If you look closely at any printed or digital materials produced by the Bucks County Symphony Orchestra, you will find a “handsome line drawing” of three intertwined instruments—a violin, a bassoon, and a French horn. Whenever possible you will also see a name adjacent to the instruments: Katharine Steele Renninger.

The original pen-and-ink drawing first graced the front of the BCSO’s fall concert program on November 3, 1956, and has been featured on nearly all program covers since that time. It has also appeared on various types of BCSO promotional materials, stationery, and online sites.

Mrs. Renninger was a highly-acclaimed artist who lived most of her life in Bucks County. A graduate of and later a teacher at Moore College of Art in Philadelphia, her works have been exhibited in numerous museums and institutes throughout Pennsylvania and adjacent states. Her paintings are included in the permanent collections of several galleries in Pennsylvania and New Jersey, including the James A. Michener Art Museum in Doylestown. An active supporter of the arts in Bucks County, the subjects of her work typically focused on Bucks County architecture and artifacts, and she was presented both the Central Bucks Chamber of Commerce’s Bucks County Art Award and the Distinguished Pennsylvania Artist Award in 1975. Among the prestigious honors she received was a Purchase Prize from the American Academy of Arts and Letters in 1978.

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The BCSO is grateful for this unique legacy from such a distinguished local artist, and is proud to maintain a special connection to this day. We are indebted to Mrs. Renninger for her lasting gift to our Society, and appreciate the service of her husband, John (Jack) Renninger, who served on the BCSS board of directors in the 1960’s, and her daughters, Molly (violin) and Sally (cello), who played in the BCSO during their high school years.

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