Not on display

Jamie Reid archive

Poster
1979 (designed)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

This poster is one of a series of images Reid designed as props for the Sex Pistols mock documentary The Great Rock 'n' Roll Swindle, released in 1980. Designed for a scene featuring McLaren dancing in Highgate Cemetery, Reid has insisted that the concept was 'hugely humanitarian', the point being that there is some good in everyone.
This poster from the series features Jack the Ripper, the never-identified Whitechapel murderer of the late 1880s, inspiration for multiple works of fiction, folklore and legend.

Jamie Reid's cut-and-paste aesthetic developed from his interest in radical politics. His artistic style developed while at art college in Croydon, where he was influenced by the ideas of the avant-garde political group, the Situationist International. The political slant to his art was aroused by the May 1968 Paris student riots, which inspired fraternal protests organised by Reid at the Croydon College of Art. These were directed with fellow student Malcolm McLaren, later to become the manager of the Sex Pistols.

Object details

Categories
Object type
TitleJamie Reid archive (named collection)
Materials and techniques
Screen print on paper.
Brief description
Original artwork for prop poster for the Sex Pistols film The Great Rock 'n' Roll Swindle. 'God Save Myra Hindley'.
Physical description
Prop poster used in the film The Great Rock 'n' Roll Swindle. 'God Save Jack the Ripper', black and white printed image on fluorescent orange background.
Dimensions
  • Height: 60.5cm
  • Width: 40.5cm
  • Open height: 79.2cm
Marks and inscriptions
GOD SAVE / DICK TURPIN
Subjects depicted
Summary
This poster is one of a series of images Reid designed as props for the Sex Pistols mock documentary The Great Rock 'n' Roll Swindle, released in 1980. Designed for a scene featuring McLaren dancing in Highgate Cemetery, Reid has insisted that the concept was 'hugely humanitarian', the point being that there is some good in everyone.
This poster from the series features Jack the Ripper, the never-identified Whitechapel murderer of the late 1880s, inspiration for multiple works of fiction, folklore and legend.

Jamie Reid's cut-and-paste aesthetic developed from his interest in radical politics. His artistic style developed while at art college in Croydon, where he was influenced by the ideas of the avant-garde political group, the Situationist International. The political slant to his art was aroused by the May 1968 Paris student riots, which inspired fraternal protests organised by Reid at the Croydon College of Art. These were directed with fellow student Malcolm McLaren, later to become the manager of the Sex Pistols.
Collection
Accession number
S.822-1990

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Record createdFebruary 18, 2010
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