Recently, a Brilliant Custom-Toy Maker, named Deane Aikins, very graciously gave Chip Kidd a totally genius-rendition of a BATMAN figure based on the art of Jiro Kuwata, from the “Lord Deathman” story found in Chip Kidd’s Book, “Bat-Manga: The Secret History of Batman in Japan”. The attention to detail is extremely well done, both in color and scale. Seriously, it’s a great likeness of the character!

Deane has also created some amazing Custom Batmobile Models, a very ambitious personal project to make one of each version starting with the Red Roadster from 1940! The Batman vehicles he has made so far are all really well done and we hope he continues to create many many more! To view their awesome beauty, just CLICK HERE! Also, while you’re there, look for the ones he did that are labeled “Daikins”.

This video is funny, because it’s a true response many Freelance Designers can get while working out in the field, but it’s also pretty serious. It’s all about Clients who think Photographers should work for free “because their work is easy to do. Plus, if they do it for free it’s not a big deal because they will get a free by-line which will give them good exposure”, LOL! Graphic Designers, Artists, Web Masters, Illustrators, Copy Writers, etc… can all relate to this! Plus, the character’s response to this is very well thought out and could be the very thing you need to say to your next Client. Remember, “Exposure Doesn’t Pay Bills”.

Just a quick post to thank Stefan Blitz for writing a very excellent Book Review of Abram’s THE ART AND MAKING OF THE DARK KNIGHT TRILOGY over at his FORCES OF GEEK Website! It’s very well written and I have to admit that I love all the photos he included, ha! This is one of the latest books designed by Chip Kidd that features special behind the scenes photos ( most never seen before ) of the making of all three Christopher Nolan Batman movies, including this year’s Blockbuster Film, “THE DARK KNIGHT RISES”.

This brand-new book is on sale now so please visit the FORCES OF GEEK for Stefan’s Article! Wait, hold on, I almost forgot to mention that his website is also holding a contest where you can WIN A FREE COPY of this book, duh!!

We're thrilled to report that two Pantheon Books won Eisner Awards at the ceremony held recently at the 2012 San Diego Comic Con. Graphic Novelist Craig Thompson ( pictured ) won Best Writer/Artist for Habibi and Art Spiegelman's MetaMaus won Best Comics-Related Book!! Congratulations to both of these amazing Artists, very well deserved!! BRAVO!!

Shown up above is Chris Ware's Poster Art for this year’s SMALL PRESS EXPO, the event of 2012! This show celebrates 200,000 years of Non-Mainstream Publishing Activity. The show starts on Saturday, September 15th, at 11:00am and runs till 7:00pm. Then, it’s open again on Sunday, Sept. 16th from 12:00pm to 6:00pm. Admission for one day is $10.00, or get in both days for $15.00! This year it will be held at the Marriott Bethesda North Hotel and Conference Center in North Bethesda, Maryland.

Some Special Guests of Honor include: Chris Ware, Dan Clowes, Adrian Tomine, Francoise Mouly, Nick Abadzis, Michael DeForge, plus Gilbert and Jaime Hernandez! Also, there will be a special film presentation by Mark Newgarden. For more information, just CLICK HERE!

Yesterday ( July 23rd, 2012 ), Designer and Author Chip Kidd wrote an Op-Ed piece for the New York Times Opinion Pages titled, “MetroCards for Sale”. The Article’s main focus is the fact that the Metropolitan Transportation Authority in New York recently announced that it would be selling advertising space on the front of its fare cards to raise revenue. So, Chip offered a few ideas for clever ads that would have real meaning for Subway Passengers everywhere. The graphic shown here is just one example. Please be sure to click this LINK to see the rest that he designed. Plus, while you’re there, we hope you enjoy reading the Article!

Every Graphic Design Student in the World should be forced to watch this video! Anybody sick of Trajan? What is Trajan? Trajan is the movie font. In this funny “Educational Video” by Kirby Ferguson we get to learn what the Trajan font is and experience how it is wayyy over-used in Modern Movie Poster design, funny stuff! Oh yeah, Kirby also writes a blog called GOODIE BAG that is pretty interesting, check it out sometime!

