Donna Spangler spoke on the art of fraktur, at the June 2025 Coffee Hour. Spangler is an artist who creates this unique form of Pennsylvania German artwork. She brought a number of examples of Fraktur to illustrate her talk.
Donna has lived most of her life surrounded by the beauty of the central Pennsylvania mountains and the heritage of the Pennsylvania German culture. It is easy to understand why the traditional fraktur designs—flowers, birds, vines and hearts—and the flowing letters of calligraphy have become so much a part of her life and art. “I became interested in the historic art of Fraktur as a hands-on way to blend two core interests in my life – art and history. The traditional designs of the 1700s are my inspiration.”
For several decades, Donna has enjoyed connecting today’s families with the past by creating lasting heirlooms of family trees, birth and wedding announcements, and inspirational verses that are cherished by people worldwide. She is recognized as Master Artisan by the Pennsylvania State Guild of Craftsmen and as a Traditional American Artisan by Early American Life Magazine.