PRESS RELEASE
June 9, 2011
Denita Benyshek, MA ’04 – Saybrook Master’s Recipient and Current Doctoral Student
Although Denita Benyshek recently started work on her doctoral dissertation in psychology, she is rapidly becoming an internationally recognized scholar on contemporary artists and shamanism.
Her research will be printed this year in the 12 volume Encyclopedia of Shamanism being published in Beijing, China.
Denita’s chapters, Art Audience as Shamanic Community and An Overview of Western Ideas Regarding the Artist as Shaman, will be in the second volume, Modern Artists and Shamanism. The chapters are currently being translated into Chinese.
Denita will present her research on the shamanistic art audience at the 28th International Conference for the Society for the Study of Shamanism, Healing, and Transformation.
September 3 – 5, 2011
Santa Sabina Retreat Center
San Rafael, California
(see http://shamanismconference.org ).
Denita will also make two presentations, A Critical Overview of Western Literature on the Artist as Shaman and Preliminary Research Report on the Contemporary Artist as Shaman: How Some Artists Fulfill Constructs Defining Shaman, at the 10th Conference of the International Society of Shamanistic Research, Shamanhood and its Art.
October 5 – 9, 2011
Ethnographic Museum
Warsaw, Poland
(see http://ethnomuseum.website.pl/en/doc_883-_the-10th-conference-of-the-international-society-for-shamanistic-research.html?srchMode=catalogue).
Denita Benyshek is a professional artist, cross-disciplinary scholar, and doctoral candidate at Saybrook University. She earned an MFA-painting, an MA-psychology, and a graduate certificate in creative studies. Her creative work includes over 70 exhibits, numerous collections, multi-media performances, theatre, choreography, and poetry. She teaches courses in psychology and humanities at the University of Phoenix and provides psychotherapy for artists and creative individuals.