I have recently become infatuated with Milton Glaser. And my husband's fine with it; in fact, he got me all the books I've been pouring over. In case you're not familiar with Milton Glaser or his work, above is probably his most famous design. I'm not crazy about the NY logo but I really like what Glaser wrote about it: "[This piece] has become so much a part of the general language that it's hard to imagine that it was designed by someone and did not always exist."What's funny is that it is in relation to this design that I first encountered Milton Glaser and my response was, "Someone designed that?" Below are some of Glaser's other works and the real reason for why "I Heart Milton Glaser." I've focused on typographic pieces that play with both form and language.
This design is like little poem. It has words within words, all of which can be arranged and combined in different ways to create different meanings that relate to each other and to the subtext. The subtext (hard to read at this scale) says: "There are some things that make life worth living, and some things you can't live without."
My favorite thing about "Old/New" it that it uses an old-style, serif font for "OLD" and a bold sans for "NEW." Typo-historically (I just made up that word.), sans serif are comparatively new.
Next design.
First reaction, after seeing the top three lines: Wow! I can't believe how readable this is!
Second reaction, after reading "remains": OMG! It's so true! Art is what remains, incomplete in the memory but somehow still creating an impact. How cool that the letters create this message formally as well as literally.
Lastly: I'm loving the pile of debris at the bottom of the design, the remains of the statement, implying that ideas, like living beings, one day have an end.
At the end of "Art is Work" is an essay by Glaser for AIGA Journal, 2000. He writes, "[R]ead the following chart to determine how far down on the road to Hell you are willing to go." Click the image to get a larger, more readable image.
And lastly, a "content guide" for design . . . out of 250.05%.
All images from Art is Work, Milton Glaser, 2000, Overlook Press, NY.
2 comments:
You always have such interesting posts! I didn't know who designed the New York logo - now I do. I think the logo is synonymous with New York. Isn't it amazing how ubiquitous this theme has become? How many times do you hear "I heart ..."
The other Glaser designs you posted are amazing. I love the Art is Whatever design! I always find it interesting when the mind fills in the blanks. And his Road to Hell list is truly that. Reminds me of a lawyer's oath. I'm not sure I could design for something I didn't believe in.
MG is one of those consummate designers who excels at both type and illustration. His "road to hell" is a summary of why I didn't go into advertising. Thankfully there is plenty of work for designers who want to keep their soul intact.
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