Thread by @timsoret

The Great Syd Mead passed away.

Without him, the visual language of science fiction wouldn't have been the same. Here, his vision for the streets of Blade Runner.

Syd Mead thrived on complexity.
Every piece of his work is masterclass of perspective, detailed shape language, complex lighting & difficult reflective surfaces.

He was not only an artistic genius capable of perfectly rendering his imagination, but he was also an industrial designer, grounding his art into reality.

Hence why his designs translated so well to the big screen. Here, the famous Blade Runner spinner, as envisioned by Mead, and as built on set.

Even objects like the Voight-Kampff lie detector from Blade Runner became cult.

Even the cryogenic sleeping pods of the Sulaco, in Aliens.

I love how he pulled of asymmetrical designs for Blade Runner. Design & concept art shouldn't be just coming up with variants of existing designs, but questioning fundamentals.

His more optimistic designs are less known.

He loved to imagine futuristic galas.

Fascinated by the radical design of his sport cars.

Without Syd Mead, no Daft Punks helmets.

He's not too happy about those either:
"Not only is the Daft Punk version poorly proportioned but the ornament is a badly executed variation of Greco-Roman motif. I don't really care at this point."

fastcompany.com/3036532/the-pr…

We can find his artistic DNA in science-fiction everywhere nowadays. In Mass Effect for instance, where you can recognize the obvious inspiration for the Mako & the Citadel.
kotaku.com/the-one-man-wh…

Akira, for instance, also took inspiration from Syd Mead & especially from his design work for Tron.

Showing his good nature, Syd Mead even made an homage to Akira later in 2004 for Honda.

Hell, even Death Stranding's excellent art design from Yoji Shinkawa heavily comes from Syd Mead's shape language.

Not too surprising, Kojima has always been a fan, even at the time of Snatcher (1988).

His futuristic work is slowly becoming reality, for instance by obviously shaping @elonmusk's cybertruck. Syd Mead loved it, and stated that it "has completely changed the vocabulary of the personal truck market design."

businessinsider.com/blade-runners-…

@elonmusk "The Movie Art of Syd Mead: Visual Futurist"
I can't recommend you enough this book.

You can easily find it on Amazon. Unfortunately unlikely to find it in libraries, as they rarely feature artbooks.

@elonmusk Gnomon workshop has 2 Syd Mead masterclasses.
thegnomonworkshop.com/search?q=syd+m…

You can see how precise & meticulous he is. The modern concept art style couldn't be more different.

@elonmusk Don't be sad.
He was an acclaimed & accomplished artist, saw his work adapted to all mediums, influenced iconic designs & legendary artists. And after our imagination, his legacy is now influencing our reality.

These moments won't be lost in time.
Thank you, Syd Mead.