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One of the Most Famous Artists of the Past Half-Century Is Dead at 74

May 13, 2014  •  Post A Comment

A surrealist painter, sculptor and set designer who made a mark on the entertainment industry and became one of the most famous artists of the past 50 years has died. CNN reports that H.R. Giger died Monday at 74.

Giger may have been best known for designing the alien, along with a number of sets, for the 1979 sci-fi classic "Alien." He also was known for his album covers, including the 1973 Emerson, Lake & Palmer album "Brain Salad Surgery."

In addition to the "Alien" movies, the Swiss-born Giger worked on "Dune," "Poltergeist II: The Other Side" and "Prometheus," among many other films. He submitted a radically different design for the Batmobile for "Batman Forever," but the design was passed over.

"Giger's art — often featuring skeletal, tentacled, protomechanical (Giger called them 'biomechanical') figures rendered in shades of blue-gray and brown — was a mainstay of dorm-room bookshelves and science-fiction hallucinations," CNN reports.

His longtime friend and manager Leslie Barany confirmed Giger's death, saying in a statement: "We are absolutely heartbroken over the loss of this loving husband, selfless friend and supremely talented artist.

"He truly was one of a kind, committed to his craft, to his friends and to his family. His warm personality, incredible generosity and sharp sense of humor were in stark contrast with the universe he depicted in his art."

ELP-Brain Salad Surgery.jpg"Brain Salad Surgery"
(Emerson, Lake & Palmer, 1973)

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