Phillip Retuta

Designer and Artist

 

Hey.

Hi, my name is Phillip Nievera Retuta, and welcome to my personal website. I'm a digital designer, artist, and art director by career, living in Brooklyn, NY. I was born in Chicago to two very wonderful immigrant, Filipino parents. For undergrad, I went to the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign to study English Literature, and for graduate school, Parsons the New School for Design to study Design + Technology. I'm currently employed as the graphic and lead web designer at The New York Institute of Technology. I have an awesome dog named Nico, who will one day be Instagram famous. I also draw comics on my spare time. I love cooking, typography, and polaroid film. I hate loud clubs, crowded subways, and phonies.

There.

Now you know the basics, and hopefully this written copy didn't sound too much like an online dating profile.

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Man’s Best Friend.

My dog, Nico Doggerton, has been by my side since 2007. I named her (yes, "her") after Nico of The Velvet Underground and of Andy Warhol fame. When she was about a year old, I adopted her during my senior year of college from a shelter in Urbana-Champaign. Since then, the husky-labrador (or "huskador") mix has moved with me from rural Illinois, to back home in Chicago, to New Jersey, to now New York City. I love my pet very much, and Nico is incredibly patient for a dog -- as evident of all the goddamned photographs and videos I take of her. She hates brooms and hides in the bathtub when fireworks go off, but Nico thoroughly enjoys belly rubs, fabric squeaky toys, and pizza crusts.

Creativity Is Key.

It's always been my philosophy that anyone could be creative and artistic. It merely takes an idea, some time, and a little bit of effort to be some kind of creative. I've always prided myself as a maker of things, producing stuff for work, gifts for friends, or for my own personal interests. Simply put, I love putting my work out there for myself and others to see. Inspired by Legos, afternoon cartoons like Tiny Toons and Animaniacs, and my older brother's illustration work, I began tracing and drawing when I was in second grade. I began reading comics in fifth grade, and as soon as I hit English class in sixth, I started to write as well. In high school, I started documenting everything through photographs, and in college I was inspired by the tech startups of Silicon Alley. These outside influences motivated me to shape my own work. To be good at what you do (whatever that is), just keep on practicing, take criticism to heart but with a grain of salt, and be confident in your talents even if no one else is looking; after all, the best supporter of your own sense of creativity is yourself.

Portfolio.

Check out my work over here.

I Like To Write.

Both my hobbies and my career are within the image-based and visual sphere, but you can't take the English major out of me -- simply put, I love to write. I started a blog all the way back in 1997, and I continue to write today. Writing, I feel, allows me to communicate better and more honestly than actual conversation. Check out my blog, Twitter, and Tumblr.

Latest Tweet.

RSS Latest Blog Post.

  • Happy Birthday, Nico.
    I’ve lived in New York for over a decade, and that entire time my dog Nico has been with me. She would have been 14 today. Here’s my tribute to her and the city I love. After she had her tumor removed and was declared cancer-free, I knew we were still together on borrowed time. […]