1-888-385-6866
cwoman@mcn.org
About Wisdom House Gallery
and Shiloh Sophia McCloud
Wisdom House Gallery features the sacred art of Visionary Artist, Reverend Shiloh Sophia McCloud.
Shiloh Sophia McCloud, woman artist, illustrator, poet and teacher, founded Wisdom House Gallery with her beloved husband Isaiah McCloud over eight years ago. The gallery, formerly called Color of Woman, represented the works of hundreds of women artists and authors. The gallery, now features two artists, Shiloh, and her teacher and mentor, Sue Hoya Sellars.
Shiloh is a California native, while her family of origin is Russian. She has been painting and teaching full time for ten years. She started what she calls “her real art” thirteen years ago on a hill top in Anderson Valley under the mentorship of Sue Sellars.
The gallery features Shiloh’s original works of transformational art - acrylic paintings on wood and canvas, which she refers to as icons, or sacred art. What makes her artwork ‘sacred art’ is that she creates her visionary paintings in prayer, in a state of devotion. She visions the healing of the world while she is painting, she sets her intention for beauty, wellness, wisdom, peace and possibility and focuses on it while she is painting.
When people view her work, they may experience her prayers, or it may speak to a prayer or vision within them. The paintings often represent a moment in life, where the figure in the painting feels at peace, whole, well, and like life is possible! Through viewing and living with her art, people often say that the painting reminds them of their own beauty, their own ability to live a good life, to be at peace, and to honor themselves.
Shiloh has also self published over five Color of Woman journals, which are creativity tools for women’s empowerment. Her art is also featured in greeting cards, illumination prints with her images and poetry, fine art prints and gicle’es on canvas. The gallery also has a wonderful selection of handmade jewelry, sacred hearts and milagro based art from Mexico and Peru.
Artist Shiloh McCloud teaches and facilitates transformational painting workshops based on art as a spiritual practice. She believes all of us are blessed with creativity, and that given the opportunity and the safe space to create, we will bring forth truths and visions we did not even think we were capable of. She also teaches women’s workshops on visionary business for women entrepreneurs. She believes that a female business paradigm, where choices are made based on the well being of people and the earth - is well on it’s way and will help to usher in a more holistic way of living our lives. And, where art and creativity are a part of every person’s path.
Her images focus on mother and child, lovers, Mama Mary, friendship between women, medicine women, dancers, Virgin de Guadalupe, Angels, storytellers, healers, Saints, sisterhood, women at play and at rest, and most of all, visionaries. Her visionary paintings are of women and men who are in the midst of realizing a dream or vision - the actual moment when we “see” our path clearly. “I love to help people see their own possibility - the paintings help them to see that in themselves. We all need love, peace and creativity to thrive - and often we find ourselves settling for a life that does not reflect who we truly are. My paintings are a reminder to not let go of your dream - your hope - your desire - your vision- your faith.
Reverend Shiloh is a Christian mystic, and a minister of arts at First Congregational Church of Oakland. She teaches about the Divine Feminine within the Christian path and works to illuminate Jesus’ relationship with women in the scripture through her ministry, Holy Counsel of Women which is a women’s vision circle that has been running for three years. She has also taught for five years at New College of California, art as sacred practice and visionary business for women.
Some new projects include Cosmic Cowgirls Ink, a woman and girl owned publishing company that Shiloh founded with twenty five other women. They are currently working a Rites of Passage book for teenage girls, a book on visionary business for women, and a breast cancer journal. Shiloh says that this work, positive independent media, will be what she spends the rest of her life working on.
Shiloh always has many amazing publishing projects in the works! She has also just completed a publishing project with Alice Walker, featuring Alice Walker’s poetry paired with Shiloh McCloud images. Recently, her mother, Caron McCloud finished her first book, Rachels’ Bag, In Search of the Cabalah of Our Mothers, and Shiloh did the illustrations and cover. She is also featured in WeMoon, and on the cover of the 2008 Sage Woman Calendar.
Shiloh is one of the mothers of the sacred arts movement, and believes that her art will be a catalyst in transforming the way that image informs our perceptions of ourselves. “If women and girls cannot see themselves in a positive light, and practice self honor --- how then can they truly act on their own behalf? How can they speak their truth? And create healthy families? Build a brighter future? And, if we do not see the Feminine Divine in God - how then can we imagine a loving parent as the Creator of the Universe? “
We Celebrate Art Committed With the Intention to Bring Beauty, Healing, Goodness and Inspiration!
SACRED ART - VISIONARY ART - TRANSFORMATIONAL ART - ART AS SACRED PRACTICE
All Images and text within this website are copywritten by Wisdom House Gallery and Shiloh Sophia McCloud, 2007. Please do not print images or reproduce in any form. Thank you!
