John Bramblitt

2007, B.A.A.S.
New York Times article
North Texan article
Website: John Bramblitt

John Bramblitt, a renowned artist from Denton, Texas, has achieved international acclaim with his work sold in over 120 countries. His art has been featured in various media outlets, including CBS Evening News with Katie Couric, ABC, NBC, FOX, Discovery Channel, and BBC Radio and TV. His creations have graced the pages of The New York Times and Psychology Today, and he has designed artwork for numerous magazine covers and major film productions. Bramblitt's inspiring journey has been captured in the award-winning documentary shorts "Line of Sight" and “Bramblitt.” His contributions have earned him significant recognition, including YouTube's ‘Most Inspirational Video of 2008' and three Presidential Service Awards for his innovative art workshops. Notably, Bramblitt is blind.

Bramblitt is also the author of the award-winning book "Shouting in the Dark," which chronicles his life, his navigation through blindness, and how he rekindled his joy, passion, and relationships through art. He currently consults museums on developing inclusive programs for people of all abilities.

Before losing his vision, Bramblitt studied at the University of North Texas in Denton, where he graduated with honors. In 2001, due to complications from epilepsy and Lyme disease, he lost his sight, shattering his dreams of becoming a creative writing teacher and plunging him into a deep depression. Feeling disconnected from his loved ones, he discovered painting. By distinguishing paint colors through texture and using raised lines and haptic visualization, he taught himself to create lifelike portraits of people he had never seen, including his wife and son.

Art became a transformative force in Bramblitt's life. His intensely personal paintings often depict real people and events from his life. His unique workshops bridge the gap between beginner and professional artists and incorporate adaptive techniques for individuals with disabilities. Bramblitt believes, “Everyone has an artist somewhere in them; sometimes they just need a little help letting it out.”

One of the last things John Bramblitt saw before losing his eyesight was the detail of Saturn’s rings in a UNT astronomy lab. Then, he found a new way to explore the world. He began to paint.

When John Bramblitt (’07) completely lost his vision during his freshman year at UNT in 2001, he turned to painting, sometimes spending 16 hours a day at a canvas in addition to attending classes.

“I started to understand the world a little better and think through the depression and frustration,” says Bramblitt, who has battled epilepsy since he was a toddler and believes seizures destroyed his vision. “It forced me to step outside myself and start living in the moment.”

The idea of drawing seemed ridiculous at first, he says, but expressing himself on a canvas was easier at the time than dealing with the three-dimensional world.

“When I paint, I can’t think of anything else — not the next brushstroke, bills I have to pay or a seizure from that morning,” he says.

Using white paint, Bramblitt first draws an outline, then feels his way across the raised edges to paint each color. Most of his works are created with oil paint because each color texture varies in consistency — for instance, he says white is thicker and creamier than black.

“Every emotion I had and thing I touched started to have color because it reminded me of a color I painted with,” he says.

Among his subjects are musicians, street scenes and animals. He says he drew a lot of dogs before getting his guide dog, Echo. He also once arranged a meeting with skateboarder Tony Hawk just to study his face for a painting.

“I see with my hands and am able to take in a lot more information,” Bramblitt says. “I think I have an advantage over sighted artists because I’m completely there, touching the model, asking questions and getting an emotional response.”

During the past eight years, Bramblitt has created more than 100 paintings, which have sold in 20 countries. The 2008 CAP awards, a Dutch awards program honoring the achievements of individuals with disabilities, commissioned him to paint famous Dutch model Reni de Boer, and the prime minister honored his work.

Bramblitt and his wife, Jacqi Serie (’02), production director for the North Texas Daily campus newspaper, celebrated the birth of their first child, Jack, in March 2008. The family travels around the country, hosting and teaching workshops for blind and sighted children, adults and artists.

Bramblitt, whose once daily seizures have drastically reduced in number and severity, credits his perseverance to graduate to the staff in UNT’s Ronald E. McNair Post-baccalaureate Achievement Program. The program guides undergraduate students into graduate study.

“They are brilliant. If not for the constant encouragement of Diana Elrod (director) and Judy Morris (former director) when I was losing my sight, I would have dropped out of school,” he says.

Instead, Bramblitt is planning to return to UNT for graduate school. And he had his first flying lesson this summer as part of a long-term plan to use colored smoke to create abstract art in the air.

“I’m obsessed with painting,” he says. “In expressing myself, connecting with people, it’s become the way I see the world.”