Just to clarify, Chip Kidd is known for creating the famous JURASSIC PARK Logo when he designed Michael Crichton’s Classic Book back in 1990. Since then it has shown up in popular culture in many different ways. Plus, it’s always interesting to see where it pops-up next!

Here is a wonderful heartwarming story. A Father, making a Sand Box for his Children, decided to give them something to find while digging. He knew he needed to place a small layer of cement in the bottom of the Sand Box he was building so that the tree’s roots near by would not grow up inside it. So, instead of just a flat surface he decided to get really creative. He thought he would give them something to discover! Check out the photos down below… it’s very cool! Plus, what a great Dad!

Here at Alfred A. Knopf we’re really excited about the sudden success of the recently published book titled, “The Impeachment of Abraham Lincoln, A Novel”. The Book asks the question, “What if Abraham Lincoln hadn’t been killed by that bullet on April 14, 1865 and, also, did the president subvert the Constitution? ”

That’s the startling premise of the latest novel from Yale Law School professor Stephen Carter, in which Lincoln survives that terrible night at Ford’s Theatre, only to face an impeachment trial two years later. Please be sure to check out the BOOK TRAILER Video and then, below that, be sure to listen to what the Author had to say on MSNBC’s “Morning Joe” TV News Program. They’re both pretty interesting.

Before we begin this post we would like to state that our heart goes out to everyone affected by the recent tragedy in Aurora, Colorado. This senseless form of violence is beyond tragic and we hope/pray that everyone, especially the ones who lost Friends & Family Members, find some form of Peace in their lives in the coming days. We are thinking about you and care deeply about what you are going through.

Right after the tragedy that unfolded at “The Dark Knight Rises” Movie Premier in Aurora, Colorado, Chip Kidd was contacted by ABC News as a “Batman Expert” and asked if he would do a short TV interview. Of course he was honored to do so and also hoped for an opportunity to extent his deepest sympathies to the families who were touched by this event. Like all of us, Chip was shocked beyond belief about everything that happened that day. It all seemed so completely surreal.

Up above is a photo of Chip Kidd as he appeared on “World News with Diane Sawyer” on July 20th, 2012. This is the episode where he was being interviewed by ABC TV News Reporter, Dan Harris. Please keep in mind that this is in no way an attempt at any form of publicity on Chip’s part. He did the interview, which was edited down quite a bit for the segment, and he wanted to issue a statement clarifying what he originally said in the full-complete interview because his remark that aired on TV might be taken out of context. To hear the edited version please be sure to click this LINK for the comment that aired on Television ( Dan Harris’ segment starts at about the 15:46 mark and Chip Kidd appears around 16:05 ).

Then, please be sure to read Chip Kidd’s personal statement down below:

“Just a little clarification about the ABC News appearance last night (Friday, July 20). I was contacted by the network earlier in the day about doing a short interview with them regarding the tragedy in Colorado, as I am viewed as a ‘Batman Expert’ (which is fine, no complaints there). By chance, I had a ticket to the 2:20pm IMAX Lincoln Center showing of ‘The Dark Knight Rises’ and planned to get there at least an hour ahead of time, and they were interviewing people standing in line. So, the timing and situation were perfect.

I spoke with Dan Harris for a good 20 minutes while they filmed, and showed (and gave) him copies of ‘Batman: Death By Design’, ‘Rough Justice’, and ‘Batman Collected.’ He was very professional and engaged, asked smart questions, I liked him a lot. Of course, there was no guarantee any of it would end up on the broadcast. I totally understood that. What did actually make the cut was me saying that I was still going to the movie despite what happened. Period.

That’s disappointing, because I went on to say that the horrible events perpetrated in Aurora were and are antithetical to everything the character and idea of Batman stands for: anti-gun, anti-killing. I do wish they had kept that in, so I’m emphasizing it here. In fact, there is a fight scene about halfway through the movie (which is well worth seeing, btw, and definitely in IMAX) in which Batman and Catwoman are duking it out with armed mercenaries on a Gotham rooftop. Catwoman disarms one of them, picks up his gun and points it him. Then Batman swats it out of her hand and screams ‘No guns! No killing!’ Right on. I also said, ” that the discussion really should be about tougher gun control laws, not cartoon violence in fantasy films.” Anyway, I thank ABC and Dan for including me, however briefly.” - C. K.