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Syd Mead

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For the Māori leader and academic, seeSidney Moko Mead.

Syd Mead
Mead in 2007
Born
Sydney Jay Mead

(1933-07-18)July 18, 1933
Saint Paul, Minnesota,U.S.
DiedDecember 30, 2019(2019-12-30)(aged 86)
Pasadena,California, U.S.
EducationArt Center School
OccupationIndustrial designer
Years active1959–2019
Known forDesigns forBlade Runner,Tron,Aliens,2010,andStar Trek: The Motion Picture
Spouse
Roger Servick[1]
​
​
(m.2016)​
AwardsInkpot Award(1989)[2]

Sydney Jay Mead(July 18, 1933 – December 30, 2019)[3]was an American industrial designer andneo-futuristconcept artist.He made designs for science-fiction films such asBlade Runner,AliensandTron.Mead has been described as "the artist who illustrates the future" and "one of the most influential concept artists and industrial designers of our time."[4][5]

Life[edit]

Early life[edit]

Mead was born on July 18, 1933, inSaint Paul, Minnesota.His father was aBaptistminister, who read him pulp magazines, such asBuck RogersandFlash Gordon,sparking his interest in science fiction. Mead was skilled in drawing at a young age. According to Mead, "by the time I was in high school I could draw the human figure, I could draw animals, and I had a sense of shading to show shape. I was really quite accomplished at that point with brush technique and so-forth." He described himself as being an "insular child."[4]Mead graduated from high school inColorado Springs, Colorado,in 1951. After serving a three-year enlistment in the U.S. Army, Mead attended the Art Center School in Los Angeles (now theArt Center College of Design,Pasadena), where he graduated in June 1959.[6]

Career[edit]

Voight-Kampff Machine, an example of Mead's artwork forBlade Runner

In 1959, Mead was recruited toFord Motor Company's Advanced Styling Studio byElwood Engel.From 1960 to 1961, Mead worked in Ford Motor Company Styling inDetroit, Michigan.Mead left Ford after two years to illustrate books and catalogues for companies includingUnited States Steel,Celanese,Allis-Chalmersand Atlas Cement. In 1970, he launched Syd Mead, Inc. inDetroitwith clients includingPhilips Electronics.[6]

With his own company in the 1970s, Mead spent about a third of his time in Europe, primarily to provide designs and illustrations for Philips, and he continued to work for international clients.[7]Through the 1970s and 1980s, Mead and his company provided architectural renderings, both interior and exterior, for clients includingIntercontinental Hotels,[8]3D International, Harwood Taylor & Associates, Don Ghia, Gresham & Smith[9]and Philip Koether Architects.[10]

Beginning in 1983, Mead developed working relationships withSony,Minolta,Dentsu,Dyflex,Tiger Corporation,Seibu,Mitsukoshi,Bandai,NHK andHonda.[11]

Mead's one-man shows began in 1973 with an exhibit atdocumenta 6inKassel,West Germany.His work was later exhibited in Japan, Italy, California and Spain.[11]In 1983, Mead was invited byChrysler Corporationto be a guest speaker to its design staff. He created a series of slides to provide visuals to the lecture, and the resulting presentation was a success. It was later expanded and enhanced with computer-generated images specifically created at the requests of several clients, includingDisney,Carnegie Mellon University,Purdue University,Pratt Instituteand theSociety of Illustrators.In March 2010, Mead completed a four-city tour of Australia.[7]

In 1993, a digital gallery consisting of 50 examples of his art with interface screens designed by him became one of the first CD-ROMs released in Japan. In 2004, Mead co-operated withGnomon School of Visual Effectsto produce a four-volume "how-to" DVD series titledTechniques of Syd Mead.[7]

In 2018, Mead published his autobiography, titledA Future Remembered.[12]Regarding his work, Mead said, "the idea supersedes technique,"[7]and that "I've called science fiction 'reality ahead of schedule.'"[13]

In film[edit]

Mead is best known for hisworkon films such asBlade Runner.Some of Mead's concept art is visible in the background of the second image.

Mead worked with major studios on the feature films:Star Trek: The Motion Picture,Blade Runner,Tron,2010,Short Circuit,Aliens,Timecop,Johnny Mnemonic,Mission: Impossible III,Elysium,TomorrowlandandBlade Runner 2049.[3][14]George Lucascreated theAT-ATfor hisStar Warssaga based on art by Mead.[15]Mead also contributed to the Japanese filmSolar Crisis.In the 1990s, Mead supplied designs for two Japaneseanimeseries,Turn A Gundamand the unfinishedYamato 2520.[14]

In May 2007, he completed work on a documentary of his career with the director Joaquin Montalvan entitledVisual Futurist:The Art & Life of Syd Mead.The short 2008 documentary film2019: A Future Imagined,also explored his works. Mead also appears in movie documentaries such asDangerous Days: Making Blade RunnerandMark Kermode'sOn the Edge of Blade Runner,and promotional materials such as the DVD extra forAliensand a promotional short film about the making of2010.[16]

