Sheila K Collins PhD

Sheila K Collins PhD

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
817 706-4967

I am here to reimagine...

Grieving is a life-long art we need to get good at. The arts, whether performed on our behalf, or by our own art-making are powerful tools to help us transform the pain of loss, and together –ourselves, and the larger world.

My Story

After an early career as a professional dancer I became a social worker, therapist, and social work professor. When my own life handed me so many invitations to grieve–I turned to the arts and they did not disappoint. I published a book about my experiences accompanying two of my adult children and my best friend through serious illnesses and death and was surprised that many people seemed afraid ...
After an early career as a professional dancer I became a social worker, therapist, and social work professor. When my own life handed me so many invitations to grieve–I turned to the arts and they did not disappoint. I published a book about my experiences accompanying two of my adult children and my best friend through serious illnesses and death and was surprised that many people seemed afraid to read it. This put me on a several yearlong path writing weekly blogs and researching how grief got such a bad reputation. This has resulted in my upcoming book, The Art of Grieving: How Art and Art-Making Help Us to Live Our Best Lives and my offering a five week course on Reimagine based on the book. Since 2006 I have directed and performed with the Wing & A Prayer Pittsburgh Players, an InterPlay-based improvisational troupe, often responding to topics of grief and loss.

Upcoming Reimagine events

Reimagine Events

InterPlay Radical Self & Community Care

Join us for an hour of playful body wisdom, exformation, and radical self-care tools & techniques taught by two dancing social workers. Learn & practice the five skills of Self-Care. *InterPlay Event.
Tue. March 26
Zoom
8:30 AM - 9:30 AM
$0 - $50

InterPlay Radical Self & Community Care

Join us for an hour of playful body wisdom, exformation, and radical self-care tools & techniques taught by two dancing social workers. Learn & practice the five skills of Self-Care. *InterPlay Event.
Tue. March 19
Zoom
8:30 AM - 9:30 AM
$0 - $50

The Art of Grieving Series - Visual Arts

Journey with author Sheila K Collins and visiting artists, through a 5 week series on The Art of Grieving playing with powerful art-based tools to transform the pain of loss. Join us for one or all.
Thu. April 04
Zoom
4:30 PM - 5:45 PM
$0 - $50

The Art of Grieving Series - Combining Arts for Artful Life

Journey with author Sheila K Collins and visiting artists, through a 5-week series on The Art of Grieving playing with powerful art-based tools to transform the pain of loss. Join us for one or all.
Sun. May 05
Zoom
2:30 PM - 3:45 PM
$0 - $50

The Art of Grieving Series - Music

Journey with author Sheila K Collins and visiting artists, through a 5-week series on The Art of Grieving playing with powerful art-based tools to transform the pain of loss. Join us for one or all.
Thu. April 18
Zoom
4:30 PM - 5:45 PM
$0 - $50

The Art of Grieving Series - Dance

Journey with author Sheila K Collins and visiting artists, through a 5-week series on The Art of Grieving playing with powerful art-based tools to transform the pain of loss. Join us for one or all.
Thu. March 21
Zoom
4:30 PM - 5:45 PM
$0 - $50

Previous Reimagine events