Screens 'N' Spokes - Where bikes and art come together to benefit the National MS Society

Hero's poster for Screens 'N' Spokes 2008
13" x 20" 3 - color handprinted silkscreen

Screens 'N' Spokes is an amazing benefit/art show that Hero was asked to participate in this year. Now in it's second year, it is annual poster show in Philadelphia to coincide with September’s MS150 City to Shore Bike Ride, with all proceeds to benefit the National Multiple Sclerosis Society (NMSS). Last year Team Screens 'N' Spokes raised over $31,000, to benefit the NMSS and sported a roster of 20 riders. With over 20 artists participating this year, the collection is going to be amazing. This year's ride is September 27-28 and there is still plenty of time to register to be a rider.

The Opening Nights are as follows:
(all prints will be available for purchase at the openings and through the duration of the show)

Mugshots CoffeeHouse
21st and Fairmount, Philadelphia, PA
Opening Night Thursday, September 4th, 6pm

Chapterhouse Cafe & Gallery
620 S. 9th St. (South St. and 9th St.), Philadelphia, PA
Opening Night Friday, September 12th, 6pm

For more information on Screens 'N' Spokes, where to donate, or to see more of the prints from this year's series, go to the blog here www.screensnspokes.blogspot.com

My Little Pony Project

For 25 years, Hasbro’s beloved MY LITTLE PONY® brand has brought fun, friendship, and joy of play to millions of little girls around the world. In honor of this remarkable milestone, Hasbro is sponsoring the “MY LITTLE PONY PROJECT: 25 Ponies for 25 Years” program. The “MY LITTLE PONY PROJECT: 25 Ponies for 25 Years” program is an international collection of 18” MY LITTLE PONY figures designed by popular culture’s influential people and organizations. Some of the artists include 123 Klan, Catalina Estrada, Claw Money, Jon Burgerman, Tado, Junko Mizuno, Tokidoki and many more....

I definitely had a ton of My Little Ponies as a kid, so I can't wait to see these, they have some serious artists lined up.

Lorem Ipsum tee for design-geeks at Tee Fury, today only!!!

Tee Fury has an amazing concept, "TEE TODAY. GONE TOMORROW". A brand new business with this concept, Limited edition designer tees at affordable prices, available for ONE DAY ONLY!!!

Today's shirt is awesome, it's perfect for us design nerds and so stinken cheap, only $9 plus $2 shipping. The artist is RikkiB - see an interview her on the homepage now.

I just bought one for myself actually!! Get on it NOW - according to the site there is just over 8 hours left!!!

World's Tallest Lego Tower

Standing tall at a whopping 96.12 feet and made of 465,000 bricks,the World’s Tallest LEGO tower was finally completed Wednesday July 16 at the C.N.E. fair grounds in Toronto. Now, not only does Toronto have the CN Tower, it holds the record for the highest tower created from Lego bricks. The Lego tower construction began at the beginning of July and official Lego builders from Denmark were flown in to supervise the effort, a crane was used to complete the tower.

Dressing the Part - Inside the Stylish World of Mad Men

"There were seven deadly sins practiced at the dawn of the 1960s: smoking, drinking, adultery, sexism, homophobia, anti-Semitism and racism ... Mad Men on AMC taps into all of them." - The New York Times

It's won a Peabody Award, two Golden Globes and it just swept the Emmy nominations. But let's be honest. Mad Men's real feat is being the most stylish show on TV today. It is for men, what Sex and The City was for women—smartly written dialogue and extreme characters we secretly wish to be, all wrapped up in a super stylized package.

Mad Men returned to AMC this past Sunday for it's second season and the new men's lifestyle website, Valet, has a four part feature that explores the style of each character with the assistance of costume designer Janie Bryant. The article takes a look at which current designers are taking their cues from the fads of post-war America, and even lists vital accessories and tips to help you dress the part.

You should DEFINITELY be watching Mad Men if you aren't already. Sundays at 10pm EST on AMC.

