Synopses & Reviews
John Bramblitt is an artist. His vibrant paintings have been sold in over twenty countries, and hes received three Presidential Service Awards for the art workshops he teaches. Hes painted portraits of skateboarder Tony Hawk and blues legend Pops Carter. Hes given talks about his work at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and there has even been a documentary film made about him. And . . . hes blind.
When Bramblitt was declared legally blind ten years ago due to complications with epilepsy, his hopes for his future shattered and he sank into a deep depression. Disconnected from family and friends, he felt alienated, angry, and alone. He felt invisible. But then something amazing happened—he discovered painting. He learned to distinguish between different colored paints by feeling their textures with his fingertips. He taught himself how to paint using raised lines to find his way around the canvas, and working for sixteen hours a day, month after month, he painted his way back to life. Now this method of haptic visualization, which enables him to “see” his subjects through touch, has allowed him to paint amazingly lifelike portraits of people hes never seen before—including his wife and son.
Shouting in the Dark is the story of Bramblitts life, his struggles with epilepsy, his race against time as he prepares for complete vision loss, and his determination to find a way out of the engulfing shadows of blindness. And ultimately it is the heartwarming story of how he rekindles his capacity for joy, hope, and relationships through art. Full of raw emotion, honesty, and humor, Bramblitt challenges readers to rethink their perceptions of blindness and what it means to truly see.
Review
“In this beautifully written memoir, portrait artist John Bramblitt tells us why being blind doesnt necessarily mean living in a world of darkness. His story is both inspirational and haunting, and readers will find themselves thinking about it long after the last page. It is one of those books you find yourself slowing down at the end just to make it last.” —Homer Hickam, Author,
Rocket Boys/October Sky “Shouting in the Dark is an incredibly inspiring story of courage and a triumph over what could have been a tragedy.”—Sheryl Berk, co-author of
Soul Surfer “Johns talent for creating emotion through his use of color and texture in his paintings is evident. He
successfully challenges peoples conceptions of blindness, ultimately finding that painting gives him a meaningful opportunity to connect to others.”
—Governor Rick Perry
Synopsis
An extraordinary and inspiring story of how a young man lost his sight and found his calling as an artist. This beautiful memoir also features a selection of the artist's work.
Synopsis
John Bramblitt makes his living as a visual artist. His works have been sold in over twenty different countries, and he's received three Presidential Service awards for the art workshops he teaches. He's painted portraits of skateboarder Tony Hawk and blues legend Pops Carter. He's given talks about his art at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and there has even been a documentary made about him. And . . . he's blind. When Bramblitt was declared legally blind ten years ago due to complications with epilepsy, his hopes of becoming a creative writing teacher were shattered and he sunk into a deep depression. He felt disconnected from family and friends, alienated and alone. But then something amazing happened--he discovered painting. He learned to distinguish between different colored paints by feeling their textures with his fingers. He taught himself how to paint using raised lines to help him find his way around the canvas, and through something called haptic visualization, which enables him to see his subjects through touch. He now paints amazingly lifelike portraits of people he's never seen--including his wife and son. Shouting in the Dark is the story of Bramblitt's life, his journey navigating through this new territory of blindness, and how he ultimately rekindles his joy, passion, and relationships through art.
Synopsis
John Bramblitt makes his living as a visual artist. His works have been sold in over twenty different countries, and hes received three Presidential Service awards for the art workshops he teaches. Hes painted portraits of skateboarder Tony Hawk and blues legend Pops Carter. Hes given talks about his art at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and there has even been a documentary made about him. And . . . hes blind.
When Bramblitt was declared legally blind ten years ago due to complications with epilepsy, his hopes of becoming a creative writing teacher were shattered and he sunk into a deep depression. He felt disconnected from family and friends, alienated and alone. But then something amazing happened--he discovered painting. He learned to distinguish between different colored paints by feeling their textures with his fingers. He taught himself how to paint using raised lines to help him find his way around the canvas, and through something called haptic visualization, which enables him to "see" his subjects through touch. He now paints amazingly lifelike portraits of people he's never seen--including his wife and son. Shouting in the Dark is the story of Bramblitt's life, his journey navigating through this new territory of blindness, and how he ultimately rekindles his joy, passion, and relationships through art.
About the Author
John Bramblitt is an artist whose work has been sold in over twenty countries. He has appeared on CBS Evening News with Katie Couric, ABC, and BBC Radio, and he's been featured in The New York Times and Psychology Today. He's the subject of the documentary short “Bramblitt.”