Inspiration: Part Two

Of course I've been inspired by more than just Dieter Rams, so I'll fill in a couple more designers in the next couple days. Today we'll take a look at Syd Mead.
Just about everyone who's familiar with 80's science fiction movies is familiar with the work of Syd Mead. As "visual futurist" he took it upon himself to create wildly stylized designs with lots of chrome and sharp edges. Despite the fact that no future will ever look like the one Syd envisioned, all of his designs have a remarkable amount of detail that makes them seem almost feasible. He keeps the compositions lively with excellent use of color and shapes.

None of his designs are intended to become a real product, so it makes sense that very little thought goes into how they would work. This approach is very contrary to that of Dieter Rams, who makes sure that every part has a purpose and all extraneous bits are removed. Just because it's completely pointless doesn't mean I don't want my own light-up umbrella though.