Interview: tokidoki Creative Director Simone Legno

Karmaloop TV features some of the most influential design minds in the world. Tokidoki’s founder and creative director Simone Legno invites KarmaloopTV into the tokidoki studio for an exclusive glimpse into his methods and imagination.

Legno speaks about his influences, his background and you also get a sneak peak at some upcoming releases.

via KarmaloopTV

Objectified - A new film by Gary Hustwit

From Gary Hustwit:

"First off, I want to thank all of you for your support during the making and release of Helvetica. The last two years have been quite an adventure, and it was my privilege to have you along with me. So I'm hoping you're up for joining me on another adventure: Objectified, my forthcoming documentary feature about industrial design. It's about the manufactured objects we surround ourselves with, and the people who make them. It's about the world of creativity behind everything from toothbrushes to tech gadgets, featuring some of the world's most influential industrial designers. It's also about consumerism, sustainability, and identity.

I've launched a new website and blog for the film here:

http://www.objectifiedfilm.com

I've been lucky enough to find a super cast of designers and design experts so far:

Paola Antonelli (Museum of Modern Art, New York)
Chris Bangle (BMW Group, Munich)
Ronan & Erwan Bouroullec (Paris)
Andrew Blauvelt (Walker Art Center, Minneapolis)
Anthony Dunne (London)
Naoto Fukasawa (Tokyo)
IDEO (Palo Alto)
Jonathan Ive (Apple, California)
Hella Jongerius (Rotterdam)
Marc Newson (London/Paris)
Fiona Raby (London)
Dieter Rams (Kronberg, Germany)
Karim Rashid (New York)
Alice Rawsthorn (International Herald Tribune)
Rob Walker (New York Times Magazine)

And more participants TBA.

The film will premiere in early 2009; in the meantime on the blog we'll be discussing the issues covered in the film, posting still photos from the shoots, and video excerpts as we finish the movie. And this Helvetica email list will now magically turn into the Objectified email list. If you'd like to follow along, just sit tight and we'll put you on the new list automatically. If you're tired of all this design film craziness, you can opt out via the link below.

Thanks again for your support, and I hope you'll enjoy the new film!

Cheers,

-Gary "

looks like it's going to be another great one!! Definitely check out the blog http://www.objectifiedfilm.com/

5 Great Social Networking Sites for Designers

Are you a graphic, web, industrial, or other designer? If so, there are 5 invaluable sites where you can network with other designers, get inspiration, and build a sweet portfolio.

1. Coroflot has the largest bank of portfolios I have ever seen, recently adding their 100,000th portfolio! You could spend weeks just browsing. Coroflot also has a great design job board. http://www.coroflot.com

2. Behance lets you build a dynamic, multimedia portfolio of your latest projects, open to all or shared selectively. You can comment on others’ portfolios. The Tip Exchange is also a great resource for sharing sources. http://www.behance.net

3. design:related is similar to Behance, but it is more focused on inspiration and collecting things that inspire you as a designer. The site also has a lot of great news and features. http://www.designrelated.com

4. Design Spotter is an online design magazine dedicated to everything related to young modern contemporary design. It focuses on designer portfolios, new products and prototypes, and promoting young designers. You can add your own portfolio too. http://www.designspotter.com

5. DESIGN 21 is a joint-venture project of Felissimo and UNESCO created to inspire and promote design for the greater good. http://www.design21sdn.com

These are also great places to check out upcoming designers or find a designer for a project. If you have more suggestions for helpful social designs sites, please post in the comments.

via Design Milk

CONTEST WINNER - White Ninja - Poster Contest!!!

OK so - there were a lot of great responses but the winner is: Chris!!!
Chris please send an email to hero.design@mac.com - and tell us what poster you would like and where we should send it. Please make "White Ninja Contest" the subjectline.

