Brandon Kazen-Maddox (they/them) is an American Sign Language Artist and Grandchild of Deaf Adults (GODA), growing up from birth in a culturally Deaf household. As a third-generation heritage signer, it is Brandon’s passion and responsibility to carry on their generational birthright and lineage of ASL Artistry.
As an ASL Artist, choreographer, filmmaker, dancer, actor, acrobat, and activist, Brandon has spent the last 10 years as a professional ASL interpreter in the mediums of activism, performance, politics, film, television and theater, providing access to, and facilitating communication between the Deaf, Hard-of-Hearing and hearing communities. Brandon creates work with and for the Deaf and Disability communities, and highlights and empowers BIPOC and LGBTQAI+ artists, building bridges among people of all backgrounds and abilities. Recent keynote appearances have included NASPA Conference, Fidelity Investments Conference, MAS Event+Design, California Faculty of the Arts and A Day of Unreasonable Conversation at the Getty Museum for the social impact organization Propper Daley.
Brandon was a featured storyteller on the 100th episode of Stories From the Stage on PBS and they were named as one of Gucci's Chime for Change 22 for '22. Brandon is a recipient of the Creative Capital Award, New England Foundation for the Arts National Dance Production Grant, the Mertz-Gilmore Foundation Grant and the New York State Council on the Arts grant. Brandon is also a member of the Circle of Advocates for RISE Theater Directory, curated and supported by the Miranda Family Foundation. Brandon's television credits include guest appearances on High Maintenance and The Good Fight. Their work has been profiled by The New York Times, ABC World News, ABC/Disney, CNN and The PBS NewsHour’s “Brief But Spectacular” series.
Brandon holds an MFA in Dance and New Technology from NYU Tisch School of the Arts and is a co-founder of Up Until Now Collective, an arts and media company that focuses on developing and producing radically inclusive interdisciplinary work.
Brandon is an 2025 Artist in Residences for PBS ALL ARTS their half-hour special profiling their work, SOUL(SIGNS): Making Music Visible, premiers nationally in April 2025.
Speaking in Three Dimensions: How ASL Expands the Way We Learn and Lead
Brandon Kazen-Maddox invites audiences into a celebration of American Sign Language, culture, heritage, and language acquisition. As a third-generation heritage signer raised in a Deaf family, Brandon carries ASL not only as a language, but as a lineage, a living art form, and a profound way of knowing the world.
In this deeply experiential keynote, Brandon reveals how ASL reshapes and enriches learning, awakening pathways in the brain and body that spoken languages alone cannot access. Through ASL’s three-dimensional grammar, its visual clarity, and its embodied expressiveness, audiences discover how communication becomes more intentional, more connected, and more embodied.
This presentation honors the Deaf community’s legacy while offering leaders, educators, students, and organizations a transformative invitation:
-When we learn through the body, we learn more deeply.
-When we learn in community, we learn what is impossible to know alone.
Participants will explore:
-How ASL enhances and accelerates language acquisition
Why embodied communication leads to clearer, more resonant leadership
-How visual-gestural learning supports comprehension, retention, and emotional awareness
-ASL reshapes the ways we absorb information, embody communication and connect with one another.
-The cultural heritage and artistry of ASL, and its crucial role in American linguistic history
-How celebrating ASL fosters inclusive spaces of connection, learning, and belonging
SOUL(SIGNS): A Celebration of American Sign Language, Heritage and Belonging
SOUL(SIGNS) is the story of finding one’s own authentic voice through an interactive, multimedia presentation celebrating the art of American Sign Language. It incorporates Brandon’s dynamic gift for communicating through multiple languages - a blend of American Sign Language, spoken word and movement. SOUL(SIGNS) embodies the community experience of belonging while uplifting the voices of the many diverse communities to which Brandon belongs.
Empathy in Action: Becoming a Better Ally in the Disability Community Through the Power of ASL and Interactive Conversation
Brandon's work exists at the intersection of artistic expression, accessibility and technology. Join Brandon as they lead this interactive workshop that prepares and inspires audiences across disciplines to accommodate accessibility needs in the workplace. Brandon’s unique perspective teaches audiences how to become better allies, communicators and leaders while fostering an environment of belonging.
The Future of Communication: Building Community through American Sign Language, Art and New Technology
In this interactive, multi-media presentation, Brandon redefines communication through the use of American Sign Language, the arts and technology. Brandon shares the lessons they have learned throughout their 10-year career as an ASL interpreter, as well as showcasing their artistic collaborations with the Deaf and Disability communities. Brandon explores how new, innovative technology can help make space for marginalized communities, including the burgeoning world of wearable haptics technology. Brandon’s presentation examines the intersection of the Arts, Technology and Wellness.
