Showing posts with label creepy. Show all posts
Showing posts with label creepy. Show all posts

Bling gone Mad: The World's Weirdest Jewelry

Fine jewelry is made from precious metals and stones and is worn as a way to show off a person's beauty and status. Costume jewelry can be made from a variety of materials such as paste, plastic, glass and non-precious metals. Over the past few decades, jewelry designers have been expanding their horizons by creating jewelry pieces that use bizarre and creepy materials.

 Bling that Bites: Human Teeth Jewelry
Ever wondered what the tooth fairy does with all those teeth? Polly van der Glas creates jewelry using real human teeth, positioning the teeth in such a way that they seem to be set in the metal the same way they had once been set in gums, in someone's mouth.

Above: Human teeth make an unusual addition to body jewelry. [source]


Roadkill Rings are a Creative use of Crushed Critters
April Hale uses road kill as a material for her creepy creations. After sketching the dead animals, Hale skins and cleans the bodies and then creates jewelry out of the fur. Each piece of jewelry is designed to best show off the color and texture of the roadkill's fur.

Above: April Hale shows off her furry creations. The rings are made from the skins of animals killed in road accidents. [source]


Hair-Raising Jewelry
Kerry Howley uses human hair to create patterned necklaces. Instead of creating individual loops to create a chain, Howley has instead designed lace-like human hair jewelry. The jewelry range is called attraction/aversion. The artist claims that she wanted to make people feel both attraction and aversion simultaneously, which is why she has used discarded human hair in a decorative manner.

Above: One of Kerry Howley's human hair jewelry creations. [source]


Decorated Maquech Beetles are Living Jewelry
Some Mexican jewelry designers are continuing the tradition of decorating maquech beetles with precious metals and gems. The beetles are then worn as a living brooch, tethered to a person's clothing with a short leash that is also made of a precious metal such as gold or silver.

Above: A maquech beetle decorated with gold and precious stones. The beetles are very docile, making them ideal subjects for living jewelry. [source]


Lending a Hand: the Barbie Bracelet
Margaux Lange creates jewelry out of dolls, namely Barbie dolls. She hacks the dolls into bits, and then re-uses the parts for her creations. Hands, mouths, eyes, even the body parts find a place in Lange's jewelry creations.

Above: A Margaux Lange creation that uses several Barbie hands for decoration. [source]


A Squeaky Taxidermy Pendant
Taxidermy jewelry is becoming more and more popular. Whether the creatures used are insects, sea animals, mammals or birds, taxidermy jewelry is fascinatingly macabre. The eyes of taxidermy creatures are generally replaced with glass, but for taxidermy jewerly, the eyes can also be replaced with semi-precious stones or gems.

Above: This mouse head taxidermy pendant is completed with black decorations that highlight the white fur of the dead mouse. [source]


Read More on Art-Sci:

 Antique Lolcat Photographs make Kitteh Historeh
Blooming Bling! Jewelry made with Real Flowers
Fan Art Character Hybrids
Funny Photoshop Animals are Almost Human
Hundreds of Mummies Discovered in Mexican Graves
Trollface Gets Immortalized in Art
Posted by
Labels: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

10 Freaky Photoshop Artworks

Photoshop gives digital artists the opportunity to create whatever they wish, from sweet and inspiring to humorous or downright creepy. The following images show the results of those days when Photoshop artists feel a bit macabre or sinister...

This photoshop digital art work has turned Mona Lisa into Zombie La Gioconda. [source]

   

Creepy Nazi Boy

There's something innately disturbing about an evil child, isn't there? Children are supposedly innocent, carefree and a little naive, but this kid is far from innocent, with his shaved head, mono brow, goatee and tattoo. He looks like he could be the son of Hitler.
By giving this child adult features like facial hair and distinctive collar bones, this Photoshop artist has also given him emotional attributes that we usually only expect to find in adults, for example; the anti-social hatred that we can see in this Photoshopped freak's eyes is the kind of dark emotion that would takes decades to develop. You certainly wouldn't want this little guy turning up at your door on Halloween! [source]


My Girlfriend's a Robot

You thought your girlfriend was human, right? Think again - all women are emissaries of the intergalactic robot overlord, Zorg. We're here to eat your brains...
NeoStockz has created this stunning but scary Photoshop cyborg girlfriend, in the legendary style of horror sci-fi artist HR Giger. [source]


Batman's Hillbilly Joker

This Photoshop painting is of a scary joker clown who looks like he might have stepped out of a hillbilly horror movie.



