Shop for Michigan Posters by Artist Chris Bidlack
Artist Chris Bidlack creates and illustrates original Tribute and Faux-stalgia art print posters celebrating Michigan and the Great Lakes region. Michigan poster subjects include Detroit, Ann Arbor, and Ypsilanti local landmarks. Chris’ Tribute poster series provide an original yet reverent look at the area’s historic and iconic landmarks, while his Faux-stalgia series introduces a whimsical element with fictional yet period-perfect businesses and services that conjure a simpler time.
(Also visit our Jet Age Art website to see Chris Bidlack’s original aviation art posters.)
Coming Soon!
New poster designs “under construction” include the following subjects:
Detroit’s Bob-Lo Boat and Island
Detroit’s Michigan Central Train Depot
Detroit City Airport Tribute Poster
Featured
$35.00
30.00
Poster size is 14" wide by 20" tall, including a one-inch white border, and is printed on heavyweight, acid-free poster stock.
Detroit's forgotten Airport on the city's east side sits quietly and little-used today, but still appears in places much as it did in the late 1930s. Although awaiting an uncertain future, City Airport was once an exciting pre-World War II focal point for air travel to and from the Motor City, with stars like Jack Benny and Tyrone Power, businessmen like Howard Hughes, and noted personalities like J. Edgar Hoover, Wrong Way Corrigan and even Elenor Roosevelt passing through its lobby doors.
The poster, illustrated by artist Chris Bidlack, portrays the north façade of the 1930 Main Hangar, the design of which was which was initially undertaken by the famed Detroit architect Louis Kamper. (Kamper was removed from the project before much progress was made, and the final design and construction was overseen by Detroit's city engineer Perry A. Fellows.) On the roof of the building sits the old control tower, complete with openable windows, modern radios, and (probably a very warm) glass ceiling.
In the illustration, as a Pennsylvania Central Airlines Boeing 247D approaches overhead, an American Airlines DC-3 begins its taxi to the departure runway. Behind, passengers arriving for the next flight, perhaps to board the DC-3 approaching in the distance from the south, walk toward the Waiting Room.
Although significantly deteriorated in parts today, the airport's main hangar still stands, and although the pigeons now occupy what's left of the old control tower, the building's original Art Deco elegance is still somewhat in evidence. If you're a fan of Detroit aviation history, or know someone who is, this unique print is for you.
The print will arrive carefully packaged and ready for you to unroll and frame. (Framing instructions included.) Click on the image to see the full poster in detail. (And of course, the "JetAgeArt.com" watermark does not appear on the actual poster.)
$35.00
Poster size is 14" wide x 20" tall, which includes a handsome white border area, and is printed on heavyweight poster stock.
Art Print Poster celebrating the Golden Age of air travel at Chicago's Meigs Field Airport, which operated in the last half of the 20th century, illustrated by Jet Age artist Chris Bidlack.
Poster will arrive carefully packaged and ready for you to unroll and frame. Click on the image to see the full poster in detail. (And of course, the "JetAgeArt.com" watermark does not appear on the actual poster.)
$35.00
Poster size is 14" wide x 20" tall, which includes a handsome white border area, and is printed on heavyweight poster stock.
This Chris Bidlack Art Print Poster, depicting Jackson County’s Reynolds Field in mid-1962, centers on a taxiing North Central Airlines DC-3 departing the terminal ramp (the carrier still flew two DC-3 flights a day into and out of JXN in 1962), and above, the 1959 Aero Commander used by Jackson-based Aeroquip Corporation. The illustration also highlights the new JXN Control Tower building and Airport Terminal which were less than a year old at the time.
Poster will arrive carefully packaged and ready for you to unroll and frame. Click on the image to see the full poster in detail. (And of course, the "JetAgeArt.com" watermark does not appear on the actual poster.)
$35.00
Poster size is 14" wide x 20" tall, including a one-inch white border, and is printed on heavyweight poster stock.
Chicago’s propliner era, fondly remembered by thousands, is the stylized subject of Chris Bidlack’s new MDW art print poster, which also includes a nod to the great Lockheed Constellation, and the city’s 1950s-era skyline.
Poster will arrive carefully packaged and ready for you to unroll and frame. Click on the image to see the full poster in detail. (And of course, the "JetAgeArt.com" watermark does not appear on the actual poster.)
$35.00
Poster size is 14" wide by 20" tall, including a one-inch white border, and is printed on heavyweight, acid-free poster stock.
This artistic tribute to the memory of Midway Airlines takes the form of a bright scene highlighting the carrier’s primary workhorse, the venerable Douglas DC-9. Set at Midway Airport (where else?), and with the Chicago skyline as the background, Chris Bidlack’s illustration pays homage to one of Chicago’s most fondly-remembered air carriers.
