Connecting Futures: Davon Brantley–Bruce Wayne by day, Batman by night

Davon Brantley laughingly describes himself as Bruce Wayne by day, Batman by night: he is the senior admissions counselor at Cleveland Institute of Art (CIA) and a full-time artist working in large self-portraits in oils and charcoal.

But what underpins his persona is anything but cartoonish: “Even though it looks very bleak in our world—often comedic, like a cartoon—through art, you are still able to find light in what is happening and express yourself in ways that are necessary,” says Brantley. “Instead of doomscrolling through news outlets, find a creative niche that you like and have fun. We only get one of these lives.”

Brantley grew up in Cleveland Heights and while he, like other artists, “created art all [his] life,” he never considered it as a possible career, taking AP and honors classes in high school to prepare for getting a “good job.” Until his junior year, when his grandmother encouraged his drawing practice. “Before she passed, she told me: ‘Stick with this (art), don’t give up on this; keep going.’”

So he did. When Brantley couldn’t add an art class to his packed academic schedule, he began spending hours in the library, teaching himself about drawing, theories of art, and animation. Dynamic Drawing by Burne Hogarth sparked an ah-ha moment; at the same time, reading Oscar Wilde’s novel, The Portrait of Dorian Grey, as well as taking a deep dive into William Blake’s poetry fueled his decision to think seriously about a career in the arts. He made movies with his younger sisters as actresses; tried out 3D drawing; and continued drawing portraits of friends, celebrities, and himself.

“I wanted to understand why drawing felt so cool to me, and how it could be even cooler,” says Brantley, who researched college options with his guidance counselor, talked with the high school art teacher, and attended a presentation that Cleveland Institute of Art made at his high school. He was amazed by how many majors and careers were possible: “All this information made my heart pound; I was so happy; I thought ‘I think I need to do this’—I had never felt like this before.”

In a whirlwind, Brantley compiled his portfolio in one month, working with the art teacher to curate and fill in gaps. At the same time, he walked across the street from the high school to Heights Arts Gallery and asked to volunteer as an intern, to learn about the arts from the retail and administrative sides.

His family was surprised by his choice, and cautious. His mother accompanied him on his school appointments and on National Portfolio Day, gaining an understanding of what was possible with a degree from an art school and of the world Brantley wanted to jump into. “There was a huge fear from other family members and friends,” says Brantley. “They want to protect you and see you thrive and be successful. They don’t want to see you working a day job at McDonald’s. They don’t know about the art world; they consume media but don’t understand it. They just know that Spiderman exists but don’t know how he was made.”

Brantley entered CIA, choosing Drawing as a major after exploring different media (“I found out I did not want to be an illustrator!”). As he built his artistic practice, he also built his interpersonal skills through participating in critiques, learning about the business of art, and navigating alongside people who came from different environments and backgrounds.

After graduating with a BFA in Drawing, Brantley kept in touch with his professors and other contacts made while in school. He moved to Sandusky and worked 8- to 12-hour days at Cedar Point as a quick-portrait artist while also working on large-scale charcoal drawings in his tiny apartment, believing that if he created consistently, he could have enough for a show.

That fall after graduation, Brantley jumpstarted his career and got his name out. He pitched a show for himself and two recent CIA graduates to BAYarts. He also applied to the Cleveland Clinic Foundation’s (CCF) art department (who had visited CIA and seen his work as an undergrad) for inclusion in a Sol Lewitt Foundation mural project for CCF’s Health Education Campus. He got both, moving back to Cleveland and living in his mom’s basement (where pools of water would appear when it rained), creating a body of work while working on two, large-scale murals (23 X 37 feet) with four other artists over a period of three months. “It was all layers and no brushwork, mixing giant pails of ink wash, dipping artist rags in it, and tossing them up,” says Brantley. “There were two artists at the top, two in the middle, and one at the bottom. It was an amazing experience!”

And he continued to get his name out—showing his work in more than forty exhibitions from 2018 to 2025; curating exhibitions at Waterloo Arts, Museum of Creative Human Art (in collaboration with the Morgan Conservatory and Museum of Contemporary Art), and the Wasmer Gallery; working on mural projects that included murals for Black Lives Matter/East 93^rd Street, Westside Catholic Center, NBA All Star Weekend/Cleveland Airport, among others; and receiving grants and residencies from Deep Dive Art Projects, Akron Soul Train, Karamu House, and the prestigious Cleveland Art Association (carta) Eterovich Award. “People started asking, ‘who is this Davon kid popping up everywhere?’”

As the floodgates opened, Brantley was saying “yes” a lot, and not saying “no” frequently enough. One month brought five or six shows—which he made work, but which wasn’t sustainable. But one of the yeses turned into something larger. In the fall of 2021, while Brantley worked as an artist and part-time instructor at CIA for their continuing education department, a colleague in marketing told him about an open position for an admissions counselor; was he interested and available? Brantley had been mentoring students and acting as a portfolio reviewer already, loved CIA but saw room for improvement, and was adamant that he would continue as a working artist alongside this role. That was acceptable, as was his insistence on a non-negotiable vacation that October, for his wedding to artist Lauren Sylvia, a mixed-media artist whose work is inspired by the connection between people and nature.

Brantley keeps a rigorous travel schedule in the fall as senior admissions counselor, traveling to high schools and college fairs in Ohio, Tennessee, Florida, and Texas, as well as participating as a reviewer for National Portfolio Days. “In my job, I use a lot of interpersonal communication skills,” says Brantley. “To actually talk to people, understand different situations, personality types, and navigate that spectrum of conversation helps me figure out how I can help them in the best capacity.” He also recognizes those students whose parents think that there is no way their child will thrive in an art career—Brantley’s mission is to show that art offers a professional and solid career, not simply a hobby.

After a day of logistics and counseling at CIA, Brantley turns back into Batman. He and his wife switch out their studio times: he spends three nights a week and some weekends in his third-floor studio, working on large-scale canvases (up to 70 X 51 inches) primarily in oil paint and dry charcoal. “My work utilizes dramatic compositions, absurd realism, and characters that embody complex emotions and themes in which I perform all of the roles.” Two days out of the week are devoted to researching and writing grants and connecting with galleries and collectors.

“Art as a career is a quest for learning and knowledge,” says Brantley. “You can make it however you deem it to be, yourself—artist, teacher, admissions counselor—you can always pivot. Important things change, your artwork can change; keep doing what you are doing.”