A weird fucker, and a visionary.
Probably deserves the title of genius, not only for his wonderfully warped artistic talent (as well as his uniquely disconcerting paintings, he sculpted the various Xenomorph life-cycle models for
Alien himself, and also worked tirelessly on building the intricate biomechanical architecture of the derelict ship), but for just how strange and unprecedented his created world was, and the sheer impact it has had on so many facets of popular culture, certainly not confined solely to sci-fi cinema.
I've always admired the power his pieces have to perturb at a deep level; they're horrible-but-beautiful, that thread of unashamedly dark fantasy erotica that runs though all his work is all the more unsettling for somehow being shudderingly, involuntarily seductive, in all their bleak, industrial, mechanically-intrusive detail. I don't mean in the sense of their being titillating - in the most direct way - as such, but in being so compelling, hypnotic; you might want to look away, but it's mesmerising for some reason. Obviously some people do have full-on Giger-inspired sexual fetishes, but his stuff speaks to those of us who aren't that 'troubled' on a certain level too - it's why the Xenomorph's world is so scary, partly why people were fainting and throwing up in the aisles during the film's first theatrical run. That's some powerful art design, that.
I'll never forget the unmistakably creepy atmosphere the Amiga game
Darkseed had, entirely through Giger's nightmare-fodder:
Farewell, you madman you.
