A major retrospective of unseen late-career work by Syd Mead, the legendary futurist whose visionary designs shaped the look and feel of modern science fiction. Syd Mead was one of the most influential and admired science-fiction designers of all time. Trained as an industrial designer and beginning his career in automotive design, he later transitioned into concept art, producing visionary work that ranged from sprawling futuristic cityscapes to sleek, iconic vehicles. His designs helped define films such as Blade Runner , T r on, and Alien . Since his passing, Mead's influence has only grown, with the cyberpunk aesthetic he helped shape now more pervasive than ever across music, video games, and digital art. Ultimo brings together an expansive selection of never-before-seen works produced from 1996 until Syd Mead's passing in 2019, including visionary personal projects, contributions to science-fiction landmarks such as Blade Runner 2049 , and polished concept vehicle designs for Ford and Honda. The book also highlights Mead's significant late-career work in video games--a medium perfectly suited to his visionary world-building--as a generation of creators raised on his influence rose to prominence and found themselves collaborating with their longtime hero. Mead's self-published monographs ( Oblagon: Concepts of Syd Mead , Sentinel , Sentinel II ) command high sums on the collector's market-- Ultimo echoes these landmark works in its design approach while expanding on their breadth and editorial depth, resulting in a must-have publication for fans, collectors, and admirers of visionary concept art.
Syd Mead Ultimo