The print will arrive carefully packaged and ready for you to unroll and frame. Click on the image to see the full poster in detail. (And of course, the "JetAgeArt.com" watermark does not appear on the actual poster.)
$35.00
This poster is 14" wide x 20" tall, which includes a handsome white border area, and is printed on heavyweight poster stock. (Please note that our other poster designs may differ in size.)
Artist Chris Bidlack’s fictional depiction of a World War II-era lunch wagon serving workers at the storied Willow Run Bomber Plant near Ypsilanti, Michigan. Ford’s iconic bomber factory appears in the background, with two of the B-24 Liberator bombers it produced soaring overhead.
Poster will arrive carefully packaged and ready for you to unroll and frame. Click on the image to see the full poster in detail. (And of course, the "GreatLakesPosters.com" watermark does not appear on the actual poster.)
$35.00
This poster is 15” wide x 23” tall, which includes a handsome color-coordinated border area, and is printed on heavyweight poster stock. (Please note that our other poster designs may differ in size.)
Fictional Ann Arbor Airlines offered (non-stop!) evening flights to Toledo for the Great Lakes jet set during the 1950s. Artist Chris Bidlack’s faux-stalgic take on the golden age of air travel features the Convair CV-240 with a totally re-imagined Ann Arbor Airport in the background.
Poster will arrive carefully packaged and ready for you to unroll and frame. Click on the image to see the full poster in detail. (And of course, the "GreatLakesPosters.com" watermark does not appear on the actual poster.)
$35.00
This poster is 15” wide x 23” tall, which includes a handsome color-coordinated border area, and is printed on heavyweight poster stock. (Please note that our other poster designs may differ in size.)
The legendary — and fictional — Blane Ann Arbor Cab Company takes center stage in Chris Bidlack’s faux-stalgic take on a simpler time, while the lights of Ann Arbor’s iconic Burton Tower shine through a late night downpour.
Poster will arrive carefully packaged and ready for you to unroll and frame. Click on the image to see the full poster in detail. (And of course, the "GreatLakesPosters.com" watermark does not appear on the actual poster.)
$35.00
This poster is 14" wide x 20" tall, which includes a handsome white border area, and is printed on heavyweight poster stock. (Please note that our other poster designs may differ in size.)
Fictional Southern Michigan Bus Lines offers continuous service between Ann Arbor and points east and west in this fanciful faux-stalgia poster by artist Chris Bidlack. Featured in the illustration is the familiar and much-loved art moderne facade of Ann Arbor’s historic bus station, now preserved as part of a modern hotel.
Poster will arrive carefully packaged and ready for you to unroll and frame. Click on the image to see the full poster in detail. (And of course, the "GreatLakesPosters.com" watermark does not appear on the actual poster.)
$35.00
This poster is 15" wide x 23" tall, which includes a handsome color-coordinated border area, and is printed on heavyweight poster stock. (Please note that our other poster designs may differ in size.)
This faux-stalgia poster by artist Chris Bidlack harkens back to the days of doorstep delivery and the rattle of milk bottles in the pre-dawn darkness. The fictional Ann Arbor Creamery’s Divco delivery truck makes its rounds while the city still sleeps.
Poster will arrive carefully packaged and ready for you to unroll and frame. Click on the image to see the full poster in detail. (And of course, the "GreatLakesPosters.com" watermark does not appear on the actual poster.)
$35.00
This poster is 15” wide x 23” tall, which includes a handsome color-coordinated border area, and is printed on heavyweight poster stock. (Please note that our other poster designs may differ in size.)
The fictional Ann Arbor Bus Company offers equally fictional double-decker bus service from Main Street to campus and back in this whimsical faux-stalgia poster by artist Chris Bidlack. Ann Arbor’s iconic Burton Tower serves as the backdrop for a colorfully re-imagined past. In a nonfiction nod to some of Ann Arbor’s gone-but-not-forgotten retail establishments, the ads on the side of the bus evoke classic 20th century Ann Arbor with Schlenker Hardware, Drake’s Sandwich Shop, Mayer-Schairer Office Supplies, and others.
Poster will arrive carefully packaged and ready for you to unroll and frame. Click on the image to see the full poster in detail. (And of course, the "GreatLakesPosters.com" watermark does not appear on the actual poster.)
$35.00
This poster is 15” wide x 23” tall, which includes a handsome color-coordinated border area, and is printed on heavyweight poster stock. (Please note that our other poster designs may differ in size.)
Artist Chris Bidlack colorfully re-imagines Ann Arbor’s past with this faux-stalgia poster depicting the fictional Ann Arbor Train Line. Sleek, modern locomotive engines are set against Ann Arbor’s familiar historic train station, now the site of a popular restaurant.
