Full on serious.
From BEESUB-
"I am proud to share the latest work I did with Queen Studios Collectibles. The 1:1 LIFE SIZE ALIEN BIG CHAP BUST (H.R. Giger Version).
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I am a huge fan of the Alien franchise and I've always wanted to have an elegant 1:1 bust in my collection. The demand is also high within the Alien community for a complete line of perfectly accurate 1:1 busts and other statues in different scales.
There are a lot of great Alien pieces out here (custom or official) and they all have their pros & cons. I've studied all of them and I tried my best to deliver the most accurate Alien, with the help of the many references I've accumulated through the years.
If the shoulders and ribcage were mandatory elements to me, the cut was not a sure thing in the beginning. I tried several options, from the very classical straight cut with variations in the height, to this more "balanced" or "elegant" cut. I wanted to respect the design flow and the initial gesture impulsed by H.R. Giger. The top back bones was another strong key element of design for me and I initially wanted it to be the sole element visible in the back. I wanted to keep the bust simple and elegant, as if floating above everything. For these reasons my earlier design drafts didn't include the back tubes.
After some talks with Oliver, the Creative and Art Director of Queen Studios -and also a big fan of the Alien franchise- it has been decided to add the back tubes in the final concept, considered by many as key features when speaking of Alien creature.
The Giger version was also my first choice: "if we want to build a line of products, it needs to start with the very first one!". It's the original design with the shapes made by the Master himself. And if "great things have small beginnings", this initial design was the Mother of everything else. So obviously in my mind, the Giger version also had to be the very first of the series as well. Of course, the Giger version has been done already, but never as a fully complete 1:1 bust. Also, if many statues have been produced at different scales, most of them were missing the key point: the Alien is absolutely not symmetrical. Not a lot of people know this but H.R. Giger only sculpted one side of the Alien torso and ribcage. The other half was completed by his assistant! And most of the time, this key element is never respected.
This 1:1 bust version we made with Queen Studios, is not symmetrical to respect the original design. The shoulders have a slightly different height, the ribcage and a few other elements as well, are different from one side to the other, just like the original design.
Regarding the base, the process was a bit more difficult, with many tries (and fails). We tested several options that didn't work really well with too many elements. It was simply too busy. I wanted to keep things simple and interesting so I suggested a mix of an organic mood and rocky elements. The rocky elements were mainly inspired from one shot in the movie, where we can see the Derelict ship sitting atop steep rocky reefs. I wanted to replicate this hostile environment in the front of the base because it was one of the first impression of the Planet LV-426 that we had, as a viewer. The Nostromo crew itself was also confronted with these rocks first. Therefore the rocks needed to be the first visible element of the base, and in the front. The back part of the base is more organic with some technical accents here and there thanks to the cables and the grid. The vertebrae suggest the back spine of the Alien as well as the organic interior of the Derelict. I wanted something light and aesthetic at the same time, with a strong appealing factor too. To sum up, the idea was to replicate what the Nostromo crew has to face in the movie: the hostile and rocky elements first, then a more organic, mysterious and dangerous environment inside the Derelict. In my mind, the base needed to convey this kind of transition as well. It's like walking along side with the Nostromo crew when you turn the base!
To conclude, I would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone at Queen Studios. This project means a lot to me and this first collaboration with Queen Studios has been an enriching experience where I was able to work closely with a talented and passionate team. It was a real pleasure to be able to freely exchange ideas and discuss options in order to achieve the best solution to bring this project to life. I can't wait to share what's coming next!"