Iconic Artist And ‘Alien’ Creature Creator, HR Giger, Dies At 74

Margie Patton

Staff Writer

@MargiePatton

A true icon of the art world has passed.  HR Giger has died at age 74 from injuries he received after falling on stairs.

Giger is best known for creating the imaginative, horrifying, and instantly recognizable aliens in the first Alien film.  Giger’s painting Necronom IV was the original inspiration for the film’s creatures, and Giger worked directly in designing many elements of the film, garnering the artist an Academy Award as part of the movie’s visual effects team. Giger also contributed designs to other films including Poltergeist II and Species. 

photo courtesy of vagallery.com

Giger’s exquisitely detailed and often darkly sexual Sci-fi and Fantasy images were also often seen in the music world. His work was used in album art, music videos, and stage design for many artists including Korn, Aphex Twin, Debbie Harry, Dead Kennedys, Emerson Lake & Palmer, Celtic Frost, and Danzig.

With a background in architecture and industrial design as well as more traditional art forms, the Swiss genius also created “Giger Bars” in Switzerland which integrated his “biomechanical” style into their interior design.

photo courtesy of hrgiger.com

In 1998 Giger also opened the HR Giger Museum in Chateau St. Germain, Switzerland which houses the largest collection of the artist’s work.

Giger’s distinctive, fascinating, evocative images have been a widespread and long-lasting influence on many artists and designers and have left an indelible mark on all those with whom his work has resonated.

“People are either thrilled or terrified by Giger’s art,” explained artist Ernst Fuchs. “No one else knows how to depict the most horrific nightmares so stunningly beautifully.”

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