The Lost Art of Hand-Lettering Lives at MIT

The Lost Art of Hand-Lettering Lives at MIT If youve walked down the Infinite before, youve probably seen doors. A lot of doors. And a lot of them with letters on them, like this one: What you probably dont know is that, since 1994, all of the letters on all of these doors have been hand-lettered by one man, Glenn Silva. Hes painted my name at least five times since Ive been here as weve redistributed personnel throughout the rooms that make up the admissions office. Most people around campus know Glenn, by sight if not always by name, but the many people who pass through MIT dont. However, the School of Engineering just posted a short video about Glenn and his time and contributions to campus, which are highly visible even while his labor is not. As someone who believes recognizing and celebrating maintainers is just as, if not more, important than doing the same for innovators, I wanted to share it here so that our visitors could see and appreciate Glenns art; and see, the next time you visit campus, that these small, acts of love and care are everywhere at the Institute.