What Lies Beneath

Because inside each of us is a mischievous spirit, right?
Starting with a photo of a real woman, this digital artist has used Photoshop to peel away the skin of her face to reveal the gore and bone within. The skull face that is revealed is sticking its tongue out at you, as if it doesn't care if you're grossed out. 


Horror Bush

Former US president George Bush gets a face lift, courtesy of Photoshop image manipulation.


Just Clownin' Around

Clowns are pretty freaky, even on a good day, but this Photoshop painting, by artist Anton Semenov, shows what happens when these entertainers go clown crazy.


World War Two's Auschwitz Camp

Another picture from the gallery of Anton Semenov, depicting Auschwitz concentration camp prisoners during the holocaust. The skeletal nature of the subjects, along with their blank, staring eyes, emphasizes the horror that Holocaust victims must have endured.


Mother's Little Treasure

Because Rowan Atkinson has been precious since birth. Imagine a mother's horror when he opens his mouth and instead of crying, says, "I am the devil, but you can me Toby."
Posted by
Labels: , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Specimens of Mythological Creatures Displayed in Japanese Museum

The Museum of Fantastic Specimens exhibits specimens of fantasy and mythological creatures. This cryptozoology museum is curated by Hajime Emoto, based in Japan.

 Cryptzoology Explained
Cryptozoology can be translated from Greek to mean “the study of hidden animals”. Cryptozoology is a pseudoscience, as the animals that cryptozoologists focus on have no physical evidence according to mainstream biology. These are animals, creatures and humanoids that appear in myths, legends and fairytales.
Animals that are studied by cryptozoologists are often referred to as cryptids. Examples of cryptids are the Loch Ness Monster, Big Foot and the Chupacabra. The term can also be used for fairies, ogres, goblins and elves. The search for living specimens of creatures that are believed to be extinct, such as dinosaurs, the quagga or the dodo bird, can also be classified as cryptozoology. Many scientists criticize the ’science’ of cryptozoology, as cryptozoologists rely on anecdotal information such as myths, legends and folklore, instead of physical evidence or fact.


Creatures from Mythology and Fantasy
Fairy tales have existed for centuries as part of mythology, folk lore and children's stories. Most of the creatures in these tales have some inhumane ability such as flying or performing magic. Other creatures like elves and fairies have human characteristics but an inhuman form.
Human beings have always been fascinated with tales of fantasy and otherworldly happenings. Aliens and monsters have especially found their way into people's lives as a way to explain unusual or bizarre occurrences. What adds to the mystery of these creatures is that there is no physical evidence to prove they exist. But then again, there's no physical evidence to prove that they don't.


