This article was published in the fall 2026 issue of The Vincentian, the quarterly newsletter of the Congregation of the Mission Western Province.
Bro. Mark Elder, C.M., who has taught art at DePaul University for 33 years, was named Top Art Educator for 2026 by the International Association of Top Professionals, a global elite networking organization based in New York.
The award will be formally presented to him in New York in December, along with 49 other recipients in various categories. Bro. Mark said he considers it an honor and a privilege.
“This award will allow more doors to open for my ministry,” he said.
Bro. Mark, who has graduate art degrees from Fontbonne University in St. Louis and the University of Denver, has created more than 40 murals, including at the Congregation of the Mission Curia in Rome, as well as at a variety of locations throughout the U.S.
“Each time, I bring students with me so they can learn what the art is all about,” he said.
The award coincides with the 25th anniversary of his most famous work, “We Are DePaul,” a 75-foot-tall mural of St. Vincent de Paul overlooking Wish Field on the campus of DePaul University. The mural is so named because it is made up of hundreds of faces of students, faculty, and staff at DePaul.
The university will celebrate the anniversary on Oct. 1, and he will also be recognized at the men’s and women’s soccer games on Oct. 2 and 3.
“You look at it from a distance and see St. Vincent, but when you’re up close, you can see the faces it is made up of, and that is a revelation to people,” Bro. Mark said. “We all represent Vincent to the world these days.”