               In 2006, Bro. Carl started to have congestion in his chest due to the toxicity of the polyester resin that he was using. Then, the macular degeneration of his eyes became severe and he moved to Bro. Vincent Pieau Residence.  Here, with the help of special glasses and bright light, he still continues to make craft work for the curio shop, “The Lucky Lizard,” on 6th Street in Austin.