And here is the winning story:
It was a tuesday. I was sitting outside the Allen/Medical Campus metro rail station when she must've passed behind me, not making a single sound. I turned to look and see what it was, as I had almost felt her presence, a shiver running up my spine as though she was some sort of supernatural, ethereal being. I felt the urge to confront her, but before I knew it she was leaping up the side of a building like a monkey wrapped in toilet paper. I followed suit in a graceful manner Ang Lee would've been proud of. The chase went on for what seemed like a millenia, until finally I managed to catch up to her, as she had gotten one of her pant(?)legs caught on one of those cool spinning vent top things. You know what I'm talking about. Anyways, I pinned her down and demanded she tell me her story, in case I needed to know it for some sort of dumb contest in the future. Stunned by both my question and my brilliant looks, she replied with a story I shall never forget.

"I am the last of a lost tribe of underground, sewer-dwelling people. We were a proud race, a people who were able to creep around through the dirt and much running underneath the city without ever getting our pure-white clothing stained. But one day, the other dwellers of the sewers, called the Crazies (not to be confused with the similar sewer-people of Escape from New York, but surprisingly similar) decided to wage a war on us. They came forth, flinging mud and slime and pestilence. We tried to fight them off, but there was just too much to block off, and one by one we fell, our stained outfits leaving us in shame and eventual death due to mud poisoning. I was the only one who escaped unscathed. Now, I spend my days above ground, blending in as well as anyone as mummified in such garb as mine could. And here I shall always be."

And before I knew it, she was gone. That story I have shared with only this board now, because it has been the only place available to share it with at this point. But some day, I believe that there will be comics, books, films, and a TV miniseries based on this absolutely true, non-fictional tale that definitely happened.

She & Him - on Tour Now!! Official Tour Poster by Hero

She & Him Tour Poster - Available at every show and on heroandsound.com on August 11.

We made the drive to Toronto last night to catch the first night of She & Him's 14 date tour and to deliver the official Tour Posters, designed and handprinted by Hero. They are limited edition and available at every date of the tour, and we will have a few available for purchase after the tour commences. They are 16" x 20" and printed on a light grey Via Smooth 80# cover.

Mark and I were not only able to meet Zooey Deschanel and M. Ward, but we had the pleasure of driving them to MTV Canada for their appearance, since their cab never showed up. (Thank you crappy TO cab driver)
They were both extremely nice, very talkative and a pleasure to be around. It's hard to crack my "front" when it comes to celebrities and I kept my cool, but I'm not gonna lie, I was freaking out a teeny tiny bit, the minute they got out when the "paps" were swarming our stupid little CR-V trying to get a shot of Zooey.

Catch them on tour if you can, the show was amazing, they sounded great live.

Wednesday, July 23rd, 2008. Opera House - Toronto, ON w/ Freakwater.
Thursday, July 24th, 2008. Academy of Music - Northampton, MA w/ Freakwater.
Friday, July 25th, 2008. Trocadero - Philadelphia, PA w/ Freakwater.
Saturday, July 26th, 2008.Terminal 5 - New York, NY w/ The Rosebuds, Freakwater.
Monday, July 28th, 2008. Cat's Cradle - Carrboro, NC w/ Freakwater. This show is now SOLD OUT.
Tuesday, July 29th, 2008. Variety Playhouse - Atlanta, Georgia w/ Freakwater.
Wednesday, July 30th, 2008. Mercy Lounge - Nashville, TN w/ Charlie Louvin.
Thursday, July 31st, 2008. Orange Peel - Asheville, NC w/ Becky Stark of Lavender Diamond.
Saturday, August 2nd, 2008. Newport Folk Festival - Newport, RI.
Monday, August 4th, 2008. Wexner Center for the Arts - Columbus, OH w/ Becky Stark of Lavender Diamond.
Tuesday, August 5th, 2008. Park West - Chicago, IL w/ Becky Stark of Lavender Diamond.
Thursday, August 7th, 2008. First Avenue - Minneapolis, MN w/ Becky Stark of Lavender Diamond.
Friday, August 8th, 2008. Barrymore - Madison, WI w/ Becky Stark of Lavender Diamond.
Sunday, August 10, 2008. V Fest (at Pimlico Race Course) - Baltimore, MD (w/ Bob Dylan, Kanye West).