Above: Homo Pumilis Gidoronia: Microid Female. This is a specimen of a female fairy. Fairies are said to be insect-sized human beings with butterfly or dragonfly wings. [source]
Above: Homo Pumilis Gidoronia: Mocroid Male. Specimen of a male fairy. Unlike the female fairy, the male fairy's wings are practical in design, serving the purpose of flying. Attracting a mate is the job of the female fairy, hence the beautiful butterfly wings. [source]
Above: Draconis Arbuscula (Bush Dragon). A lesser known specie of dragon; the Bush Dragon is nevertheless popular in fairy societies, where they are kept as riding animals. Pure bred Bush Dragons are often sold for enormous amounts of money. Therefore, the more dragons a fairy owns, the wealthier they are deemed to be. [source]
Above: Draconis Transylvania (Romanian Dragon). A fighting dragon, used by fairy warriors in the gladiator arena. The Romanian Dragon is larger than the Bush Dragon, but can also carry a fairy rider. Romanian Dragons can breathe fire, suck blood and stab opponents with its wingtips. [source]
Above: Evil Beast #11. This creature is a common under-the-bed lurker. This one was bludgeoned to death by a 12-year-old in Essex, England. Ironically, the kid used a hardcover copy of a Harry Potter novel as his weapon. It is said the creature's last words were, "I'm not Dobby!" [source]
Above: Evil Beast #22. This tiny devil is said to have the power of invisibility and likes to hang around the bottom of tequila bottles, waiting for unsuspecting drinkers to release the beast. [source]
Above: Scallop Crab. A sea creature that is extinct due to over-consumption. Scallop Crabs were an ideal dinner gift. The diner could eat both the scallop and the crab and then keep the shell as a memento. [source]
Above: Ira Jose. This is the thing that brushes past your legs when you're swimming in a lake. [source]

The Museum of Fantastic Specimens
The Museum of Fantastic Specimens is open 24 hours a day and can be visited here. It is a 3-story virtual museum that showcases Emoto’s imaginary taxidermy artworks. Each specimen is a papier mache sculpture; made using bamboo, paper and modelling paste. In the past, artists have created fake photographs of 'sightings' of cryptids, but Emoto has taken the art of cryptozoology to a new level, by constructing 'specimens' of mythological creature remains. His designs are eerily realistic, with a degree of intricate detail not found in many papier mache sculptures. From claw to tooth, these models appear to be quite real, as if Emoto has simply found them lying beneath a pile of leaves or sand. Sadly, these macabre creature cadavers aren’t real…

 Or are they?
Read More on Art-Sci:
 10 Freaky Photoshop Artworks
Posted by
Labels: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Artworks Whose Eyes Follow You Around the Room

Leonardo da Vinci’s Mona Lisa painting is famed for having eyes that follow you around the room. The principles used in da Vinci’s paintings can also be applied to sculpture or paper-folding to create a hollow face illusion.


Hollow Face Illusions Videos:

These videos show a variety of hollow face illusions at work. As the camera operators move around the sculptures, the faces (sometimes just the eyes) turn to watch the viewer.


This sculpture is an artist’s rendition of St Francis. Though small, the bust of St Francis is an interesting piece, as no matter where you are in the room, St Francis has his eyes on you.


Even when rendered in 3D animation software, the hollow face illusion still has an essence of magic. The eye is tricked into believing that the heads are turning as the 3D model rotates.



How it Works:

Hollow face illusions are exactly what their name implies. The artist sculpts, carves or in the case of paper or origami art, folds the material to form a “hollow” face. The human eye is trained to see a face as being convex (bulging towards the viewer), that it naturally mistakes a concave face (bulging away from the viewer) as being convex. Small sculptures can be rotated horizontally and vertically to create the impression that the head displayed is turning from side to side or up and down. For large sculptures, the viewer can move around the sculpture, marveling at the supposed manner in which the face turns to follow the viewer around the room.


The face on the left is convex, and the face on the right is concave. From this angle, with the light coming from above, the illusion is easily broken.

Because the light source is apparent; the illusion created by this Buddha hollow face illusion is strong. The contrasting colors between raised and indented surfaces adds to the illusion.

This image of Einstein appears to be popping out of the background, but is it, really?

Leonardo da Vinci’s Mona Lisa


The theories used in hollow face illusions and by da Vinci for the “Mona Lisa” are similar, but not exactly the same. Instead of creating a hollow face for Mona, da Vinci used perspective, contrast, shadows and shape to create the illusion that the Mona Lisa’s eyes turn to follow the viewer around the room. Da Vinci created a sketch called Proportions of the Face, which he used as a base for the proportions of the Mona Lisa’s face. The proportions created by da Vinci are based on the same mathematical principles as hollow face illusions, and create a similar effect.

