The thing about Von Glitschka is that you may not recognize the man, but you would recognize his work.
The phoenix on the exterior of the Grand Hotel in downtown Salem? That’s Von’s.
He’s also done work for chewing gum brand Orbit and fast food chain Wendy’s.
Local graphic designer and owner of Glitschka Studios, Von will share his creative musings with us this November at TEDxSalem.
Von grew up in Olympia, Wash., and attended Seattle Art Institute. He moved to Salem for a job in 1991, and save for a few years he lived in California, Salem has been his home ever since.
Von went to art school out of his fear of college math. Ironically, some of his favorite kind of design is tessellations — patterns that are beautiful because of its mathematical nature.
TEDxSalem will be far from Von’s first stab at public speaking. He became noticed in an online forum for designers and was invited to speak at a conference in Iowa. Ever since, he’s been traveling the country — even as far as London — to share his design wisdom.
In November, you can expect him to discuss fear as a barrier to creativity.
Fear of rejection and failure is not only normal, it is auspicious when trying to embark on something great, Von says. But the key is to not shy away from it.
Fear is the sensation of a creative breakthrough knocking at your door.
“That applies to any kind of problem-solving,” Von said.
To keep your creative juices flowing, Von advises you to avoid routine and comfort. While that may sound counterintuitive, routine and comfort breed apathy and a lack of passion.
When passion dies, so does creativity.
Instead of working in familiar places like your office or home, Von recommends working off-site, like a park, coffee shop or the library.
Von sometimes parks his car in the South Salem Safeway and blast classical music.
Whatever floats your boat.
– Saerom Yoo, TEDxSalem storyteller