Artist H.R. Giger Passes Away at 74

(February 5, 1940 –  May 12, 2014)

The man who brought us the wonderfully grotesque world of Aliens and the cover to Celtic Frost’s magnum opus “To Mega Therion” has passed away at age 74. H.R. Giger was an innovative painter, sculptor and set designer whose biomechanical style was instantly recognizable and ultimately unique. According to his museum, the artist passed away from complications he suffered after a fall. Sandra Mivelaz, administrator of the H.R. Giger museum in Gruyeres, Switzerland, told The Associated Press that Giger died in a hospital this past Monday. Born Hans Ruedi Giger on Feb. 5, 1940, in the southeastern Swiss town of Chur, Giger trained to become an industrial designer after his father insisted that he learn a proper trade. It was Giger’s mother who encouraged him to pursue his love of art. He worked on his art only at night, keeping his curtains closed and dressing mainly in black — a habit he acquired working as a draftsman because it hid the Indian ink on his clothes. H.R. was greatly influenced by the works of the American horror fiction writer H.P. Lovecraft, painters Ernst Fuchs & Salvador Dali and the night terrors he frequently suffered from. Giger lived in Zürich with his wife, Carmen Maria Scheifele Giger, who is the Director of the H.R. Giger Museum. RIP.