Personal life[edit]

Mead was in a relationship with Roger Servick; the couple married in 2016.[17]They established a publishing extension, OBLAGON, Inc., in Hollywood[18]and relocated in 1998 toPasadena,California,where Mead continued to work.[19]

Death[edit]

On December 30, 2019, Mead died in his Pasadena home at age 86, after three years oflymphoma.[6][20]

Gallery of works[edit]

  • Blade Runner Car at the American Police Hall of Fame
    Blade Runner Car at the American Police Hall of Fame
  • A police spinner from Blade Runner
    A police spinner fromBlade Runner
  • A car Mead designed for the film Blade Runner
    A car Mead designed for the filmBlade Runner
  • A plastic representation of a Cyberrace vehicle
    A plastic representation of a Cyberrace vehicle
  • Rick Deckard's car from Blade Runner
    Rick Deckard's car fromBlade Runner
  • The interior of a car from Blade Runner
    The interior of a car fromBlade Runner

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^"Syd Mead: 'Pivotal' Blade Runner designer dies".BBC.December 30, 2019.RetrievedDecember 31,2019.
  2. ^Inkpot Award
  3. ^abFowler, Matt (December 30, 2019)."Syd Mead, Artist Behind Blade Runner, Dies".IGN.RetrievedDecember 31,2019.
  4. ^abBicks, Emily (December 30, 2019)."Syd Mead Dead: 'Star Trek' & 'Blade Runner' Visual Futurist Dies at 86".Heavy.RetrievedDecember 31,2019.
  5. ^Sisson, Patrick (December 30, 2019)."Goodbye Syd Mead: A conversation with the artist who illustrated the urban future".Curbed.Archived fromthe originalon November 2, 2019.RetrievedDecember 31,2019.
  6. ^abcKilkenny, Katie (December 30, 2019)."Syd Mead, Visionary Conceptual Artist Behind 'Blade Runner' and 'Tron', Dies at 86".Hollywood Reporter.RetrievedDecember 31,2019.
  7. ^abcd"Syd Mead Futurist: Biography".Sydmead.com.Archived fromthe originalon April 6, 2010.RetrievedJune 7,2010.
  8. ^Moon, Mariella (December 30, 2019)."Syd Mead, concept artist behind 'Blade Runner' and 'Tron,' dies at 86".EnGadget.RetrievedDecember 31,2019.
  9. ^"Syd Mead – Visual Futurist and Concept Artist".Carnegie Council. September 2, 2017.RetrievedDecember 31,2019.
  10. ^LaBarre, Suzanne (September 27, 2010)."Almost Genius: Futuristic Food Court by Blade Runner's Set Designer, Syd Mead".Fast Company.RetrievedDecember 31,2019.
  11. ^abWarren, Tamara (May 24, 2012)."New Exhibition: Syd Mead".Forbes.RetrievedDecember 31,2019.
  12. ^Pedersen, Erik (December 30, 2019)."Syd Mead Dies: Visionary Futurist Who Worked On 'Blade Runner' & 'Tron' Was 86".Deadline.RetrievedDecember 31,2019.
  13. ^Cathcart, Rebecca (May 22, 2008)."Borrowing an idea from Los Angeles".New York Times.RetrievedJuly 20,2011.
  14. ^abBurton, Bonnie (December 30, 2019)."Syd Mead, sci-fi visual artist known for Blade Runner and Tron, dies at 86".CNet.RetrievedDecember 31,2019.
  15. ^Lamble, Ryan (June 1, 2017)."Star Wars: The Surprising Origins of the AT-AT".Den of Geek.RetrievedDecember 31,2019.
  16. ^"Blu-ray Review: 2010 | High-Def Digest".Bluray.highdefdigest.com.RetrievedJuly 20,2011.
  17. ^Wheat, Lorraine (December 30, 2019)."Syd Mead, Visionary 'Blade Runner' Artist and Futurist, Dies at 86".Variety.RetrievedJanuary 2,2020.
  18. ^Wax, Roxana (May 14, 2017)."Syd Mead – The Master".Graphicine.Archived fromthe originalon March 3, 2018.RetrievedJanuary 2,2020.
  19. ^"Biography".SydMead.com.Archivedfrom the original on January 2, 2020.RetrievedJanuary 2,2020.
  20. ^Garvey, Marianne (December 31, 2019)."Syd Mead, the visual artist behind 'Blade Runner' dies at 86".CNN.RetrievedJanuary 2,2020.

External links[edit]

Wikiquote has quotations related toSyd Mead.
Wikimedia Commons has media related toSyd Mead.

Interviews[edit]

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Syd_Mead&oldid=1219357982"