Milton Glaser

Laura Michalski

Milton Glaser, also known as the modern Renaissance man and Picasso of Art, was born in and raised in New York in 1929.  He was a student the High School of Music and Art and Cooper Union Art School.  He received a Fulbright Scholorship and went to study in Bologna, Italy at the Academy of Fine Arts.   He worked under Giorgio Morandi for eight months.   He went back to Italy and studied lithography at a later period.  He devoted most of his life to being a designer.   His style varies depending upon which medium he is using.  He has been known to be very primitive and also very avante garde.  His designs range from apparel to books and magazines.

Ever since he began his career, Milton Glaser has been an involved in both the design and education communities.  “He has been an instructor and a Board Member at the School of Visual Arts, New York since 1961, and is on the Board of Directors at The Cooper Union, New York,” (CSD, August/September, 1999 — "Milton Glaser: Always One Jump Ahead" by Patrick Argent), which sort of gave him a foot in the door.   In 1954, Milton Glaser founded Push Pin Studio, with the help of a few classmates from Cooper Union; Reyonld Ruffins, Seymour Chwast, and Edward Sorel.  For twenty years Glaser and Seymour Chwast, ran an organization, which had a powerful influence on the direction of world graphic design, their last exhibit was an exhibition at the Louvres Museum of Decorative Arts in Paris.  Glaser is also designed and illustrated more than 300 posters for clients in the areas of publishing, music, theater, film, institutional and civic enterprise, and commercial products and services.

His work has been featured in museums all over the world.  He did one-man shows at the Centre Georges Pompidou in Paris and the Museum of Modern Art in New York, the Lincoln Center Gallery, New York; and the Houghton Gallery at The Cooper Union, New York. His work is included in the permanent collections of the Museum of Modern Art, New York; The Israel Museum, Jerusalem; the National Archive, Smithsonian Institute, Washington, D.C.; and the Cooper Hewitt National Design Museum, New York. He won The Society of Illustrator's Gold Medal, the St. Gauden's Medal from The Cooper Union, and the Prix Savignac for the World's Most Memorable Poster of 1996, and is a member of The Art Director's Club Hall of Fame.

He founded New York Magazine with Clay Felker in 1968.  The magazine discussed tourist attractions and cheap restaurants in New York.  He established Milton Glaser, Inc. in 1974, and teamed with Walter Bernard in 1983 to form the publication design firm WBMG.  Although Glaser was very rare and innovative, he was still imitated quite often by other artists.  His most imitated design is his I Love NY logo,  from New York Magazine, which very famous and well-known.                                                                                    

During the 1950s, Glaser was influenced by oriental calligraphy.  Oriental calligraphy is much similar to painting.  It uses Chinese characters to communicate the spiritual world of the artist.  Glaser made gestural silhouette drawings out of gauche.  The drawings were meant to be simple to leave more to the viewer’s imagination.

In the 1960s he was influenced by flat shapes and contour lines.  He used color from adhesive color films. These designs were similar to comic books and contemporary Pop Art.  

During the 1980s and 1990s, Glaser was influenced by illusions. He used geometric shapes in an abstract way.  In 1987, he designed the Rainbow Room complexes for the Rockefeller Center. Also in 1987, Mr. Glaser designed the World Health Organization's International AIDS symbol and poster and, in 1993, he created the logo for Tony Kushner's Pulitzer Prize-winning play, “Angels in America.”  In the Philadelphia area, Mr. Glaser's projects have included Sesame Place, in 1981–1983, and Franklin Mills Mall, in 1986–1989.

In recent years, he helped design logos and the architecture of restaurants, an observation deck, and a permanent exhibition for the World Trade Center in the World Trade in the New York City.  He is also a present design consultant to Stony Brook University, Lands’ End Direct Merchants, Schlumberger Ltd., Bruegger’s Bagels and a number of other businesses.

Milton Glaser is now 77-years-old and he is still doing what he loves.  He is presently working in New York City, creating new ideas every day.  Although he may not be so young, his ideas and designs are still very popular in today’s culture.  He helped his fellow New Yorkers deal with the September 11th attacks with his famous “I Love NY” design, which he redid and made it better.  This design will never go out of style, especially in New York.  New York will never forget Milton Glaser because of all the contributions he has made to and is still continuing to make in New York.  This is a man who is truly proud to be a New Yorker and proud to be an American.

Milton’s Artwork: (pictures won't show up)

“I Love NY” By, Milton Glaser

           http://www.austinkleon.com/wp-content/uploads/2007/01/ilovenewyork.jpg

           Barry Miles “Hyjack” album cover By, Milton Glaser

           http://grainedit.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/03/10-barrymiles-milton-glaser.jpg

         “AIDS Poster” By, Milton Glaser

          http://www.designboom.com/eng/interview/glaser/10.gif