Poster will arrive carefully packaged and ready for you to unroll and frame. Click on the image to see the full poster in detail. (And of course, the "GreatLakesPosters.com" watermark does not appear on the actual poster.)
$35.00
This poster is 14" wide x 20" tall, which includes a handsome white border area, and is printed on heavyweight poster stock. (Please note that our other poster designs may differ in size.)
Artist Chris Bidlack conjures up a futuristic past with Ann Arbor’s fictional mid-century Monorail. Ann Arbor’s skyline, with a fanciful atomic age addition or two. Look closely, and you’ll see Ann Arbor’s iconic Burton Tower.
Poster will arrive carefully packaged and ready for you to unroll and frame. Click on the image to see the full poster in detail. (And of course, the "GreatLakesPosters.com" watermark does not appear on the actual poster.)
$35.00
This poster is 14" wide x 20" tall, which includes a handsome white border area, and is printed on heavyweight poster stock. (Please note that our other poster designs may differ in size.)
Artist Chris Bidlack re-imagines a simpler and more elegant time, when liveried cabs shuttled elegantly-dressed passengers to Willow Run Airport, Detroit-Wayne Major Airport, to and from Ypsilanti, and around town. Kinch Cab Co., the most legendary Ann Arbor cab company that never existed, is featured in this colorful faux-stalgia poster.
Poster will arrive carefully packaged and ready for you to unroll and frame. Click on the image to see the full poster in detail. (And of course, the "GreatLakesPosters.com" watermark does not appear on the actual poster.)
$35.00
This poster is 14” wide x 20” tall, which includes a handsome one inch border area, and is printed on heavyweight poster stock. (Please note that our other poster designs may differ in size.)
The fictional Ann Arbor Subway System offered convenient transportation to mid-century shoppers and commuters traveling between Ann Arbor and Ypsilanti (in only 18 minutes!) with runs between the two cities every half hour, the Ann Arbor-to-Ypsilanti Subway was as popular as it was frequent. Of course, it’s all just a faux-stalgic look at the past from the imagination of artist Chris Bidlack.
Poster will arrive carefully packaged and ready for you to unroll and frame. Click on the image to see the full poster in detail. (And of course, the "GreatLakesPosters.com" watermark does not appear on the actual poster.)
$35.00
This poster is 13" wide x 19" tall, which includes a handsome white border area, and is printed on heavyweight poster stock. (Please note that our other poster designs may differ in size.)
Detroit’s iconic train station’s original 20th century glory is on display in this Michigan Central Train Depot tribute poster by artist Chris Bidlack. The New York Central Railroad’s “Mercury” engine illustrated is represented as the line’s “Wolverine” passenger service, which made regular stops at the station during its heyday.
Poster will arrive carefully packaged and ready for you to unroll and frame. Click on the image to see the full poster in detail. (And of course, the "GreatLakesPosters.com" watermark does not appear on the actual poster.)
$35.00
This poster is 15" wide x 23" tall, which includes a handsome color-coordinated border area, and is printed on heavyweight poster stock. (Please note that our other poster designs may differ in size.)
Artist Chris Bidlack envisions a spectacular flyover halftime show in this fanciful faux-stalgia poster that evokes football Saturdays past in a Michigan area stadium few, if any, remember.A thrilling display of 20th century American air ship mastery would certainly have made for the most memorable game day in history.
Poster will arrive carefully packaged and ready for you to unroll and frame. Click on the image to see the full poster in detail. (And of course, the "GreatLakesPosters.com" watermark does not appear on the actual poster.)
$35.00
This poster is 14" wide x 20" tall, which includes a handsome white border area, and is printed on heavyweight poster stock. (Please note that our other poster designs may differ in size.)
With this Willow Run Airport tribute poster, artist Chris Bidlack conjures the golden age of air travel, when Willow Run was Detroit’s busy passenger hub. Featured are the logos of the airlines that operated out of Willow Run in its heyday as the world’s 7th busiest airport, along with the iconic Convair 240, against a backdrop of Willow Run’s control tower, terminal, and south concourse.
Poster will arrive carefully packaged and ready for you to unroll and frame. Click on the image to see the full poster in detail. (And of course, the "GreatLakesPosters.com" watermark does not appear on the actual poster.)
$35.00
This poster is 14" wide x 20" tall, which includes a handsome white border area, and is printed on heavyweight poster stock. (Please note that our other poster designs may differ in size.)