New posters available NOW!!!

Just updated the Hero webstore with a few new posters!!

Black Rebel Motorcycle Club - Moscow, Russia

Spoon - Brooklyn, NY

Stefan Sagmeister - TypeCon 2008 Buffalo NY

Spoon - Pitchfork Music Festival - Chicago IL

Click the posters or the name to purchase or visit us in store. Or start shopping through all our posters here

Font Conference

Here's one for all you type geeks...like me (sigh)...such a cross to bear...

Flatstock 17 at Pitchfork Music Festival Chicago - Photos

A rainy start

The Hero Booth

The Hero booth at night

Mike Klay and Beth

The "kid" being forced (paid) to eat a huge piece of Mexican spicy pickled cauliflower

Us

Strawberryluna

Doublnaut

Mike Budai

So it was a rough start to the weekend on Saturday when we were setting up at Union Park in horrid down pouring rain for hours on end, with a HUGE pool of water in the back of our tent. But eventually it cleared up on Saturday stayed beautiful and we had a great weekend. Really humid and hot, but dry none the less.

It was our best Flatstock ye, we met a lot of great people, had a great road trip and hung with some of our favorite friends from all over the country.

Here are a few photos that we took and a few taken by Josh Rickun. Here is a link to the entire album that he took. http://www.flickr.com/photos/28853723@N03/

Touch me, Don't touch me: Hypercolor's back!

Get ready to huff on that collar of yours:

American Apparel regurgitates the Hypercolor line of tees and tanks, I think they might have a sporting chance this time 'round.

Knowledge: Hypercolor works using special tiny Thermochromic dye capsules which are bound in the weave of the fabric. In turn the dye reacts with heat, thus highlighting your sweaty bits
like stinky glowing warnings to the opposite sex.

Warning: If your hypercolor becomes wrinkled, keep it away from the iron (think cosmic implosion)

check it

Hero's Booth at Flatstock 17

Test post from iPhone

Sent from my iPhone

Are you afraid I'm gonna ride out of this town the same way I rode in?

On a slug?

Ride 'Em Bob Amazing Action Slugs
(designed by our good friend Frank Kozik) are available now at Hero. We have a short run so come get one fast.


Live to ride...ride to live.

Hero at Pitchfork Music Festival & Flatstock Poster Show

(Hero's Flatstock 17 poster - available at Pitchfork)

If you are in Chicago this weekend, HERO will have a booth at the Pitchfork Music Festival, selling posters, tees, merchandise and more. Stop by and check it out.

The Flatstock Poster show will take place Sat and Sun at the event, featuring over 40 poster artists from around the world.

Pitchfork Music Festival - Flatstock
July 18-19-20, 2008
Union Park, Chicago, IL.

Find more information, event and band line up at www.pitchforkmusicfestival.com

The FLATSTOCK poster show series is presented by the American Poster Institute (API). It is an ongoing series of exhibitions featuring the work of many of the most popular concert poster artists working today.

Hero will present at Pecha Kucha - Part of TypeCon2008

Type-themed "Pecha Kucha Night" - an Evening of Mini Presentations From Design Legends and Rising Stars
Hallwalls Cinema
8:00 pm

Anyone who has attended a Pecha Kucha night before knows that the keys to the event are it's fast pace and visual punch. Each presenter is allowed exactly 20 images, each shown for exactly 20 seconds, adding up to 6 minutes and 40 seconds of fame before the next presenter is up. Time limits are strictly adhered to, and anything goes – from short films to bagpipe accompaniment to super-hot product design.

