The Cursed Pics Instagram account was created in February 2018, and since then, it has shared over 500 bizarre and unsettling images. From scary food combinations to people wearing costumes that look like they should be starring in horror films, you never know what you’re going to find on this page. And honestly, that can be a bit refreshing!
So much of social media nowadays is the exact same trends and ideas regurgitated ad nauseam. So it can actually be fun to find photos that you’ve never seen before and could have never imagined in your wildest dreams! These images might be unsettling, but at least they’re creative.
If you’re curious about the history behind cursed images and how they became so popular online, Artland Magazine published a piece investigating where these strange photos originated from. Apparently, the term “cursed images” gained popularity in 2015 after a Tumblr blog by the name of “cursedimages.tumblr.com” was created by a teenage film and photography student.
The first ever cursed photo she shared was a picture of a man standing in a basement, surrounded by crates and crates of tomatoes. “It’s the perfect cursed image to me because there’s nothing inherently unsettling about any part of it,” the blogger told Paper Magazine. “It’s a totally mundane moment transformed into something else by the camera and the new context I’ve given it.”
Nowadays, however, you can find any number of niche cursed image pages and groups. Cursed food, cursed furniture, cursed clothing, cursed cakes, cursed animal photos and more have captivated millions of viewers around the globe. They’re all completely unique, and yet, they all provide audiences with the same uneasy feeling. Whether you’re confused, intrigued or disgusted, it’s impossible to look away from these cursed pics.
But what exactly is the difference between a normal amusing picture and something that deserves to be plastered across cursed image pages all over the internet. Well, Már Másson Maack at The Next Web attempted to break down the formula for creating the perfect cursed image. First, he noted that the photo must include an aspect of defamiliarization. Separately, everything in the photo might seem normal. But when we put these items together in situations where they wouldn’t (or shouldn’t) normally be, they become jarring and disorienting to look at.
The aesthetic of the image can help determine whether or not it’s actually cursed as well. Maack notes that high contrast, flash photography is beloved in the cursed image community. He goes on to explain that this sort of photography leaves nothing to the imagination. It exposes all of the flaws of the subject, which can be particularly unsettling when a photo features feet, gross food combinations or frightening dolls.
On that note, we all know that food is extremely popular in the world of cursed images. Ketchup, cereal, spaghetti, hot dogs, instant noodles, milk and raw meat often find their way into these strange photos. It’s easy to invoke a feeling of disgust in viewers when you take an item that they know and love and place it into circumstances that make it look revolting. Even if you’re a hardcore fan of ketchup, you probably don’t want to eat it off of a finger that’s hiding in a hotdog bun.
