Hans Ruedi Giger (1940–2014) was a Swiss surrealist painter,sculptor, and set designer known for his biomechanical creatures,extraterrestrial landscapes, and disturbing machines. In a careerthat spanned more than five decades, he worked in a staggeringvariety of media, including furniture, movie props, prints, paintingsand sculptures, often creating exhibition displays and totalenvironments with the immersive quality of a wunderkammer. In1979, he won an Academy Award for Best Visual Effects for his workon Ridley Scott’s Alien