September 20, 2013

Transformation Through the Arts: Panel and Discussion

“And so it is with the hand that guides the crayon or brush, the foot that executes the dance step, with the eye and ear, with the word and thought: a dark (unconscious) impulse is the ultimate arbiter of the pattern, an unconscious a priori precipitates itself into plastic form… Over the whole procedure there seems to reign and dim foreknowledge not only of the pattern but of its meaning. Image and meaning are identical; and as the first takes shape, so the latter becomes clear.” C. G. Jung

Dr. Carl Jung was one of the first pioneers in the field of psychology to promote the healing power of the arts. In this presentation, four local specialists in the field of music, writing, visual arts, and movement, will join together to speak about the transformative experience of a dialogue with the unconscious through the medium of the arts, Jung’s preferred method. After individual presentations, the panel will invite questions from the audience.

Simone Alter Muri, Ph.D., L.M.H.C., A.C.T.S., holds a doctorate in Creative Behavior and Early Childhood Development. She is a Board Certified Art Therapist and the Director and Founder of the Art Therapy Programs at Springfield College. She has published presented and exhibited her art internationally.

Patricia Lee Lewis, M.F.A., has a masters degree in Creative Writing from the Vermont College of Fine Arts and a B.A. from Smith College. She leads creative writing retreats at Patchwork Farm in western MA and internationally.

Erica Lorentz, M.Ed., L.P.C., Jungian Analyst (IAAP) practices in Northampton, MA and Brattleboro, VT. She is a training analyst and on the training board of the Jung Institute of Boston. Since the 1980s she has lectured and taught workshops in the US and Canada. She has been an adjunct faculty member at Antioch New England, Keene, NH.

Bob Weiner is a drummer/percussionist interested in improvisation as contemplative practice (being in the moment, listening, expressing). He has studied and performed many kinds of music from around the world with Harry Belafonte, Andy Statman, Bob Moses, Kenny Werner, and (an unforgettable night) with Tiny Tim. He teaches privately and around the 5 Colleges in Amherst, MA.

October 4, 2013

Maggie Bromell: Holding the Opposites: Readings of Life, Love, and Desire on Nisos

In her book, NISOS, about a Greek island she and her family have known for over fifty years, Maggie brings to life for the readers’ imagination, stories of love and desire. The book also draws us into the life of the island as it persists, guarded by its range of mountains and the sea. After her reading, she will discuss the psychological power of Jung’s practice of “holding the opposites” as portrayed by her beautiful descriptions of the island community. A book review states, “The sun shines down on this book.”

Maggie Bromell, M.A., Jungian Analyst (IAAP) holds a Masters degree in English-American Literature from the American University in Cairo, Egypt and a Masters degree in Education from Boston University. She graduated from the Jung Institute of Boston and practices in Northampton, MA.

November 1, 2013

Deborah Gregory: Personal, Collective, and Archetypal Dynamisms of Money

Many people have openly questioned the motivations of the men and women within the financial world who have been deemed responsible for the financial crisis that has caused suffering and chaos globally since 2008. As with previous financial calamities, the greediness of Wall Street bankers is often cited. The callousness and unwillingness of investment bankers, among others, to take responsibility in this crisis has prompted some to suggest that financial psychopaths are to blame. By exploring the personal, collective and archetypal dynamisms of money, we can develop a deeper understanding of the role each of us plays in the money culture of today.

Deborah W. Gregory, Ph.D., C.F.A., is a Jungian Analyst (IAAP) and finance professor.  Her current research focuses on linking psychoanalytic and financial theories. She is a member of the New England Society of Jungian Analysts and the Boston Security Analysts Society.

December 6, 2013

Thayer Greene: Psychological Reflections of an Aging Combat Veteran

Since 500BC for every year of peace in the world there have been fourteen years of war. My goal in this lecture is convey to the deeply personal experience of the combat soldier with all of the emotions of terror, shame, excitement, loyalty and bonding with others that create the mixture of cowardice and courage involved in the business of killing or being killed under extreme physical conditions. A brief clip from the Omaha Beach landing will provide us with the best representation of the chaos and horror of extreme combat experience. I shall give a number of psychological observations on individual and group experiences of war on a day-to-day reality. Beyond the individual experience lies the archetype of war itself.

