Speaker Series

VIDEO: Intuition Is Underrated

2008-10-21T00:10:10Z

We know: finally. (It's a tech adventure at SPD.)
Video of Arem Duplessis' sold-out Speakeasy night, "Intuition is Underrated."

Wonder what SPD Annual got Arem interested in magazine design? Who inspired him? Want to know more about the thinking behind some of those classic NYT Magazine covers? How he feels about the people who copy his style, and the team he calls on to get it all done so brilliantly? Video after the jump...

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SPD Speakeasy: Arem Duplessis, Art Director of The New York Times Magazine from SPD Videos on Vimeo.

LOUPED IN: Tuesday, November 11

2008-10-20T01:16:52Z

"The world now contains more photographs than bricks, and they are, astonishingly, all different." - John Szarkowski

The Photography Editors

They began in philosophy and film, retail and environmental studies; but today they are all photography editors: passionate about the images they produce, and the photographers they work with. On Tuesday night they'll talk about what sparks their imagination, their inspirations, and the assignments that keep them questioning, "how should this look?"

]]> Tuesday, November 11th at FIT for an evening of informal conversation and a crash course in ways of seeing. Moderated by Catherine Talese.

Lisa Berman, Entertainment Weekly
David Carthas, Blender
Nancy Jo Iacoi, Orchard Represents
Michele McNally, The New York Times
Michael Norseng, Esquire
Zana Woods, WIRED

LOUPED IN
Tuesday, November 11, 2008
Katie Murphy Amphitheatre, F.I.T.
27th Street & Seventh Avenue, NYC

7:00 - 8:30 PM, doors open at 6:30

Tickets:
SPD Members, $10 in advance ($15 at the door, CASH ONLY)
Non-Members, $15 in advance ($20 at the door, CASH ONLY)
Students & faculty with valid ID: $5

Please call SPD at 212-223-3332 by noon on Friday, November 7th for advance tickets; after Friday the 7th, tickets can be purchased at the door Tuesday evening, CASH ONLY.

RSVP early! All tickets, and seating, are first come, first served.

TONIGHT! Carin Goldberg: By the Seat of her Pants

2008-10-16T14:15:22Z

Can you ever be too inspired? Definitely not.
So after the sold-out night with Arem Duplessis, and the quickly-selling-get-your-tickets-already! night with James Victore, who could be next? It only seemed perfect to ask our Secret Santa for a night from Carin Goldberg. And Santa came through.

Carin will talk about how she became a graphic designer and how dumb luck, determination, some talent, supportive friends and good timing allowed her to build a body of work that some people (All of us!! -- Ed.) seem to think is worth an hour of your time. Of course, there will be lots of pictures.

]]> Carin Goldberg
Principal, Carin Goldberg Design

Carin Goldberg was born in New York City and studied at the Cooper Union School of Art. She began her career as a staff designer at CBS Television, CBS Records and Atlantic Records before establishing her own firm, Carin Goldberg Design, in 1982.

Over the following two decades Carin designed hundreds of book jackets for all the major American publishing houses, including Simon & Schuster, Random House, Alfred A. Knopf, Farrar Straus & Giroux, Harper Collins, Doubleday and Hyperion, and dozens of album covers for record labels such as Warner Bros., Motown, Nonesuch, Interscope and EMI. The breadth of her work covers artists as diverse as Kurt Vonnegut and Susan Sontag, Dvorák and Madonna. Her book jacket for the 1986 reissue of James Joyce's "Ulysses" has become an icon of postmodern design.

In recent years her image making has expanded to publication design and brand consulting for clients including AR and Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia. From 2003 to 2004 she was Creative Director at Time Inc. Custom Publishing, where she designed and consulted on publications for the New York Stock Exchange, Microsoft, Citigroup and Gallup. Her recent projects include design of the book "Last Letters Home: Voices of Americans from the Battlefields of Iraq" (Life Books, 2005) based on the HBO documentary.

So please join us Monday, December 8th, for the last Speakeasy before the holidays, where the cocktails, the crowd and the conversation are all fun.

CARIN GOLDBERG
By the Seat of Her Pants

Monday, December 8, 2008
Wild Project Theatre
195 East 3rd Street (between Aves. A & B)
map here or below

7:00 drinks
7:30 discussion

Tickets:
SPD Members, ~~$10 in advance~~ ($15 CASH ONLY at the door)
Non-members, ~~$15 in advance~~ ($20 CASH ONLY at the door)

RSVP: ~~Please call SPD at 212 223 3332 by 5:00PM on Friday, December 5th~~ ~~for advance tickets while they last~~; tickets purchased at the door the evening of the event (if available) will be $5 higher, CASH ONLY.

