Photography by Blind Teenagers

Art & Artists

Artist: Seeing Beyond Sight, Photographs by Blind Teenagers

Seeing Beyond Sight, Photographs by Blind Teenagers is a collection of photographs and stories over the course of five years at Governor Morehead School for the Blind in Raleigh, North Carolina. The project not only taught blind students the art of photography but also redefined how the world "sees."

Photo by Katy, age 13, low vision This is kind of silly, but when I was eight, my mom was gonna have a baby. I pretended the little doll was acting the way I acted when I was jealous. I didn't like it that she was bringing someone else in the family. It's not just gonna be me anymore. The baby came, and I really liked it. And the doll said, "It's not bad havin' a baby around." And that's how I felt. —melody

Photo by John C, age 15, no visionJohn's older brother, Jason, says that he still lifts weights because of John-- Jason didn't want to loose fights to his younger brother, so he asked John to teach him weightlifting. John passed away at age twenty-three of acute respiratory failure after battling Batten disease.

Photo by Leuwynda, age 18, low vision The journey across campus can be difficult because of the cracks in the sidewalk. Leuwynda made photographs of the cracks as proof of the danger, which she sent to the superintendent with a letter asking for them to be fixed. "Since you are sighted," she wrote, "you may not notice these cracks. They are a big problem since my white cane gets stuck."

Photo by Billy, age 16, light perception Teachers ask Merlett (right) about the photograph that Billy had taken of her and her best friend, Reba. Tell me about Reba. Reba is white, isn't she? (Merlett)Don't ask me. I don't know. (Teacher)You don't know if she's white? (Merlett)Is she? Well, she has long hair - that's all I know. (Teacher)Yeah, she's white. She doesn't act white? (shakes head) How does she act? (Merlett)Like us.

Photo by Brian, age 12, no visionTeacher: How do you not cut people's heads off in a photo? Frances: Just ask the person where they are.