Although many people are familiar with Frog Island, in Ypsilanti’s historic Depot Town area, very few are familiar with storied Frog island Towing. Fictional Frog Island Towing was ready to come to the rescue of stranded Ypsilantians in the colorful postwar era, as imagined by artist Chris Bidlack. This faux-stalgia poster features the artist’s interpretation of 20th century commercial architecture and automotive design.
This poster is 14" wide x 20" tall, which includes a handsome white border area, and is printed on heavyweight poster stock. (Please note that our other poster designs may differ in size.)
$35.00
Poster size is 14" wide x 20" tall, including a one-inch white border, and is printed on heavyweight poster stock.
The iconic World War II B-24 Liberator bomber is the main focus of attention in artist Chris Bidlack’s Willow Run B-24 tribute poster, accompanied by the classic 1940s runway arrangement of Willow Run AIrport. 8,685 Liberators were built at Willow Run during WWII.
Poster will arrive carefully packaged and ready for you to unroll and frame. Click on the image to see the full poster in detail. (And of course, the "GreatLakesPosters.com" watermark does not appear on the actual poster.)
$35.00
Poster size is 14" wide by 20" tall, including a one-inch white border, and is printed on heavyweight, acid-free poster stock. (Please note that our other poster designs may differ in size.)
Willow Run Airport, one of America's great air freight hubs, is highlighted in this fanciful, retro-style poster illustrated by Chris Bidlack. A tribute to the freighter era at YIP, the composition portrays a stylized Lockheed Electra freighter, once a common sight at Willow Run. The original airport runway arrangement is depicted below, along with an emblem reading, "Smart Plant Managers Ship by Air." Although fictitious, this "faux-stalgia" poster makes a perfect gift for anyone, current or retired, who ever worked freight at Willow Run.
The print will arrive carefully packaged and ready for you to unroll and frame. (Framing instructions included.) Click on the image to see the full poster in detail. (And of course, the "GreatLakesPosters.com" watermark does not appear on the actual poster.)
Poster size is 14" wide by 20" tall, including a one-inch white border, and is printed on heavyweight, acid-free poster stock.
Chris Bidlack's illustrated Ford Airport poster brings alive one of America's most-forgotten airports (and perhaps its most-forgotten air terminal), in the style and form of an advertisement for air travel via the airfield, circa 1929.
Once the aviation jewel Dearborn, Michigan, and the centerpiece of Henry Ford's many aviation diversions, almost no trace remains today of what was arguably America's best-known airfield of the early 1920s.
Ford Airport was the first airport with concrete runways and the first with a night lighting system. The airfield was also the site of the first contracted airmail service in the U.S., and the location of the first radio control of a commercial flight. But more noteworthy to fans of Detroit architect Albert Kahn, the poster highlights America's first passenger terminal, designed by the famous architect and opened in 1927. (Standing just across the street was the country's first airport hotel, the Dearborn Inn—also designed by Kahn—which remains in business today.
The poster is full of history: The upper portion features a Ford Tri-Motor, specifically Ship 10 of Stout Air Services, an early airline founded by William Stout, engineer, businessman, and the man behind many of Ford's aviation endeavors, including the Tri-Motor itself. Stout established the first regularly scheduled passenger airline in the U.S., and his name was synonymous with Henry Ford and Ford Airport.
In addition to the Ford Tri-Motor, the other airplanes illustrated include a Pitcairn-Cierva Autogiro (operated by the Detroit News from 1931 to 1933), a Lockheed Vega, and at the lower left, the tragic Ford Flivver, perhaps flown by test pilot Harry Brooks.
The lower portion of the print features Albert Kahn's beautiful but long-forgotten Ford Airport Passenger Terminal, which featured many windows, a clay tile roof and parapet edging, and a prominent observation deck. Air passengers were transported to and from the Dearborn Inn on Stout passenger busses, as seen at the lower left. In the distance beyond the terminal at the right, stood Henry Ford's peculiar 210-foot tall dirigible mooring mast, erected in 1925 with high hopes for the future but only used twice. (Artistic license was employed with the inclusion the FORD dirigible in the illustration.) The mast's mooring equipment was removed in 1935, and the mast itself was demolished 1946.
As other Detroit area airports grew, Henry Ford's airport did not. The airfield and Kahn's passenger terminal were closed in 1933. The site is now home to the Ford Motor Company's Dearborn Development Center (formerly the Dearborn Proving Ground). The last standing artifact of the airfield, the Ford Airport hangar building along Oakwood Boulevard, survives today as the Ford Experimental Engine Building. Kahn's passenger terminal building was demolished in 1961.
Your Ford Airport print will arrive carefully packaged and ready for you to unroll and frame. (Framing instructions included.) Click on the image to see the full poster in detail. (And of course, the watermark does not appear on the actual poster.)