Arnaud Balard was born on 1971 and is a French deafblind artist.
13 Facts About Arnaud Balard
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In 2009, Balard wrote a manifesto outlining his philosophy of Surdism, an artistic, philosophical, and cultural movement celebrating deaf culture and deaf arts.
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Arnaud Balard is known for designing the Sign Union flag, an image intended to represent global unity for deaf and deafblind people.
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Arnaud Balard was born deaf; as an adult, he developed tunnel vision and was diagnosed with deteriorating vision caused by Usher syndrome in 1999.
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From age three to seven, Arnaud Balard lived with an aunt to attend deaf school.
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Arnaud Balard attended Ecole Sainte Therese and College Prive Sainte-genevieve Saint-joseph in Rodez.
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Arnaud Balard's education was conducted through oral French; he did not learn French Sign Language until he was an adult.
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Arnaud Balard attended Universite de Toulouse-Le Mirail from 1992 to 1993, before transferring to the Ecole MJM Graphic Design, studying there from 1993 to 1995.
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From 1995 to 1998, Arnaud Balard attended the European Academy of Art in Brittany on the Rennes campus, graduating with the congratulations of the jury.
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Arnaud Balard writes, teaches classes and workshops, and creates artwork that promotes deaf culture.
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Arnaud Balard was unaware at the time of the similar De'VIA arts movement which had originated in the United States in 1989, but Surdism differs from De'VIA in its inclusion of arts beyond visual arts, such as theater, cinema, and literary works.
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Arnaud Balard is known as the designer of the Sign Union flag.
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Arnaud Balard intended the flag to be an international symbol which welcomes deaf people.