The Mona Lisa is a famous painting by Leonardo da Vinci that uses the hollow face illusion technique to make her eyes follow you around the room. [source]

Above are the working stages of the Mona Lisa painting, showing how da Vinci incorporated his sketch, Proportions of the Face, into the final Mona Lisa masterpiece. The reason why Mona Lisa's eyes seem to follow you around the room is a combination of light and shadows in the piece and layers upon layer of paint that give the painting a slight 3-Dimensional effect.


Read More on Art-Sci:
 Artistic Recycling: Furniture Made From Old Bicycles 
Posted by
Labels: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Sedlec Ossuary: The Gothic Church of Human Bone

Tens of thousands of human skeletons adorn the walls and ceiling of Sedlec Ossuary, a Roman Catholic chapel in a small suburb of the Czech Republic.

The Roman Catholic chapel, Sedlec Ossuary, is home to between 40,000 and 70,000 human skeletons. These skeletons have been used to decorate the church with bone chandeliers, skeletal arches and large “bells”; piles of human bones with a hollow centre.


Above: Close-up of a’ bone bell’, showing the hollow which extends through the base of each bell. These bells contain the bulk of the human remains within Sedlec Ossuary. The bells sit in each corner of the ossuary, a testament to mass human suffering.

Above: Close-up of one of the many skull and cross bones within the ossuary.


The History of Sedlec Ossuary

In 1278, Abbot Henry of the Cistercian Monastery in Sedlec was sent to Palestine, considered by the Catholic Church as the Holy Land. He returned with a small amount of soil from Golgotha, which he scattered over the soil of the abbey cemetery. Because of this pious act, the graveyard soon became a popular burial ground for central Europeans.


Above: A chalice made from human bones stands on a pedestal in Sedlec Ossuary, framed by skull and crossed bones motifs.

A gothic chapel was built on the grounds of the cemetery between 1282 and 1320. A large vault, or ossuary, was built to house the bones that were exhumed during the excavation process.

Above: A depiction of Jesus Christ on the cross is surrounded by antique bones.

In the 14th century, the black plague ravaged central Europe, leaving thousands dead. It is believed that tens of thousands of bodies found a resting place within the holy burial ground of the monastery. The chapel later suffered a massive blow after a fire burnt everything but the outer walls.


Above: It is claimed that this chandelier contains every bone in the human body and was made from several skeletons.

Construction continued for many years, with a new entrance being added and the upper chapel being rebuilt in the early 18th century.
In 1870, The Schwarzenberg family hired a woodcarver, FrantiĊĦek Rint, to organize the heaps of bones that had collected in the Sedlec ossuary. In an attempt to give the bones a sense of order, Rint created artistic, macabre creations with the bones.


Above: The Schwarzenberg family coat of arms; created by Rint to honor his commissioners.

Above: Detail of the Schwarzenberg family coat of arms.


Above: Some of Rint’s creations are inexplicable. It is said that he attempted to portray the inevitability of mortality through his work.

Above: Rint’s creativity is apparent in this creation in which he has used a cracked human bone to create the bird’s head.


Sedlec Ossuary in the 21st Century

The Church of Bone, situated an hour’s travel outside Prague in the Czech Republic, in the province of Kutna Hora, is a popular tourist attraction that is listed in many tour guides.


Above: A statue of a cherub, a Christian figure of a baby angel, sits on top of an unlikely pedestal in the church of bone.

The ossuary has been featured on “Ripley”s Believe It Or Not’, and was used as a location for the Dungeons and Dragons movie. Ewan McGregor and Charlie Boorman visited the church in their documentary, “Long Way Round”.

Click here for a 360° view of the Sedlec Ossuary.


Read More on Art-Sci:
 10 Paintings by Adolf Hitler
Posted by
Labels: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,

Hundreds of Mummies Discovered in Mexican Graves

The Mummies Museum, El Museo De Las Momias, in Guanajato, Mexico, is home to over 100 hundred human mummies. The mummification was "accidental"; the bodies were not embalmed before death, but were mummified naturally after burial.

