Syd Mead Wiki – Biography
He was born on July 18, 1933, in Saint Paul, Minnesota, United States. He was an American industrial designer and neofuturistic concept artist, widely known for his designs for science-fiction films such as Blade Runner, Alien and Tron. Mead once said, “I’ve called science fiction ‘reality ahead of schedule. 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.
Syd Mead Age
He was 86 years old as of 2019.
Syd Mead Early Life
His father was a Baptist Minister, who read him pulp magazines, such as Buck Rogers and Flash Gordon, sparking his interest in science-fiction. Mead was skilled in a 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.”[5] Mead graduated from high school in Colorado 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 the Art Center College of Design, Pasadena), where he graduated in June 1959.
Mead was in a personal relationship with partner Roger Servick, who also became a business manager in 1991. They established a publishing extension, OBLAGON, Inc., in Hollywood and relocated in 1998 to Pasadena, California, where Mead continued to work
Syd Mead Career
In 1959, Mead was enlisted by Ford Motor Company’s Advanced Styling Studio by Elwood Engel. From 1960 to 1961, Mead worked in Ford Motor Company Styling in Detroit, Michigan. Mead left Ford following two years to show books and indexes for organizations including United States Steel, Celanese, Allis-Chalmers and Atlas Cement. In 1970, he propelled Syd Mead, Inc. in Detroit with customers including Philips Electronics.
Mead started his design career in the auto, electronics and steel industries working for Ford Motor Co., Sony, U.S. Steel and Phillips Electronics. He then transitioned to film. His career began as a production illustrator working with director Robert Wise (“West Side Story”) to create Earth’s nemesis V’Ger in the 1979 “Star Trek: The Motion Picture.”
Death Cause
On December 30, 2019, Syd died in his Pasadena home at the age of 86, after three years of lymphoma. Shortly after his death, many paid tribute to Mead’s life.
“ There are more people in the world who make things than there are people who think of things to make. ”
Renowned industrial designer and futurist artist Syd Mead has died at age 86 due to complications from lymphoma cancer, Polygon can confirm.