Jamie Reid, designer of Sex Pistols record covers, dead at 76

British artist Jamie Reid, who helped define the punk era in the late 1970s with his record covers of the Sex Pistols, died on Tuesday. He was 76.

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Reid’s death was announced by his gallerist, John Marchant, in a Facebook post, the Los Angeles Times reported.

Reid designed the artwork for “God Save the Queen” and “Anarchy in the UK” for the Sex Pistols in the late 1970s, the BBC reported. The “God Save the Queen” cover was one of punk rock’s defining images, with lettering pasted over a photograph of Queen Elizabeth II and the Union Jack flag, according to the news outlet.

The hit single was banned by the BBC, according to The Guardian.

Reid created other images for the Sex Pistols, including a shattered empty picture frame for “Pretty Vacant” and a comic strip for “Holidays in the Sun,” the Times reported.

On Facebook, the John Marchant Gallery described him as an “artist, iconoclast, anarchist, punk, hippie, rebel and romantic.”

“Jamie leaves behind a beloved daughter Rowan, a granddaughter Rose, and an enormous legacy,” the gallery wrote.

Reid’s cut-and-paste lettering style mimicked ransom notes, The Guardian reported.

“Our culture is geared towards enslavement -- for people to perform pre-ordained functions, particularly in the workplace,” Reid said in 2015, according to the newspaper. “I’ve always tried to encourage people to think about that and to do something about it.”

Reid’s son, Rowan Reid, posted a tribute in an Instagram post.

“I lost the most important man in my life yesterday, to say I’m heartbroken is an understatement!” Rowan Reid wrote. “Thank you so much Dad for everything you’ve taught me over the years, when ever I see a wild flower or a robin red breast I’ll think of you and all the wonders you taught me about nature and our beautiful earth.

“I’ll miss you so much, always and forever! Until we meet again.”

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