H.R. Giger is born in Chur, Switzerland in 1940. The highly influential artist worked in various mediums, but is best known for his airbrushed “biomechanical” blends of human and machine. His work with rock artists includes the cover of Emerson, Lake & Palmer’s Brain Salad Surgery, Deborah Harry’s KooKoo, Danzig’s How the Gods Kill, and an infamous poster insert for the Dead Kennedys’ Frankenchrist album that spurred an obscenity trial. But his style largely shaped Ridley Scott’s visual design for the film Alien, including the design of the xenomorph and Giger became part of the team that won an Academy Award for its special effects. His work has since adorned Ibanez guitars and influenced video games, tattoo artists, and interior design. There are Giger bars as well as a museum of his work in Switzerland. Giger died in 2014.
This Day in Halloween: Highly influential artist H.R. Giger -- creator of the "Alien" xenomorph -- is born in Chur, Switzerland in 1940. / Illustration by Morgan Bryson