RSVP early! All tickets, and seating, are first come, first served.

JAMES VICTORE Norman Rockwell Is My God

2008-10-08T15:35:48Z

After our first, sold-out Speakeasy, we're back again on Monday, October 27th with a night of cocktails and conversation with James Victore, hell-bent on world domination. Clearly he knows that path leads straight through SPD. Join us for a talk the man himself says "will be serious. And a bit silly."

]]> Surfboards. Magazines. Plates. Political positions. Apolitical positions.
He's done it all, and as Steve Heller says, "by using any and all graphic means.... Passion and purpose underscore his design."

Come meet some of creative's talented trendsetters and share a glass with colleagues as the SPD launches a series of intimate, relaxed evenings where you can listen to art directors and photo editors, photographers and illustrators and type designers share their secrets and answer your questions. Inspiring and enlightening talks held at the elegant Wild Project theater downtown, with complimentary drinks and inspiring conversations.

Once again, Thank God It's Monday! See you there...

JAMES VICTORE: Norman Rockwell Is My God

Monday, October 27, 2008
Wild Project Theatre
195 East 3rd Street (between Aves. A & B)
map here or below

7:00 drinks
7:30 discussion

Tickets:
SPD Members, $10 in advance ($15 CASH ONLY at the door)
Non-members, $15 in advance ($20 CASH ONLY at the door)

RSVP: Please call SPD at 212 223 3332 by 5:00PM on Friday, October 24th for advance tickets while they last; tickets purchased at the door the evening of the event (if available) will be $5 higher, CASH ONLY.

RSVP early! All tickets, and seating, are first come, first served.

PAPER TO PIXELS: Tuesday, October 7th

2008-09-17T18:08:39Z

"Today the internet does what magazines used to do."
- Fabien Baron, Interview Magazine relaunch issue.

Magazines and their websites.

Are websites replacing magazines? Are magazines the main course and the web just a side? Who does what better? How have websites changed the role of the modern magazine? Do we need both? Am I going to be out of work in 10 years...or less?
]]> Tuesday, October 7th at F.I.T. we will bring together some of the top minds from dynamically expanding print publications on the web to discuss every curiosity, thrill, anxiety, and insecurity you could have about magazines and websites.

Click on a panelist for a bio and short Q and A.

Khoi Vinh, Design Director of NYTimes.com
Jeremy LaCroix, Creative Director of CHOW.com and URBANBABY.com.
Ian Adelman, Design Director of NYMag.com
Paul Schrynemakers, Creative Director of Rodale Online
Andrew Essex, CEO of Droga5

Please join us for an evening of amazing work and conversation.
We'll figure this whole thing out. Promise.

PAPER TO PIXELS
Tuesday, October 7, 2008
Katie Murphy Amphitheatre, F.I.T.
27th Street & Seventh Avenue, NYC

7:00 - 8:30 PM; doors open at 6:30

Tickets:
SPD Members, ~~$10 in advance~~ $15 CASH ONLY at the door (advance tickets no longer available)
Non-members, ~~$15 in advance~~ $20 CASH ONLY at the door (advance tickets no longer available)
Students & faculty with valid ID: $5

Please call SPD at 212 223 3332 by noon on Monday, October 6th for advance tickets; after Monday the 6th Tickets can be purchased at the door Tuesday evening, CASH ONLY.

RSVP early! All tickets, and seating, are first come, first served.

Photography Courtesy of Johnny Miller.

Watch Here! SPD@FIT: New York Magazine at 40

2008-09-16T14:00:00Z

An audio slideshow of the panel discussion celebrating New York Magazine's 40th anniversary.]]>

SPD@FIT: "New York Magazine at 40" Panel Discussion from SPD Videos on Vimeo.

Click here to download the full Quicktime movie to your desktop.

SPD@FIT: New York Magazine at 40

2008-09-14T21:30:00Z

Tuesday night was the first of SPD's fall speaker events, and it was a blockbuster: the audience was packed with notables, hopefuls, and everybody in between. It was a testimonial to New York Magazine's powerful influence in our city and in our business.
]]> New York Magazine... without giving away my age, suffice it to say I have been a subscriber for ALMOST as long as it has been in existence (now 40 years... can it be true?! I must have subscribed as a mere babe). My subscription to New York Magazine has sustained me and connected me to the city I love for many, many years... far longer than any of my other subscriptions, marriages, jobs, relationships... (but that's another blog entry, and it doesn't belong here).

