Making Room

Cleveland, Ohio · 2026 · Concept & direction · Co-production · Place-based practice

Concept & direction · Co-production · Place-based practice

Making Room is an artist-led participatory project developed with residents across Cleveland’s Ward 8. Story circles, walkshops, shared tables, participatory theatre, sound and visual making create ways for people to meet, share knowledge and shape cultural activity together.

The work follows the neighbourhood as lived and imagined by the people who call it home: memories, everyday experiences, community histories and future possibilities. Food, conversation and time together are part of the creative process.

Contributing artists include Aawful Aaron, Kadijah Wingo, Benjamin Smith, Emmanuel Wallace, CARAMEL and Rebecca Groth. Working with local artists, residents, organisations and neighbourhood spaces, Naomi’s role spans concept and direction, cultural development, co-production and artist development.

The project develops through repeated encounters, experimentation and skill sharing. Stories, recordings, images and artwork can return to public life through exhibitions, music, performance and gatherings, allowing participants’ contributions to shape what happens next.

Two people beside the Splice-Cream Truck — Community engagement · 2026.

Printed poem: Life seems like it stops at every corner — Connection to place through poetry · 2026.

Participants in a shared writing activity — Local artists guide the work · 2026.

Printed poem: Where I’m From — Connection to place through poetry · 2026.

Participant holding a recording device — Capturing community conversations · 2026.

Participant with a painting of a house — Hough Fest · 2026.

Participants speaking and listening at Leo’s — Memory and musical heritage · 2026.

Collaborative writing on a long paper roll — Co-design of projects utilising local talent · 2026.

Making Room outdoor exhibition detail — Feedback loops and resident representation via local cultural venues · 2026.

Printed poem: I remember the smell of cypress trees — Connection to place through poetry · 2026.

Conversation at an outdoor gathering — Community discussion and debate · 2026.

Making Room · Film · 2026.

Making Room: music and shared conversation — Sampling resident voices to make music · 2026.

Printed work displayed outdoors — Sharing the results · 2026.

Conversation and recording beneath a yellow canopy — Keeping public conversation going · 2026.

Making Room facilitating artists — *Making Room* · Facilitating artists.

All works A Clearing ↗