Deaf Belgian Artist Sander Blondeel’s New Work Displayed at NTID

An original stained-glass work of art that portrays a historic moment in education has been unveiled at the National Technical Institute for the Deaf. The piece depicts former President Lyndon B. Johnson signing the law that established NTID as a college of Rochester Institute of Technology in 1965, and is now on display on the second floor of the Lyndon Baines Johnson Building.

The work, created by renowned Belgian artist Sander Blondeel, also features Dr. D. Robert Frisina, founding director of NTID; Mary Switzer, commissioner of the Rehabilitation Services Administration for the U.S. Department of Education; and former New York Congressman Hugh L. Carey.

"This mural depicts one of the most important turning points in the education of deaf people in the country," said NTID Chief Executive Officer Dr. Robert Davila. "It will endure through the ages as a reminder of the creative leadership provided by people with vision and commitment to the well-being of deaf and hard-of-hearing people."

The mural is Blondeel’s second major work at NTID. The first, another stained-glass piece, represents the future of education and technology. It was dedicated to NTID in 1998 and remains on display in the lobby of the Lyndon Baines Johnson Building.

Blondeel, born in Ghent, Belgium, trained at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Ghent where he received two master of fine arts degrees – one in oil painting and one in art restoration. Blondeel’s work incorporates an interest in architecture and perspective. He has produced several commissioned pieces in Belgium and abroad.

NTID is the first and largest technological college in the world for deaf and hard-of-hearing students. NTID, one of eight colleges of RIT, offers educational programs and access and support services to 1,100 students from around the world who study, live and socialize with 14,000 hearing students on RIT’s Rochester, N.Y., campus.

Web address: http://www.rit.edu/NTID.

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