Just seeing the panel on FIT's Katie Murphy Auditorium stage was toe-tingling: Walter Bernard! New York Magazine co-founder Milton Glaser! Current editor and (still) wunderkind Adam Moss, he of the many ASME awards! Robert Newman! Current Design Director Chris Dixon! (How does he pull this crazily labor-intensive format off, week after undoubtedly sleep-deprived week?!) Okay, I promise that is the last of my homage to Tom Wolfe. (Tom Wolfe rose to great prominence in the [early] pages of New York Magazine, as did many other now-famous writers. But this was an audience of designers, so that, too, is another story.)

Behind the panelists: a mesmerizing slideshow selected from New York Magazine's 2080 covers (that's 40 covers times 52 weeks a year...give or take) and a few historical photographs of Walter and Milton in their younger incarnations. I don't know what was going through the minds of the youngsters in the audience, but for those of us old enough to remember most of those covers, it was like a trip through time, re-living every cover story that defined our lives.

Skillfully moderated by SPD Vice President and Blender CD Dirk Barnett, the panelists touched on everything from practical issues like deadlines and budgets as well as the unique zeitgeist in the beginning days of New York Magazine, and how it all works today. Dirk announced that at the end of the discussion there would be a "McCain presidency cover challenge" for the panelists).

First, Milton Glaser recalled how New York Magazine started: as a Sunday supplement, edited in its last few years by the now-legendary Clay Felker (Felker's recent passing was noted in the pages of New York with a lengthy memorial package including recollections from many prominent contributors).

Milton remembered, "Most of us had no idea what we were doing. It was one of the worst periods of my life." However, it was also a uniquely fertile creative environment: "People liked to cluster where the talent was...we all welcomed that sense of community, the feeling was that if we had enough good people with good ideas we could make a good magazine. The idea was we were all in it together." In those days, Milton recalled, any one could get in to see the editor... "If you could make it up the four flights of stairs, you could talk to someone at the magazine" ...not like today, where getting an appointment with an editor is difficult or even impossible.

Walter recalled all of the illustrators and photographers who participated in the magazine, often for very small fees, and little time for execution, simply because they knew it was a great place to have your work seen, and because there was an excitement about New York Magazine in its early days. "Of course, Pushpin Studios was downstairs...Seymour (Chwast) or Milton could do the illustration for the cover...in fact, Milton was our landlord! That's why we never had any heat," he joked.

Like anything that has been around for so many years, the magazine has had its zeniths and nadirs, and many editors and art directors have had a hand in its look and content. But its low points were barely mentioned by the panel, as New York Magazine is unquestionably on a roll these days: under Adam Moss' stewardship, New York has been lauded and awarded practically every industry honor, and circulation is at an all-time high.

Robert Newman, however, recalled how things had changed by the time he served as the Art Director in the mid '90s: "When I was interviewed, they would not take me into the art department, and after I accepted the job I found out why: it was an open space with drafting tables; everyone sat together, even the messengers; there were no walls. Meanwhile, the editor's office was lavish, with mahogany paneling...this was when the offices were on Second Avenue." Bob also brought up the sore subject of budgets; people who looked at the magazine thought there was a great budget but, he said, "The reality was that the budget was very low and the staff was minimal...it was a real struggle."

Milton remembered that, in the beginning, "The magazine was tough and utilitarian...we didn't feel it was well-designed; we were just trying to put it together and get it out the door. The art department probably wrote sixty percent of the headlines; the hierarchical lines were quite broken down...there were no walls."

Adam Moss said that, in that respect at least, things had not changed that much. "We still make decisions on the fly...we try to have at least five versions of the cover; on Thursday afternoons we bring in staffers--anyone on the staff can cometo 'edit' the covers, to make sure we have sent a clear message, that we haven't overlooked something; we are sometimes too close to it. That still gives us about six hours to make changes."

