Justin Dougan-LeBlanc of Justin LeBlanc Design is a Deaf and Queer installation artist and textile designer. He is a Professor of Fashion at Columbia College Chicago where he teaches fashion and installation design. LeBlanc’s interdisciplinary career spans fashion, textile art, architecture, and technology. LeBlanc aims to push art and education forward by combining the strengths of emerging technology like 3D printing with the traditions of the hand. This knowledge and experience in multiple disciplines and his upbringings as a Deaf person allows him to exploit and fuse different approaches, resulting in artistic expression that cannot be conveyed by one discipline alone.

   All his works explore the topics and storytelling on Deaf Culture and LGTBQIA+. LeBlanc has been featured in a number of publications, exhibitions, fashion shows, and television in the United States and internationally. These include Mercedes New York Fashion Week, Marie Claire, Red Eye, The Chicago Tribune, the New York Times, USA Today, and The Face Magazine. He has competed on Project Runway and Project Runway All Stars. LeBlanc’s undergraduate degree is in Architecture from North Carolina State University, and his master’s degree is in Fashion Design and Installation from School of the Art Institute of Chicago.