Reframing Your History: Storytelling with Shelli Reeves

Guided by the question, “Who are the dream keepers in Cleveland?” Abigail DeVille’s installation at The Sculpture Center, "The Dream Keeper," tells the story of Cleveland and its foundations as a city and community. Specifically focusing on the histories of Black and Indigenous people of Cleveland, DeVille lifts the narratives of storytellers who have been overshadowed in mainstream documented history of the city. These “Keepers of Culture” as DeVille calls them, are the people who have kept the stories of the city alive. Master storyteller and Keeper of Culture, Shelli Reeves, invites you to share your history.

In this workshop, Shelli Reeves will guide you through developing your personal narrative with a focus on community.

Shelli Reeves has dedicated her life to breaking down barriers and building community. She uses innovative ways to start conversations about social determinants of health, and economic inequities while focusing on community, society, and policy. Her activism has led her to do work within museums, media, and political campaigns.

Shelli is also the Founder and CEO of Reframe History which is an organization dedicated to keeping stories alive through archiving the past, recording the present, and advocating for the future. Specifically, she does this by building a virtual African American Museum that is accessible through a Black history app where people can learn and share stories. Shelli also produces short-form documentaries that bring the same standard of public media storytelling to neighborhood stories.

When Shelli is not creating exhibitions and sharing stories, she is tending to her 27 plants and teaching yoga throughout Cleveland.