The legendary Swiss artist H.R. Giger has died at the age of 74, as a result of injuries sustained in a fall, reports Swiss public television, SRF. “Giger, who passed away in a Zurich hospital, was most famous for the alien monster he created for the movie of the same name. The terrifying creature and sets he created for Ridley Scott’s film earned him an Oscar for special effects in 1980. In the art world, Giger is appreciated for his wide body of work in the fantastic realism and surrealistic genres. His talent for scaring movie audiences was repeated in ‘Poltergeist 2’ (1986), ‘Alien 3’ (1992) and ‘Species’ (1995). Film work was just one of his talents. Giger is also known for his sculptures, paintings and furniture. The H.R. Giger Museum, inaugurated in the summer of 1998 in the Château St. Germain, is a four-level building complex in the historic, medieval walled city of Gruyères. It is the permanent home to many of the artist’s most prominent works.”
‘H. R. Giger’s Necronomicon and the making of Alien’ is the rare documentary on the artist H.R. Giger that was directed by J. J. Wittmer and H.R. Giger himself. It was filmed in 1975-78 and had a very limited release overseas on VHS and LaserDisc. You are taken inside his studio to watch him create one of his famous pieces, carving a mountain of clay into the famous Alien from the movie of the same name. You will also see him designing the Alien Eggs and the Derelict ship and interior use in the movie, as well as rare deleted scenes from the movie itself.
Starlog Magazine Issue 26: ‘H.R. Giger: Behind the Alien Forms.’
Courtesy of Dangerous Minds, here’s a 1981 British television interview with Giger and Blondie singer Debbie Harry. The occasion for the seemingly odd pairing is Giger’s portrait of Harry for her debut solo LP, ‘KooKoo.’ Giger also made videos for the album’s songs ‘Backfired’ and ‘Now I Know You Know.’
In the transcribed ‘Alien Diaries,’ published here for the first time as a facsimile, Giger describes his work in the studios. He writes, sketches, and takes photographs with his Polaroid SX70. With brutal honesty, sarcasm and occasional despair, Giger describes what it is like working for the film industry and how he struggles against all odds — be it the stinginess of producers or the sluggishness of his staff — to see his designs become reality.
The ‘Alien Diaries’ (in German transcription with an English translation) show a little-known personal side of the artist H.R. Giger and offer an unusual, detailed glimpse into the making of a movie classic through the eyes of a Swiss artist. The book contains almost completely unpublished material, including drawings, Polaroids showing the monster coming to life, and several still shots from the plentiful film material that Giger took in Shepperton. —H. R. Giger: Alien Diaries
This issue of Cinefantastique magazine is devoted to Giger’s artistic genius and the enormous influence his work has had on the look of horror, fantasy, and science fiction films. Writers Jan Doense and Les Paul Robley visited Giger at his combination home/studio/gallery/workshop in Zurich to talk about his work in film, his art, and how his unique style has become common property in Hollywood.
A sidebar article ‘Hollywood Rips-Off H.R. Giger’ is a visual catalogue of some of the most blatant Giger imitations, many from some of the biggest names in movies and special effects.
Interviews with the great artist H.R. Giger taken from the extras section of the DVD of ‘Alien,’ and put together without interviews from actors, director etc in between. Shows his ‘Necronomicon’ work, his original ideas for the facehugger and the chest ripper, and how he put the alien ship together.
You get talent when you discover the ground of your pain. There is hope and a kind of beauty in there somewhere, if you look for it. —H.R. Giger, 5 February 1940 — 12 May 2014
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