 
Assembly Resolution No. 953
 
BY: M. of A. Cahill
 
        CELEBRATING the life and accomplishments of Milton
        Glaser,  and  commending  him  posthumously  for his
        outstanding contributions to the  field  of  design,
        advertising, aesthetics and civic engagement
 
  WHEREAS, It is the custom of this Legislative Body to pay tribute to
citizens  of the State of New York whose work and civic endeavors served
to enhance the quality of life in their communities and the great  State
of New York; and
 
  WHEREAS,  Attendant  to  such  concern,  and in full accord with its
long-standing traditions, this  Legislative  Body  is  justly  proud  to
commend  Milton Glaser for his outstanding contributions to the field of
design, advertising, aesthetics and civic engagement; and
 
  WHEREAS, Milton Glaser was born on June 26, 1929, in the South Bronx
of New York City to parents Eleanor Bergman,  a  homemaker,  and  Eugene
Glaser,  a  tailor and dry-cleaner, both Jewish immigrants from Hungary;
and
 
  WHEREAS, Demonstrating at an early age an interest for artistry  and
motif,  Milton  Glaser  graduated from the High School of Art & Music in
Hamilton Heights in 1947, and attended college at the Cooper  Union  for
the Advancement of Science and Art in the East Village of Manhattan from
which he graduated in 1951; and
 
  WHEREAS,   Milton   Glaser  furthered  his  educational  pursuit  of
aesthetics and was granted a prestigious Fulbright Scholarship in  1952,
allowing  him  to enroll in the Academy of Fine Arts located in Bologna,
Italy; and
 
  WHEREAS, Upon returning from his studies in Italy, Milton Glaser met
Shirley Girton, who succeeded him at the design firm he worked at before
going abroad; Shirley and Milton would marry in 1957 and collaborate  on
several  children's books throughout the years including the short story
What if Apples Have Teeth? which was published in 1960; and
 
  WHEREAS, Milton Glaser joined his old classmates Seymour Chwast  and
Edward  Sorel  in 1954 and founded Push Pin Studios, a revolutionary art
house  that  rejected  the  conventional  design  dogma  of  advertising
agencies of the period; and
 
  WHEREAS,  Recognizing  the  wealth  of  talent  and knowledge Milton
Glaser possessed, The School  of  Visual  Arts  offered  him  a  faculty
position  in  1961,  where he would educate generations of designers for
over 50 years; and
 
  WHEREAS, Taken by the thriving artistic communities  and  compelling
landscapes  of  Ulster  County,  Milton  and  Shirley  Glaser settled in
Woodstock, New York, in 1962, where he became an active  participant  in
town  life,  gifting  his  talents  to  create  posters for the Maverick
Concerts, holding free lectures, donating several pieces to be auctioned
 
and, along with his wife, ultimately  introducing  lifelong  friend  Bob
Dylan to the town where he lived during his formative years; and
 
  WHEREAS,  Milton  Glaser  shifted to the forefront of American album
design for artists ranging from Frank Sinatra to Eric Clapton and Willie
Nelson to John Cage and innumerable classical musical  recordings,  with
his  seminal  publication  of  the album poster for Bob Dylan's Greatest
Hits in 1966, which draws influence from  the  introspection  of  Marcel
Duchamp's   1958  painting  Self-Portrait  in  Profile  and  features  a
silhouette of Dylan with hair of fluid,  rainbow  colors,  appealing  to
changing  artistic and consumer tastes and the design of the debut album
by The Band, Music from the Big Pink featuring original  art  by  Milton
Glaser; and
 
  WHEREAS,  Desiring  creative  and  journalistic independence, Milton
Glaser and Esquire editor Clay  Felker  founded  New  York  in  1968,  a
magazine  dedicated  to New York City life and culture - of which Milton
served as the Director and President from its founding to 1977, and also
founded his own studio, Milton Glaser Incorporated in 1974; and
 
  WHEREAS, As part of a campaign for the New York State Department  of
Commerce  in  1977,  Milton  Glaser  created  the famous I Love New York
design, which remains  one  of  the  most  internationally  recognizable
advertising  campaigns,  the  simple  typeface  and  heart  symbol  logo
enduring as a prominent representation of the State; and
 
  WHEREAS, Following the 2001 attack on the World Trade Center, Milton
Glaser created a modified version of I Love New York titled I  Love  New
York  More  Than  Ever,  a  variation  on his classic design featuring a
scorched but still living heart, made to exemplify the perseverance  and
unification of all New Yorkers; and
 
  WHEREAS,  The  illustrations  of Milton Glaser have been featured on
several major literary and musical works as of the Twentieth Century, as
well as various advertisement  campaigns  for  numerous  state  agencies
promoting tourism; and
 
  WHEREAS,  The  work  of  Milton  Glaser has been featured in several
prestigious art institutions, including  the  National  Archive  of  the
Smithsonian  Institute,  the  Victoria  and  Albert  Museum,  the Centre
Georges Pompidou, the Israel Museum and the Museum of Modern Art,  which
houses  the  original  I  Love  New  York  concept sketch in a permanent
collection; and
 
  WHEREAS, In recognition of his multi-decade career and  contribution
to  the  field  of  design, the Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum
awarded him the  Lifetime  Achievement  Award  in  2004,  and  in  2009,
President  Barack  Obama granted Milton Glaser the National Medal of the
Arts, making him the  first  in  the  field  of  graphic  design  to  be
celebrated with this achievement; and
 
  WHEREAS,  Milton  and  Shirley Glaser contributed for decades to the
vibrancy of the "Woodstock Arts  Movement"  through  their  beneficence,
community  activism  and  by creating, without charge, designs and logos
for numerous local public arts events; and
 
  WHEREAS, His final piece, Together, made  from  varying  shades  and
lines  was designed to unify us in a time of intense division, isolation
 
and separation; it was the belief of Milton that graphic design did  not
solely  exist  to  drive  mass  consumption  but  could be used to bring
different groups of people together and to challenge the status quo; and
 
  WHEREAS,  On Friday, June 26, 2020, Milton Glaser passed away on his
91st birthday, a revolutionary in the field of  aesthetics  and  design,
his  work  and  spirit  leaving  a  mark  on  this  world,  touching and
brightening the lives of millions of people; and
 
  WHEREAS, It is the intent  of  this  Legislative  Body  to  publicly
recognize  those  who  have  contributed extensively to the cultural and
artistic achievements of  this  great  Empire  State  and  Nation;  now,
therefore, be it
 
  RESOLVED,  That  this Legislative Body pause in its deliberations to
celebrate the life and accomplishments  of  Milton  Glaser,  a  man  who
defined aesthetic in modern life and reimagined graphic design as a fine
art; and be it further
 
  RESOLVED,  That  a  copy  of this Resolution, suitably engrossed, be
transmitted to the family of Milton Glaser.
Celebrating the life and accomplishments of Milton Glaser

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