Bethany (Betni) Ann Kalk, MFA

Department

Computer Science, Design and Journalism

Position

Associate Professor

Articles

• Culture
  Each sale of the book creates $10 in profit which goes back to the Sawiyano for education and medical needs. http://www.blurb.com/user/bethanykalk Near the border between West Papua and Papua New Guinea lives small group of approximately 800 people called the Sawiyano who speak their own unique language. They live in an area of mountains and swamps. They have been in contact with outsiders since World War II. Some Sawiyano learned to read and write in the short-lived government school at the airstrip and missionaries also taught literacy. Within the last 50 years, many things have changed in the tribe. Cannibalism was abolished. Tribal rivalries and fights have mostly stopped. Houses are no longer as high off the ground when fear of attack from other tribes was prevalent. Some tribe members adopted a new religion, a few continue to follow the old ways, while many mix a new faith with the ancestral traditions, myths and superstitions. Despite the changes, many old ways of the tumbuna (ancestors) continue, especially in regards to crafts. Except for a few nails, most houses are built using the main traditional methods and materials. Steel axes and bush knives now fell the trees instead of stone axes. Food is gathered and prepared in a similar manner each day as it was fifty years ago. 2013
• Nature
  “This book shows the beauty of the untamed landscape in the Daniel Boone National Forest area in Eastern KY, which is at the edge of Appalachia. The terrain is incredibly diverse with layers of rock, shale and limestone with creeks crisscrossing between the hollows of the many tree-covered hills and small mountains. Vines hang thick around the trees and the underbrush. This volume includes from photographs from landscapes around Rowan, Carter and Fleming County of Eastern KY.” Photos from Fall 2010-Spring 2011 2011

Publications

• Culture
  I returned to New Guinea in summer 2012 to create a book and documentary called “Sawiyano: Traditional Arts & Crafts.” I grew up in the tribe and was given permission by elders a few years ago to document their lives and traditions. It is the beginning of a life-long project to document traditions of indigenous groups in many parts of the world. I still have lots of research to do in order to create or join a non-profit and to find a publisher for the books and films. After two months in the East Province the production is 1/2 complete and I am in post-production of editing. I will return in summer 2015 for more footage. While there I also did basic medical work daily and taught English a couple days a week. Visit tumbuna.org for images and clips. 2016