Deaf Way Festivals

• October 16-19, 2025
• Elstad Auditorium Coat Room
• Admission: Free

ASL Abstract Motion is a dual-screen immersive video installation by Deaf artist Jon Savage. Presented on facing screens that suggest the openness of a book, the work unfolds against a continuous freeway drive—an uninterrupted journey that symbolizes life’s forward motion, shifting between black-and-white and color. Across this moving backdrop, nine sequences of abstract ASL gestures emerge in bold hues, transforming the language into visual rhythm and poetry. The gestures are paired with an original house music score by Lenny Savage and Luke Civerella, creating a living conversation of sound, sight, rhythm, and identity.

• Saturday, October 18, 2025, 12:30 pm – 2:30 pm
• Elstad Auditorium Box Office
• Cost: $10 for 5 minutes

Dr. Joseph Hill is not just an academic who is well-known for his work on Black ASL. He is also a spiritual intuitive who is certified in Reiki and dreamwork and mainly uses tarot and oracle cards as divination tools since 2018. His sessions typically last an hour or more, but just for the weekend, he will do a 5-minute reading for anyone interested, so go to him to get a quick insight or confirmation. If you’d like to go beyond the quick reading, you can also book a longer session with Dr. Hill for a deeper, more personalized exploration.

Line up on site for a 5-minute reading, and schedule a longer session later in the afternoon from 4:30 pm – 7:00 pm.

• Saturday, October 18, 2025, all day
• Elstad Auditorium Patio
• Cost: Free

The Deaf Way Film Festival is extending the celebration of art beyond the screen through a special partnership with Chalk Riot, a collective of professional chalk artists. Chalk Riot artists will create a large-scale chalk mural in real time, inviting community members to add their own creative touches as part of the design. The collaborative mural will highlight Deaf culture, film, and art in a vibrant, hands-on experience where visitors can capture photos, share their artwork, and become part of a living festival memory. Together, the mural will transform the space into a colorful expression of creativity, community, and Deaf culture. No experience is necessary, just a willingness to express oneself with color and joy!

• October 17, 2024 – December 18, 2026
• Hours: 10am to 4pm
• Chapel Hall
• Admission: Free

We, Native Deaf People, Are Still Here! invites visitors to decolonize their knowledge of Native Deaf American history—whether or not they identify as Indigenous. Curated by members of the community, the exhibition shares the multiplicity of Indigenous Deaf experiences through art, photography, video, storytelling, and cultural belongings.

Highlights include murals and panels on land acknowledgments, cultural and language revitalization, a “We Are All Indigenous” selfie wall, books by Indigenous writers, and interactive sign language and tactile features. A focal point is a large mural by renowned Deaf artist Nancy Rourke, honoring the District of Columbia’s Nacotchtank and Piscataway heritage by depicting community members offering a land acknowledgment in an Indigenous sign language.

Community curators: Dr. Melanie McKay-Cody, Nancy Rourke, and Rachel Kills Small.

Decolonize and Indigenize Art Exhibition curators: Vergena Chee, Robin Massey, and Nancy Rourke.

• September 29, 2025 – April 3, 2026
• Hours: 10am to 4pm
• Washburn Arts Center, Linda K. Jordan Gallery
• Admission: Free

Beyond the Waves: Deaf Art exhibition explores how Deaf artists have used visual art as a powerful form of resistance, celebration, and cultural storytelling. Spanning from pre-De’VIA roots and Deaf Way I to the second wave of De’VIA and today’s global Deaf contemporary art, the exhibition shows how Deaf creativity continues to grow “beyond the waves” of past movements—reaching new audiences and inspiring new forms of expression.

A centerpiece of the show is digital video art by internationally recognized artists Christine Sun Kim, Thomas Mader, Chella Man, and Janhavi Khemka. Their works anchor the exhibition, offering bold, experimental explorations of Deaf identity, language, culture, and expression. Other works in the exhibition showcase painting, sculpture, and multimedia, each contributing to the evolving narrative of Deaf art across generations.

• Hours:
  • Thursday: 9:30am-6:30pm
  • Friday: 9:30am-5:00pm
  • Saturday: 9:30am-5:30pm
  • Sunday: 11am-4pm
• I. King Jordan Student Academic Center

BisonShop has exclusive Deaf Way Film Festival merchandise, along with other great Gallaudet gear! Don’t miss your chance—get your limited-edition merch while supplies last!

• Hanson Plaza Tunnel
• Admission: Free

The Hanson Plaza Tunnel at Gallaudet University is alive with vibrant student murals, transforming an everyday passageway into a dynamic canvas of creativity. These murals showcase the talents of Gallaudet students, celebrating Deaf culture, identity, and community through vibrant colors, designs, and storytelling.

Visitors passing through the tunnel can experience an ever-changing gallery of artistic expression that reflects the energy, vision, and diversity of the student body. Each mural invites the community to pause, reflect, and connect with the rich cultural life of the university.

In partnership with Veditz Brewery, the Deaf Way Film Festival is offering a special limited-edition lager brew cans featuring label artwork by Marissa DiDonna. Available exclusively during the festival. Hazy IPA and lager brews will be available on draft as well. More information will be forthcoming.