Alien: Early Ridleygram of the Space Jockey (1978) by Ridley Scott for Alien references Mark Rothko's Gethsemane (1944)?

leading from

Alien: Storyboard showing the sideview of the Space Jockey

and

Publicity image with James Burke for The Burke Special in The Radio Times, (19th July 1973)

a) Here the upper section becomes the seated space jockey

b) In light of above the comparison the shadow of a shape in the air becomes the telescope.