Chip Kidd is the world’s most celebrated and coveted book jacket designer, known for his unique and provocative covers. When he’s not turning out covers for Knopf, or supervising graphic novels at Pantheon, or collaborating with authors on biographies of other gifted artists, Kidd stays busy writing his own novels, The Cheese Monkeys, published by Simon and Schuster in 2001, and its soon-to-be-released sequel.
Kidd’s visit to Portfolio Center this recent fall quarter was much anticipated, and the dynamic designer and speaker did not disappoint. Being an art school survivor himself, Kidd is the poster child for students who are just beginning to learn what Hamlet meant when he said, “by indirection find direction out.” Kidd understands the risks involved in choosing this industry, and the faith one must have in his or her own talent and passion. He also represents the best of what can become of such risk-takers.
He did not promise an easy road, but rather warned students that the challenge of finding a job post graduation was overwhelming for him, that he knocked on the doors of every design firm in New York. The importance of good design and designers wasn’t recognized back then the way it is today, and design jobs were hard to come by. “In retrospect, all my suffering sounds kind of charmed, but it certainly didn’t seem so at the time,” he told them. In the end, he settled for a freelance gig designing book jackets for Knopf, a small publisher, to tide himself over.
Unwittingly, the young Kidd had stepped into his destiny. “You have to allow yourself to get lucky,” he advised. “Graphic design covers a huge spectrum. Everything needs to be figured out, everything needs to be designed. There’s a huge span of potential clients. I mean, it’s good to narrow it down to what you want to do, but if things don’t go exactly as you plan, you have to be smart enough to recognize each opportunity.”
You must also never underestimate the value of putting your nose to the grindstone—giving your all to whatever the immediate task might be. Despite low pay, an unglamorous setting, and dreams of working elsewhere, Kidd took the freelance position. His hard work and dedication led to more freelance work, which led to a position as associate art director, which led to designing over 75 book covers a year, which finally led to his current place in history as the most famous book jacket designer in history.
Well, not finally, really; he’s not finished yet.
Portfolio Center students share a strong desire to communicate ideas, the willingness to let go of preconceived notions, and the compulsion to learn new ways of thinking. These qualities are fostered by the school’s constant stream of industry bigwigs, who bring their varied and colorful perspectives from all over the country. These creatives, who are always generous with their time and energy, tend to hang out with students, conducting informal workshops and continuing the day’s discussions over dinner. Often, what results are provocative interviews—written, shot, and designed by PC students.