Thayer Greene, Ph.D., is a graduate of the Jung Institute of New York, and a training analyst at the Jung Institute of Boston. He has a private practice in Amherst.

January 10, 2014

Richard Trousdell: Death and Necessity at the Threshold of New Life

Facing death’s necessity is never easy, but Jung suggests psychological approaches to it that may help. We will look at such approaches in fact and fiction: first in an ancient play, the delightful Alcestis of Euripides, and then in the journal of a modern woman who faced death through her dreams.  Both the ancient play and the modern dreamer suggest ways to approach death as a fulfillment as well as a necessity.

Richard Trousdell, D.F.A., is a Jungian Analyst (IAAP) in Northampton, MA and Professor Emeritus of Theater at UMASS-Amherst.  His paper on traumatic hero/victim roles in tragedy and modern life is available in Ancient Greece, Modern Psyche, Spring Journal Books (2011).

February 7, 2014

Anita Greene: Contempt/Shame

Of the archetypal affects universal to human beings, extreme shame is, perhaps, the most toxic as well as the most human of all the emotions. Lewis Stewart, who reassessed Jung’s thoughts about affects, believes that contempt and shame belong together as two sides of the same bipolar emotional dynamic, depending on whether one is on the giving or receiving end. Both are the human response to alienation and rejection.  Contempt in its extreme form exudes a deprecating superiority, similar to today’s bullying. Shame, in its extreme form obliterates a sense of self-worth and authenticity.  Clinical examples will demonstrate how this bipolar dynamic operates in all of us.

Anita Greene, Ph.D., Jungian Analyst and Rubenfeld Synergist is a graduate of the New York Jung Institute and teaches at the Boston Jung Institute. She has a private practice in Amherst.

March 7, 2014

Erica Lorentz: Dreams: Inner Teaching Stories

“The dream is a little hidden door in the innermost recesses of the soul, opening into that cosmic night which was psyche long before there was any ego consciousness.” C.G. Jung

Dreams have guided us since time immemorial. Scientists and creative individuals look to them for inspiration. In this lecture, we will explore how these inner teaching stories invite us to reflect on our conscious attitudes and actions that have become outmoded. Dreams have very specific information to help us rebalance the psyche and to grow psychologically and spiritually. Case material and a video will illustrate how dreams can guide us towards deep transformation on both the personal and archetypal levels.

Erica Lorentz, M.Ed., L.P.C., Jungian Analyst (IAAP) has a practice in Northampton, MA and Brattleboro, VT. She is a training analyst and on the training board of the Jung Institute of Boston. Since the 1980’s she has lectured and taught workshops in the US and Canada. She has been an adjunct faculty member at Antioch New England, Keene, NH.

 April 4, 2014

Ira Sharkey: Tantalus: On Recognition and Psychic Nourishment

Jung equated psychic health with the capacity for dialogue between the conscious and unconscious parts of the psyche. At birth, this capacity is only an innate potential requiring a caregiver’s responsive attentiveness to the child’s affective experience if it is to develop and mature. The portrayal of Demeter as devouring due to her distractedness in the Greek story of Tantalus reflects the importance of the role of attention in creating a relational environment that supports psychological development and nurtures individual growth. The aim of the talk is to elaborate this theme in relation to Jung’s thoughts concerning psychotherapy, and to the topic of psychotherapy in general.

Ira Sharkey, M.F.A., L.M.H.C., Jungian Analyst (IAAP) is a graduate of the C. G. Jung Institute-Zurich. He serves as both instructor and supervisor at the C. G. Jung Institute – Boston. He is in private practice in Amherst, MA.

May 2, 2014

William Ventimiglia: Ambition, Limitation, and the Desire for a Significant Life

What does it mean to live a significant life?  What gives a human life value in the dynamic tension between ego ambition on the one hand and realistic limitation on the other?  Or to pose our questions a little differently: do our individual efforts to live up to our own potential— however great or limited our natural gifts and real-world circumstances may be— really count for much in the grand scheme of things?  Through lecture and discussion, we will have an opportunity to engage with this eternal searching after our personal raison d’être.

William Ventimiglia, D.Min., Jungian Analyst (IAAP), is a graduate of the C.G. Jung Institute of Zurich, Switzerland.   He is a past-president of the Training Board of the C.G. Jung Institute of Boston and the New England Society of Jungian Analysts.  He has a private practice in Cambridge and Topsfield, MA.