Fade to black and other notes on becoming

This article explores ‘becoming blind’ as a complex process that extends beyond vision loss to encompass cultural, emotional and creative dimensions. Drawing on disability studies by scholars like Georgina Kleege and Alison Kafer, it examines how blindness has influenced the author’s work in vision-centric fields like art and design, challenging conventional narratives that frame blindness solely as a form of loss. Instead, the article presents blindness as a source of curiosity, invention and aesthetic richness, engaging with themes such as the cultural fear of darkness, the creative potential in ‘breaking’ visual norms like sharpness and clarity, and the tactile ways of experiencing space and contour. It reflects on how blindness reshapes identity, artistic practice and understandings of disability within able-bodied frameworks. Ultimately, the article advocates for expanding art and design practices to include disabled and blind perspectives, valuing blindness as a generative, transformative way of engaging with the world.