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Pizza Grease Stained Notes From Milton Glaser

January 20, 2018

This week, I've been cleaning out both my physical space(s) and my digital space(s). It is quite a task, but one that needs to be done to make room for the new. In one box, I came across a little coverless notebook I scrawled some notes on from a Milton Glaser talk I attended in 2013. At the time, I was in the midst of my senior year at design school. Fall semester was winding down, and finals were looming or already in progress. I dragged my sleep deprived exhausted ass out to Manhattan (from Brooklyn) because I wasn't gonna miss this talk for the world (even though all I could think about was my next nap and the golden beacon that was *wInTeR bReAk*).

Now if you have no idea who Milton Glaser is... welp, IDK what to tell you. LOL. He is a graphic design legend... and that is an understatement. You probably are familiar with the "I Love New York" logo. He made that. As well as a LOT of other iconic stuff. I'm not going to give you the long list - but feel free to check his site out for yourself. Anyways, I got a slice of pizza after the talk and thought it'd be a GREAT idea to put that bagged pizza vertical in my backpack... and the grease dripped all over my notes. I was devastated... but clearly still held onto the notebook because one does not throw out notes from a Milton Glaser talk! I'm surprised it's actually still holding up and that there's no mold?? But thought it might be useful (for myself) and maybe for others as well - if I gave the notes a new life. I read through what I could - they're a bit disjointed, but it almost reads like poetry. Here are some of my favorite notations:

Milton Glaser - December 13, 2013

The purpose of art is to inform and delight. 
You teach a way of perceiving the world. 

Making people work to figure out what you’re trying to say.

You have to connect.
“How are we gonna turn people on?”
•    to entertain
•    to make them feel something

“If you missed, you missed – at least you swung the bat as hard as you could.”

Driven by wanting to prove something. Passion.

JUST DO IT. BE FEARLESS.

THE PEOPLE CRAZY ENOUGH TO CHANGE THE WORLD DO.


In search of the miraculous or one thing leads to another.

Utility and Beauty
Work leads you to things.
What it leads you to is UNEXPECTED.

One continuous changing cycle of events
Everything is connected
Mishmash
Make anything from anywhere live together.

Nothing is brand new.
Embrace doubt.
Certainty… you’re usually wrong.

Your best work will often be rejected / misunderstood. 
Get used to it.

Physicality. Ideology.
MIND. Open / Closed.

Stumbling in the dark – darkness
Does it make you try harder?
Does a person give up?

In search of the miraculous or one thing leads to another.
You can’t get there from here.

THE BRAIN WORKS ILLOGICALLY.
No matter how hard you try to approach something logically, you will arrive at it.

Drawing,
Knowledge of form,
Knowledge of pigment,
All needed before touching a computer.

BRAIN THEORY
What does it mean to pay attention to something?

YOU CAN'T CLOSE THE DOOR AND SAY YOU KNOW IT ALL.
 

Art as the centerpiece of life.
Centerpiece of interest, ever-growing and never finished, but is not learned.

So many older people regret not picking a profession they love. 
This is not the case with art. Feel grateful.

The secret to work is to begin. Let it happen. 
Don’t think about the creative process. 
Don’t think about all that you need to do to get the job done.

YOU JUST BEGIN.


INTUITION.
When you walk into a room and you’re like YES YES NO NO YES
And you’re always right.

Color is wonderful. Everyone’s sense of color is different. 
You go through periods of your own development.
Bright Colors vs. Dull Colors
Who is going to like the same colors you like?
The subjectivity of color
Stumbling in the dark

The part of work that is most satisfying is objectively moving towards a goal.

Process – like cooking the perfect turkey.
All the stuff in the fridge. Not knowing what to make.
I start by looking at what’s in the fridge.

If you do something and you learn from it, it’s not a mistake.
“Well… I probably should have worked out more.”
“I didn’t value some friends enough and show them that I value them.”
“I have made no professional mistakes.”
If you do something & don’t learn, then it is a mistake.


YOU DON'T ALWAYS HAVE TO WIN, AND SOMETIMES YOU'RE WRONG.


Don’t work for clients that make you produce mediocre work.
Where is the spot that you go to avoid stress of competition
-- and still produce good work?
No easy answer.

I find people’s behavior miraculous.
Have you found your miracles?

MIRACULOUS THINGS OCCUR EVERY DAY.


 

