Giger vs. Dali: Alien Autopsy Remix

Was H.R. Giger’s ‘Alien’ movie monster design copied from a Salvador Dali sketch?

Left: H.R. Giger applying details to ‘Alien’ costume headpiece (Credit: 20th Century Fox) • Right: Brushwork sketch by Salvador Dali

It’s impossible to recall now the book that I happened to be thumbing through when I ran across the sketch by the Spanish surrealist Salvador Dali. But it was sometime during my first semester of graphic design school. That would probably date the photocopy that I made…