Have you ever had a strange feeling when you’ve often looked at inanimate objects, such as a three-prong outlet or a sock with holes in all the right places, and think they look like a face?
Musician and artist Keith Larsen is able not only to see different faces in inanimate objects but also illustrate them. He has an ability to find objects with faces is the result of pareidolia. It’s a psychological phenomenon in which our minds create a “familiar pattern” where none exists. This is commonly rooted in seeing phantom people or animals, but it can be audible, too. If you’ve ever heard someone claiming they hear a “hidden message” when they play back a song, they’re describing pareidolia.
For Larsen, this phenomenon is the inspiration for his art, and it provides ample fodder to come up with some amusing and fantastical cartoon-style creations.
All images and captions © Keith Larsen