Moss complimented the "incredible visual team" and gave us some insight into the redesign executed while Luke Hayman was the Design Director: "I kept saying to Luke and Chris, 'Stuff more in' and the magazine became very dense, but the density was parried with exuberant air. Luke and Chris made an asset of the density. And Randy Minor does a great job with The Strategist, which was more or less created to play off Randy's obsessions." He also acknowledged the important contributions made by Director of Photography Jody Quon (who was modestly in the audience, as was Randy), especially for her 'great optimism' in getting subjects; especially with the recent Bert Stern cover story of Lindsay Lohan re-creating the famous photo session he did with Marilyn Monroe shortly before her death.

Walter said that, when he was the Art Director, "There was no Photo Editor; the Art Director hired the illustrators and the photographers." But, Milton added, despite all of the difficulties, "All of the emergencies and being oppressed by time and circumstance and lack of money gave us all a great sense of purpose in our lives."

Dirk sensed that was a great ender, so now it was time for the McCain presidency cover challenge: If McCain won the presidency, what should New York Magazine's cover image be?

Walter Bernard: "I picture him sitting on the lap of Sarah Palin, looking rather small."

Milton Glaser: "The picture of McCain is seen from behind."

Robert Newman: "It's a big face of Hillary Clinton, with a big smile."

Adam Moss: "It will be close to the New Year; I'd put McCain in diapers."

Chris Dixon: "Those were my four ideas."

SOLD OUT! NO FORMULA: Intuition Is Underrated

2008-08-20T14:45:32Z

Cocktails.
Conversation.

Two of the things SPD loves best, coming together for our new series of smaller speaker events, the SPD SpeakEasy.

And to kick the whole thing off?
The New York Times Magazine's Art Director, Arem Duplessis, on the behind-the-scenes, about-the-process work that goes on at the magazine.
]]> Wild Project theater downtown, with complimentary drinks and inspiring conversations.

All we can say is, Thank God It's Monday! See you there...

NO FORMULA: Intuition Is Underrated
Arem Dupless, Art Director, The New York Times Magazine

Monday, September 22, 2008
Wild Project Theatre
195 East 3rd Street (between Aves. A & B)
map here or below

7:00 drinks
7:30 discussion

UPDATE, THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 18th: This event is completely sold to capacity! Wow. Thank you to everyone who RSVP'd early, and for those of you we have to miss, we will be recording to share on the site after the event.

Tickets:
SPD Members, $10 in advance ($15 CASH ONLY at the door)
Non-members, $15 in advance ($20 CASH ONLY at the door)
Students with valid ID: $5

Please call SPD at 212 223 3332 by noon on Monday, September 22nd for advance tickets while they last; tickets purchased at the door the evening of the event will be $5 higher, CASH ONLY.

RSVP early! All tickets, and seating, are first come, first served.

SPD@FIT: New York Magazine at 40

2008-07-25T16:15:00Z

The passing of New York Magazine's founding editor Clay Felker earlier this summer was marked as it should be for all of the greats, as the magazine he and Milton Glaser started in 1968 devoted serious real-estate to several sharp pieces of reflection, and one of the greater oral histories around about what it was like during the early days of the ground-breaking, pace-setting magazine start-up. It was exciting to pore over the Felker-era cover highlights posted online and fire off e-mails that started, "What about this...?" That the opportunity for such a clear-eyed, funny and frank appreciation fell during the same year New York celebrates its 40th anniversary seems like synchrony Felker himself would engineer.

To open the 2008-09 season of SPD@FIT, SPD presents an evening that continues the celebration and honors the creators, on the occasion of the 40th anniversary of New York.
]]> Adam Moss, Design Director Chris Dixon, co-founder Milton Glaser, former Art Directors Walter Bernard and Robert Newman, along with other notables from the magazine's past (who KNOWS who'll be in the audience?!), will be a candid discussion about what it took then, and what it takes now, to make this very special magazine.

New York Magazine's 40th Anniversary
Tuesday, September 9, 2008

Katie Murphy Amphitheatre, FIT
27th Street & Seventh Avenue, NYC

7:00 - 8:30 PM; doors open at 6:30

Tickets:
SPD Members, $10 in advance ($15 CASH ONLY at the door)
Non-members, $15 in advance ($20 CASH ONLY at the door)
Students with valid ID: $5

Please call SPD at 212 223 3332 by noon on Monday, September 8th for advance tickets while they last; after Monday the 8th, tickets can be purchased at the door the evening of the event will be $5 higher, CASH ONLY.

RSVP early! All tickets, and seating, are first come, first served.
Download the pdf flyer here:
nymflyer-1.pdf