Museum HR Giger – Aliens in Gruyères, Switzerland

Fans of “Alien” movies will be pleased to know of the Museum HR Giger in Gruyères. This Museum is home to the permanent collection of the works of H.R. Giger, the award winning Swiss designer of Ridley Scott’s blockbuster “Alien” movies.

After visits to medieval towns and castles and the amazingly beautiful mountain scenery of Switzerland, it’s strange to find a museum such as the HR Giger in Gruyères.  So how did this 400 year old historic walled city of Gruyères get chosen to be home to science fiction, extra-terrestrial designs, ideas and beings?

Museum HR Giger

In celebration of Giger’s 50th birthday in 1990, he was invited to stage a major retrospective of his work at the Château de Gruyères. The exhibition “Alien dans ses Meubles” was a huge success, drawing attendance by some 110,000 visitors. After many subsequent visits to the medieval village of Gruyères, Giger fell in love with the region. When he heard that Château St. Germain was available for sale, he acquired it with the intention to establish his own museum.

The Museum opened its doors in 1998. On permanent display at the Museum is the most extensive collection of artworks from Giger’s different creative periods, including most of his film designs such as the artwork of “Alien” and “Alien 3”, “Dune”, “Species”, “Poltergeist 2” and “The Mystery of San Gottardo”.  Whether you’re keen on Alien movies or not, the exhibits are very impressive.

Next to the Museum is the amazing Giger Bar whose interior is like the insides of an alien and the furniture and decor adopt alien themes as well. If you feel like being lost in Sci-fi world, this is a really surreal bar to have your drink in.

Helen