The TypeCon2008 edition of Pecha Kucha brings a stellar line-up of presenters from Buffalo and beyond: Julian Montague, Rick Griffith, Mark and Jill Wisz (OtherWisz), Stephen Coles, Greg Meadows, Mark Brickey (Hero Design Studio), Shasti O'Leary Soudant, Mark Byk and Kristine Tortora (AmpersandAmpersand), Brian Maloney, and Emily Luce.

http://www.pecha-kucha.org/cities/buffalo/7

Fresh off the...uh...machines that make lamp shades

FullyVisual artists lamps are available NOW!



20 Bwana Spoons, 40 Joe Ledbetter, and 25 Amanda Vissell. Each come with a signed certificate of authenticity and numbered.





All your favorite artists have made one, so go get yours at The Art Liberation
Now! Before some grubby hipster snatches it up.

Stefan Sagmeister Tickets Available

SOTA is proud to present Stefan Sagmeister: Things I Have Learned in My Life So Far. Sagmeister's first Buffalo appearance is slated for Wednesday evening, July 16, at the Karpeles Manuscript Library Museum, North Hall, 220 North Street, Buffalo, New York.

Doors open at 8:00 pm, with the presentation kicking off at 9:00 pm. His new book, Things I Have Learned in My Life So Far, will be available for purchase, and Stefan will sign copies on the spot. This evening is presented by The Society of Typographic Aficionados (SOTA) in association with Veer and the Type Directors Club (TDC).

Tickets for the Sagmeister event are free and limited so get em fast, here.

Hero did the poster for the event (there are two versions "mild" and "hot and saucy") and they will be available for sale on our website and in store on Thursday July 17.

BOOM!

In honor of Comic-con 2008 and it's roots as the original "San Diego Comic Book Convention" here is an amazing collection of original Comic book Sound effect stills. Be careful though, you might be there for a while.Shaaaazaaam!

Typographer's Handwriting

typrefaces and writing sample by mark simonson

typrefaces and writing sample by erik spiekermann

typrefaces and writing sample by dino dos santos

typrefaces and writing sample by nikola djurek

Stop and think how much typography is a part of your daily life... emails, text messages, newspapers, websites, signage, menus, you could go on forever. There are endless style options you can choose from; script, modern, distressed, type writer and so on and on and on.

Cameron Adams understands the importance of the typographer and his curiosity of their personal handwriting led him to ask a number of prominent typographers to send a scan of their handwriting. He published the results on his website and its so intriguing.

See all of the results here.

via

CONTEST: Who is the White Ninja? WIN: A Hero poster of your choice

If you are from or have ever visited Buffalo and more specifically in the neighborhood where Hero is, Allentown, you have seen the White Ninja. No one knows who she is, where she came from or why she dresses that way. We see her almost EVERY day and we all have our thoughts, now we want yours!

If you haven't seen her in person, that's OK too, speculate from the photos, it could be very fun!

WHAT: Come up with the best back story on Buffalo and Allentown's infamous White Ninja and win a free Hero poster ($30 or less).

HOW: Post a comment here with your story on who the White Ninja is, be as creative as you can, the most outrageous and original will win.

WHEN: Get your story up by Monday 7/21 at 12pm EST and we will pick the best and most original story, the winner will receive a Hero poster of their choice ($30 value or less). Enter as many times as you want.

PS ANYONE can win!

An Allentown Icon

The White Ninja!! Hero loves the White Ninja.

Ampersand Mania

Some awesome new Ampersand swag courtesy of one of my absolute favorite companies, House Industries. The Cast Iron Ampersands are available in solid iron and aluminum, and each sculpture is individually sand cast, hand selected by a qualified House Industries staff member and assigned a unique number. These would make rad bookends, paperweights, or a stylish weapon.

If they are out of your price range, you can still experience a healthy karmic resonance of a carefully-drawn Studio Lettering glyph as it radiates warmth through your entire creative psyche. Ampersand tees for men, women and the kids or of course the obligatory mouse pad.

Go to House Industries online store here