Stevie Wonder and Hugh Masekela at Lincoln Center Philharmonic Hall concert poster
Milton Glaser designed a number of posters for concerts organized by Gary Keys at Lincoln Center Philharmonic Hall. He often used his own typefaces, like Baby Fat for Simon & Garfunkel or Baby Teeth for Mahalia Jackson.
For Stevie Wonder’s concert on September 26, 1969, he went with a typeface designed by his partner at Push Pin Studios, Seymour Chwast. The obese sans with rounded corners is named Chwast Blimp. It’s shown in PLINC’s One Line catalog (1971) in three variants; A (with graded fill), Open (outlined), and C (solid). Chwast himself had used the Open for a Judy Garland concert poster in 1968, with glyphs filled in alternating colors. Glaser employed the solid variant, in reverse. Set on an angle, Stevie Wonder’s name is integrated into the image, doing double duty as the reflections in his sunglasses, and echoing the artist’s bright grin. Stevie Wonder was supported by Hugh Masekela (here misspelled “Masakela”). Offset lithograph, 23″×36.5″.
