Jamie Reid, British artist and graphic designer, has died aged 76. Reid’s subversive body of work most famously included album artwork for the Sex Pistols, with his distinctive, bold aesthetic and playful defacing of Cecil Beaton’s portrait of Queen Elizabeth II shaping a generation of punk.
Born in London in 1947, Reid attended Wimbledon Art School aged 16, followed by Croydon Art School, where he met Malcolm McLaren, who was to become the Sex Pistols’ manager.
Reid brought to his artwork a preoccupation with political issues, from the justice system to nuclear weapons. His bold graphic design referenced ransom notes, with cut-and-paste letters appearing to be snipped from newspapers, while his collage style lent a jumble of colours and forms to the covers of the Sex Pistol’s album Never Mind the Bollocks and single ‘Anarchy in the UK’.
Later in his career, Reid worked with street artist Shepard Fairey and, in 1987, punk historian Jon Savage on a book of his works. ‘His ability to render complex ideas in eye-catching visuals was [the Sex Pistols’] perfect accompaniment,’ Savage has posted following Reid’s passing. In a statement, Reid’s gallerist John Marchant Gallery added: ‘Artist, iconoclast, anarchist, punk, hippie, rebel and romantic. Jamie leaves behind a beloved daughter Rowan, a granddaughter Rose, and an enormous legacy.’
Today, Reid’s works can be found in the Tate Britain, New York's Museum of Modern Art, and Houston's Museum of Fine Art.
