Rituals | Sheila Collins

Pittsburgh Understands the Art of Grieving and Practices it Well

by Sheila Collins | Oct 26, 2023 | Art & Life, Institutional Loss, Noteworthy men, Past Events, Personal Stories, Resilience, Rituals, The Art of Grieving, Uncategorized

It was the spring of 2018. A group of leaders, educational institutions, and non-profits in Pittsburgh began working together to bring to Pittsburgh some of the 70 restored string instruments played by Jewish musicians before and during the Holocaust. They wanted...

How the Arts Help Us Grieve

by Sheila Collins | Aug 24, 2023 | Art & Life, Celebrations, Community, Duality, Environment, Family, Gatherings, Grieving, Personal Stories, Rituals

I’m in that stage of life when family gatherings are more likely to occur around funerals and memorial services than weddings, holidays, or birth celebrations. We family members promised one another at the recent gathering for my sister’s funeral that we’ll plan and...

Designing Environmental Supports for Our Grieving

by Sheila Collins | May 10, 2023 | Environment, Good Will Come, Grieving, Health, Health and Wellness, Rituals, Self-Care

In 1987, when my husband and I were founding Iatreia Institute for the Healing Arts, a group practice mental health clinic in Texas, it was my responsibility to design and arrange the physical space to best serve what was to transpire there. I met with a design...

How to Handle that “Merry and Bright” Time of Year

by Sheila Collins | Dec 22, 2022 | Art & Life, Celebrations, Christianity, Community, Duality, Family, Gatherings, Our Children, Past Events, Personal Stories, Rituals

Articles on “getting through the holidays” proliferate this time of year in newspapers, magazines, and online newsletters. Their appeal is to those who have lost someone special in the past year and who now must face familiar family rituals that will seem anything but...

The Arts and the Queen’s Funeral – Part Two

by Sheila Collins | Sep 21, 2022 | Community, Family, Gatherings, Grieving, History, Rituals, Story-telling, The Art of Grieving, the Big Body, Uncategorized, Women, Girls & the Feminine

In honor of Queen Elizabeth II, the world experienced how the arts can be used to celebrate life, and in this case, perhaps unite the world — even for a moment. A funeral’s purpose is to create an experience for the participants and witnesses. The arts are...

The Art of Grieving for Children of any Age

by Sheila Collins | Sep 7, 2022 | Art & Life, Celebrations, Family, Gatherings, Grieving, Our Children, pets, Rituals, The Art of Grieving, the Big Body

As I was walking my dog Cody one morning this summer, he started to pay attention to something underneath one of the bushes that line a communal driveway in our neighborhood. Looking over at the spot I identified a small rock and a feather, and moving closer,...

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Learn the Many, Magical Ways Art Transforms Grieving!

(No art skills required.)

Loss is inevitable, yet too often we bury our grief, pretending we're OK when we're not.

In my new book (COMING SOON), I'll share some uncommon notions about grief and how the arts, and art-making, have transformative powers that take us to the heart of the matter.

Pittsburgh Understands the Art of Grieving and Practices it Well

How the Arts Help Us Grieve

Designing Environmental Supports for Our Grieving

How to Handle that “Merry and Bright” Time of Year

The Arts and the Queen’s Funeral – Part Two

The Art of Grieving for Children of any Age

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