Reilly Brennan

Will Calcutt and Ghostly and ADC

Next month one of my favorite designers in the world is speaking in New York and I’m making the trip to sit in the audience. American designer Will Calcutt will be speaking as a part of “Of Art and Artifice,” a three-day romp of Ghostly International’s most innovative art and music, put on by the Art Directors Club. When the whole thing was announced and I saw Will’s name, it seemed irrational to make the trip for such an event. But the last time he displayed his work in public was about a decade ago and I figure every once and while you’ve got to get on an airplane to go see something you love. 

Will shaped so much of what made Ghostly International great in terms of design and feel and his design signature — whether in the form of graphic design, photography, copy or just plain ethos — influenced an entire generation of kids coming out of Detroit and Ann Arbor at the turn of millenium, yr humble narrator included. I have been blessed to be able to work with him on a handful of projects, the redesign of this blog being the most recent example. 

Tickets are here. Opening night is Thursday, September 13 and it runs through the entire weekend.