Cursed image

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A photo shared on the @cursedimages Twitter account in 2016[1]

A cursed image refers to a picture (usually a photograph) that is perceived as mysterious or disturbing due to its content, poor quality, or a combination of the two. A cursed image makes a person question the reason for the image's existence in the first place. The term was coined on social media in 2015 and popularised the following year.[2][3]

History[]

The concept of "cursed images" originates from a Tumblr blog, cursedimages, in 2015.[4] The first image posted by the account shows an elderly farmer surrounded by crates of red tomatoes in a wood-paneled room.[4] In a 2019 interview with Paper, the blog's owner described the aforementioned image as follows: "It's the perfect cursed image to me because there's nothing inherently unsettling about any part of it. It's a totally mundane moment transformed into something else by the camera and the new context I've given it."[4]

While the term "cursed image" had been used on Tumblr since 2015,[4][5] it became more widely popularized by July 2016 due to the Twitter account @cursedimages.[2][3] In a 2016 interview with Gizmodo writer Hudson Hongo, the owner of the account explained that he had seen "one or two" posts on Tumblr containing "unexplainable and odd" pictures that were simply captioned "cursed image". Intrigued by the pictures, the owner of the account began searching for similar images and after finding more photographs in that vein, decided to "post them all in one place".[6] That same year, Brian Feldman of New York magazine interviewed Doug Battenhausen, the owner of the Tumblr blog internethistory, which also posts "cursed images".[7] Feldman asked Battenhausen about the appeal of "cursed images", to which Battenhausen replied: "It's a lot of things. It's the mystery of the photo, it's the strange aesthetics of them, it's seeing a place that you've never seen before, or an intimate glimpse into somebody's life."[7]

Feldman attributes the "cursed" aesthetic to the nature of digital photography in the early 2000s, where point-and-shoot cameras lacked modern filters and were often used with "blaring" flash, and where a photo would be taken more for archival purposes than performative social media sharing. Feldman regards such photography as "not old enough to scan as 'vintage', but not well-manicured enough to be recognizable as contemporary", and sees this as an instance of the uncanny valley.[7]

Overlap with liminal spaces[]

An example of an unoccupied indoor playground. The frightening nature of the image draws partially on the expectation that the viewer has visited similar places in their own childhood.

A common subcategory of "cursed images" are those described as "weirdcore". These images - combinations of "cursed images" and the popular definition of a "liminal space". Typically of mundane locations, such as shopping malls, office block hallways, or indoor children's play-spaces, these pictures are typified by their poor camera quality (similar to other "cursed images"[failed verification]), as well as a lack of human habitation.[8] By depicting commonly populous locations devoid of life or activity, these images evoke a similar uncanny valley effect to other "cursed images",[failed verification] but their focus on sites that may be personally familiar to the viewer is intended to also bring forth a sense of nostalgia.[9]

Adding to the eerie effect of these images, they are often edited to include horror imagery (such as floating eyeballs or hands), or text intended to frighten the viewer. Phrases associated with dreaming (such as "wake up"), childhood (such as "welcome home"), or traumatic events (such as "help me", or other similar requests for aid) are common, leading to this genera's alternate names of "dreamcore" and "traumacore".[citation needed]

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ @cursedimages (13 September 2016). "cursed image 6161" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  2. ^ a b Gallucci, Nicole (27 February 2019), "The complex allure of cursed images", Mashable, archived from the original on 7 July 2020, retrieved 28 June 2020
  3. ^ a b Tolentino, Jia (23 October 2016). "The Creepiest Pictures on the Internet". The New Yorker. Archived from the original on 7 July 2020. Retrieved 28 June 2020.
  4. ^ a b c d Moen, Matt (9 December 2019). "Cursed Images: Finding Comfort in Discomfort". Papermag. Archived from the original on 7 July 2020. Retrieved 28 June 2020.
  5. ^ Ellis, Emma Grey (14 June 2019). "Why You Can't Look Away From #CursedImages". Wired. Archived from the original on 7 July 2020. Retrieved 28 June 2020.
  6. ^ Hongo, Hudson (29 August 2016). "Cursed Images Is the Last Twitter Account You See Before You Die". Gizmodo. Retrieved 28 June 2020.
  7. ^ a b c Feldman, Brian (31 October 2016). "What Makes a Cursed Image?". Intelligencer. New York. Archived from the original on 7 July 2020. Retrieved 7 July 2020.
  8. ^ "Architecture: The Cult Following Of Liminal Space". Musée Magazine. Retrieved 17 December 2021.
  9. ^ Young, Tavish (5 July 2021). "Step Into Weirdcore". Dead Talk News. Retrieved 17 December 2021.
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