Born in New York to a Filipino family, Jana Benitez had her first solo exhibition at age 12, quickly followed by her second solo show at age 14. She has also exhibited in New York, the Philippines and Berlin. Her works are included in important private and public collections in New Zealand and the Philippines, and has been featured in publications such as Art News and Asian Art News. She graduated magna cum laude from Brown University with a B.A. in visual arts in 2008, and has also studied martial arts at a Daoist temple in China.