Above: The bodies in the Mummies Museum are displayed behind glass, creating an environment that helps to preserve the integrity of the human remains. As you can see in the picture above, many of the mummies are displayed in a standing position, creating an eerie effect for visitors. [source]

Mexico's Cholera Epidemic 
In 1833, Mexico suffered a cholera epidemic. Thousands of Mexican men, women and children fell victim to the plague. The law at the time stated that a grave tax had to be paid by the family of the deceased. If the grave tax was not paid, the human remains would be disinterred; dug up and stored, until the tax had been paid.
For the deceased who had no living relatives to pay the grave tax, this meant that between the years of 1865 and 1958, their bodies were exhumed and stored by the government. It was discovered that soil conditions and a dry climate in the area had naturally mummified many of the human corpses. In the early 1900s, these bodies became a tourist attraction, and cemetery workers began charging tourists an entrance fee to view the bodies. Many of the bodies have been reduced to little more than skin and bone, yet many of them still have facial features and expressions and even clothing, as the mummification process occurred before disintegration could begin.

Above: Some of the mummies are displayed in glass coffins, which keep the bodies dry and allow visitors to view the mummified remains. The bodies have not rotted under the ground. Instead they have dried out and become mummified. [source]

Above: The mummies are frozen in the position that they were buried in. Bent limbs mean the body slid around inside the coffin before burial. After being dug up by the Mexican government, the mummies were stored in warehouses while the government waited for burial taxes to be paid. The bodies that are displayed in El Museo De Las Momias are mummies who have no relatives to pay the grave tax for them. [source]

Buried Alive
Several of the mummies on display bear evidence of being buried alive. There were so many bodies to bury during the cholera epidemic that several sick and dying people were buried before they had died. Their faces have frozen, post-mortem, into a rictus of agony and despair. Some of those who were buried alive covered their faces with their arms, and others bear scratch marks on their bodies, caused by their struggle to escape their graves. These mummies create a macabre and creepy display.

Above: This mummy shows evidence of being buried alive. Having woken up in a mass grave, this person curled into a ball, covering their face with their hands. The mummy appears to be screaming or crying, an effect caused by the skin of the lips pulling away from the mouth as it dries. [source]

Mummified by Mistake
Not all of the corpses were caused by the cholera outbreak. Ignacia Aguilar suffered from a heart condition that caused her heart to stop for several hours at a time. One infliction of her condition caused her heart to stop for longer than usual. Presuming her to be dead, her family had her buried. After being disinterred, her body was found to be positioned in an unusual way. Aguilar had raised her arm to her face and had bitten into the flesh of her wrist. There was blood in her mouth and scratch marks on her forehead. It has been presumed that upon discovering herself buried alive and trapped, Ignacia Aguilar attempted to commit suicide. 

Above: Ignacia Aguilar, one of the most famous of the Museo De Las Momias mummies. This photo shows how Ignacia tried to commit suicide by biting into her wrists. [source]

Child Mummies
Mummies of children are rare, as most embalmed mummies are adults. El Museo De Las Momias houses a number of child mummies who were mummified naturally. Many of the child mummies still have their burial dress on, and while some appear to be peacefully at rest, others seem to despair at their state of mummification.

Above: A collection of child mummies at El Museo De Las Momias. These creepy displays attract thousands of visitors each year. [source]

Above: This mummified baby looks like a macabre doll. This infant mummy is part of a display that makes up the world's largets collection of child and infant mummies. [source]

Although only 2% of the exhumed corpses had undergone mummification, the Accidental Mummies of Guanajuato is still one of the largest exhibitions of natural mummification in the world. These mummies can be viewed at the Mummies Museum, El Museo De Las Momias, in Guanjuato, Mexico.

If you find these petrified people fascinating or just plain creepy, there's more skeletons in the closet in the article: Sedlec Ossuary: The Gothic Church of Human Bone



Read More on Art-Sci:
 10 Internet Meme Tattoos
Posted by
Labels: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)