In design, event, real talk Tags Milton Glaser, notes, graphic design
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@AMYVENTURES
currently outside in shorts and a tshirt and not mad about it 🤗 - happy earth day! 🌼🌞🌎
have pretty much been in existential crisis mode since getting back from MT but these @seattlechoc truffles are helping me cope lol (perks of a long layover at SEA airport: going shopping for chocolate) 😂🍫🌈 I remember asking the cashier how much she thought one of each color would cost me and she couldn’t speak english very well and kinda looked at me like I was insane but it’s fine and I got one of each color and I have no regrets. the “pink bubbly” flavor had pop rocks in it and was very fun to eat 💥😛💗
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saying goodbye to montana today, but what a week it has been ✈️ - feeling so lucky to have been a part of @collectivequarterly’s portfolio showcase / workshop and am leaving with new friendships and fresh insight 🙏🏼 - this was the last shot of my polaroid film (shot it on my drive out of chico) and it’s one of my favorite shots from the whole trip 💙📸😍
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still on a craaaaaazy sugar high from @omgdessertgoals today! 🤩🍦🍭🍧🍪 if you are currently sad that tickets are sold out, DO-NUT CRY! 🍩 turn that frown upside down because I am giving away a pair of tickets (1 for you, 1 for a friend! ) for next saturday (3/25)!! 🙃 tag your dessert date down in the comments section, and I will DM a winner by tomorrow night 11:59 PM EST 🤗🎟🍡🍰🍬🙌🏼✨ (📸: @ellykdaeun)
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there’s another nor’easter snowstorm hitting us tonight / tomorrow, and all I can think about is how much I long for hot sunny summer beach days 😬🐚☀️🌴🏖💦
this frozen s’more was my breakfast today 🙃 (ice cream center coated in a chocolate wafer crumble, enveloped in marshmallow + torched to order) 🔥💯👏🏼 the guy who torched it told me “happy saturday” 😏 (a very happy saturday indeed)
@geronimo meets mylar = magic 🤩💫 - PS: tomorrow is the last day to see this at @nycballet! ✨🎈✨
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currently outside in shorts and a tshirt and not mad about it 🤗 - happy earth day! 🌼🌞🌎 have pretty much been in existential crisis mode since getting back from MT but these @seattlechoc truffles are helping me cope lol (perks of a long layover at SEA airport: going shopping for chocolate) 😂🍫🌈 I remember asking the cashier how much she thought one of each color would cost me and she couldn’t speak english very well and kinda looked at me like I was insane but it’s fine and I got one of each color and I have no regrets. the “pink bubbly” flavor had pop rocks in it and was very fun to eat 💥😛💗
take. me. back. 😭🙏🏼🌤🏔🌾🦌✨
a small collection of stones I picked up on the walk towards old chico. wherever I go - I’m always fascinated by the varying shapes, hues, and textures of the natural elements I find 😍🏔✨ a peek at thrifting in bozeman 👀 (lots and lots of vintage clothes, books, and home wares) - 👗📚🏺it’s too bad my suitcase was already packed to the bulge 😏 raced over to the poolside grille before they closed at 9 PM so I could get my MT moose tracks fix 😛🍦💦 - a little boy watched me take this photo and yelled “SWEEEEET!!!” 😆🤟🏼 decided to go horseback riding during the 1.5 hour break I had in between portfolio reviews (right after meeting @michaelgeorge and before meeting with @paulmoakley 😂) - if you saw someone blindly bolt from the barn to the lodge to the conference center in the span of 30 seconds thursday afternoon… it was me, hahaha 🙋🏻‍♀️ - “HI I just got off of a horse and have horse hair ALL over my pants and may or may not also smell like a horse but it’s SO NICE TO MEET YOU” is always a good way to introduce yourself 🤣🐴👋🏼 saying goodbye to montana today, but what a week it has been ✈️ - feeling so lucky to have been a part of @collectivequarterly’s portfolio showcase / workshop and am leaving with new friendships and fresh insight 🙏🏼 - this was the last shot of my polaroid film (shot it on my drive out of chico) and it’s one of my favorite shots from the whole trip 💙📸😍 it’s the first day of spring, but still feels very much like winter.. so here’s a photo from autumn when I took a trip to a place where it felt like summer??! 😂🌿🦋🌺🌞 #shotoniphone somewhere in between freaking out over my laptop battery’s dire state and getting excited for an upcoming trip to montana, I decided it would be a GREAT time to start vlogging 😂😂😂 - my first ever vlog is now up on youtube (😱) featuring this weekend’s (short but sweet) adventure to @omgdessertgoals! 🍬🍭🍦🍩🍧🎉 (link in bio) still on a craaaaaazy sugar high from @omgdessertgoals today! 🤩🍦🍭🍧🍪 if you are currently sad that tickets are sold out, DO-NUT CRY! 🍩 turn that frown upside down because I am giving away a pair of tickets (1 for you, 1 for a friend! ) for next saturday (3/25)!! 🙃 tag your dessert date down in the comments section, and I will DM a winner by tomorrow night 11:59 PM EST 🤗🎟🍡🍰🍬🙌🏼✨ (📸: @ellykdaeun) just a reminder to breathe and that everything is going to be just fine ✌🏼🌺🙃 I lost track of how many times @bigntoasty requested I post this this weekend for the #WHP🦄 theme 😂👋🏼 - I argued it’s a photo from this past summer in cape may (and therefore technically doesn’t even qualify for the *weekend* hashtag project) 😆 - BUT, I can’t believe I actually NEVER EVER posted it before?!?! so alas.. I dug it out of the archives! 😏 (you’re welcome) 🤣🌈🙌🏼🦄🚲 @morgensternsnyc is the only loyalty punch card I carry in my wallet and this black chocolate smoked coconut vegan soft serve is why 😏🍦💯 this put a big smile on my face during my morning walk 🤗 (I hope it puts one on yours too!) 🚗💐😘 - happy weekend! 💕 blizzard conditions call for a big cup of hot cocoa in my favorite rainbow mug 😏❄️🔥☕️ there’s another nor’easter snowstorm hitting us tonight / tomorrow, and all I can think about is how much I long for hot sunny summer beach days 😬🐚☀️🌴🏖💦 this frozen s’more was my breakfast today 🙃 (ice cream center coated in a chocolate wafer crumble, enveloped in marshmallow + torched to order) 🔥💯👏🏼 the guy who torched it told me “happy saturday” 😏 (a very happy saturday indeed) @geronimo meets mylar = magic 🤩💫 - PS: tomorrow is the last day to see this at @nycballet! ✨🎈✨ happy friday! 🎉🎉🎉 I’m ringing in the weekend with @mmschocolate caramel M&M’S (pretty much the sweetest way to treat yo’self) 😉🍫💖🙌🏼💃🏻 cheers to a great weekend! 😘 #UnsquareCaramel #sponsored

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