Stef Shively is an artist, educator, mother, and spouse currently based in Virginia. She earned a BFA in Photography from SUNY New Paltz and an MFA in Studio Art from the University of South Carolina. Her work is fueled by her personal experiences and innermost fears, which she transforms into a universal visual language through a variety of mediums including book arts, photography, collage, sound, and installation. Shively is passionate about using art as a mechanism for social change and pushing the boundaries of photography. The current questions that drive her work stem from the intricacies of memory, family narrative, collective and individual identity. Shively has taught photography and various mediums at institutions across the country including the Santa Fe Boys & Girls Club in New Mexico, the Photographic Center Northwest in Seattle, WA, the University of South Carolina in Columbia, Jefferson Community College in Watertown, NY, and Wake Technical Community College and TC Artworks in Raleigh, NC.