The Cloister Gallery at Grace Cathedral is intended to provide a space for the celebration of the fine arts and to encourage awareness of the deep connections between creativity and spirituality. In keeping with the long-established appreciation of the fine arts in the Anglican spiritual tradition, the Gallery seeks to help people cultivate a fulsome awareness of the relationship between creative expression and human thriving.
The Gallery has been open since 1996, and has hosted shows consisting of a variety of media including paintings, drawings, photography, fabric arts, and mixed media. The Gallery schedule typically consists of shows dedicated to works by a single artist. Shows usually rotate on a monthly basis. Artists of all styles and backgrounds are invited and encouraged to consider displaying their work at the Gallery.
The Gallery is situated next to the spacious atrium in the Cloister Building between the Cathedral and Cathedral Hall. The Gallery itself is in an enclosed hall that runs east and west, with ample natural and artificial lighting. Track lighting fixtures focused on individual display space utilize Light Emitting Diode (LED) technology and may be adjusted using a dimmer switch. The large windows on the north wall of the Gallery provide a view of the Cathedral’s landscaped Close without allowing direct sunlight into the Gallery space itself. The Gallery is approximately 61’ long, 7’ wide, and 8’ high. The walls of the Gallery are composed of the unfinished limestone blocks used throughout the Cathedral. Artwork can be displayed in between the windows and doors on both north and south walls utilizing suspended rods with stabilizer bars. The Gallery can accommodate a maximum of 16 framed images (see Guidelines below for maximum widths) and a more limited number of three-dimensional works, depending on their size.
The Cloister Gallery is open to the public during business hours or from 8 a.m. – noon on Sunday. Please call ahead for open office hours. Visitors and touring groups are welcome, and there is no fee for admission. The Cathedral is located at 701 SW 8th Ave. in Topeka, Kansas.
Welcome Spring! The april exhibit features oil pastels and Prismcolor drawings by Lois van Liew.
Celebrating Easter and the month of April, flowers by Lois Van Liew will be on display in the Cloister Gallery. Lois’s work has been on display previously – she had two exhibits in the gallery in 2025, featuring silk paintings in May and prairie scenes in October. Lois was featured in an article by Maria Henry Goff in the Winter 2026 publication of Amazing Aging:
“In November, 2025, Grace Cathedral commemorated the fiftieth anniversary of a fire set by an arsonist that nearly destroyed it. When someone at the cathedral asked Lois if she could paint fire, she said she had painted prairie fires. She did significant research into the fire, its cause and subsequent rebuilding of the cathedral and says she really “tuned into fire” when she read the book Grace Cathedral, which the church published about the horrific event. Also, as she was preparing to paint the cathedral on fire, she noticed the sunflowers in her garden which included a red sunflower among the customary yellow and gold flowers. “The petals looked like flames,” Lois says, “and the colors were the same. It took me only half a day to do the painting. It kind of painted itself. God is the creator and when you tune into that . . . . The arsonist thought he had done away with the church but instead he released the energy and love that was there when they built the church.” Her magnificent painting of the fire consuming the cathedral — appropriately titled Point of Resurrection — demonstrates that she can indeed paint fire.” (Goff, 2026, p. 7, 10)
Point of Resurrection was gifted to Grace Cathedral by the artist and is on permanent display in the foyer.
Lois Van Liew passed away peacefully in February. Her daughter Valerie has agreed to facilitate her third exhibit (which had been arranged prior to Lois’ passing). This exhibit features oil pastels and Prismacolor drawings of flowers, a beautiful tribute to spring. Her daughter is also making available coffee mugs that feature the Point of Resurrection fire painting, as well as other items, through Quest Legacy. There is a link on display in the Cloister Gallery for your consideration.
Exhibiting Guidelines
The following guidelines are intended to help those preparing to show their art at the Cloister Gallery organize their work and plan their exhibit.
The Gallery displays only original works; reproductions and prints are not accepted with the exception of glice prints of the artist’s original works. There is space for 16 pieces with the following maximum width dimensions: four 24”, six 36”, and six 42”. Artists are encouraged to select works around a particular theme.
Exhibits are normally installed prior to the first Sunday of the month and are normally taken down following the last Sunday of that same month. Artists are encouraged to be present when their work is being both installed and taken down.
The Gallery will provide all hardware necessary for hanging two-dimensional works; additional hardware is not to be used. Artists are requested to use braided or stainless steel wire for hanging. Stands and pedestals for three-dimensional works are not available and must be provided by the artist. No adhesives of any kind may be used to secure items to the walls throughout the Gallery.
Artists are to email digital images of the works in the exhibit, a personal digital image of the artist, biographical information, and a list of each work with information such as the title, the media, dimensions, date of composition, and price. The Gallery will prepare printed material with this information for distribution during the exhibit.
Promotional information (brochures, catalogs, business cards, etc.) and a guest book may also be left by artists in the Gallery for the duration of their exhibit.
Artists are invited to attend a Sunday 10:30 am worship service at the Cathedral during the course of their exhibit to meet the community and give Cathedral members a chance to welcome them and ask questions about their work. It is also possible to schedule an opening reception, but all arrangements must be made by the artist and coordinated with the Cathedral’s calendar.
Grace Cathedral uses security procedures during its hours of operation, as well as an alarm and security service overnight but cannot be responsible for works that are damaged, destroyed, or stolen. Artists are encouraged to insure their works prior to bringing them to the Gallery.
Patrons interested in purchasing works displayed in the Gallery will be provided with contact information for the artist, and all sales will be negotiated directly by the artist and the patron. At the end of their exhibit, artists are encouraged to make a contribution of approximately 15% of all sales made during the course of the exhibit to Grace Cathedral. Grace Cathedral uses these voluntary contributions to defray costs incurred during the exhibit (if any) and for the purpose of outreach ministry in the Topeka area.