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“Descending Into The Abyss”: 60 Liminal Spaces So Deeply Unsettling We’re Sorry In Advance
Empty swimming pools. Deserted airport terminals. Stairwells that seem to go on longer than they should. School hallways in summer. Parking garages at midnight. These are places the human brain recognizes but cannot quite settle into, spaces that carry the ghost of human presence without the actual humans, and something deep and primal in our psychology responds to that absence with unease.
The internet discovered liminal spaces as an aesthetic a few years ago and has been collectively unsettled by them ever since. The photos you are about to see are all real places. Completely ordinary, completely harmless places. So why do they feel like the opening scene of something you don't want to watch alone? That's the question. We don't have a comfortable answer. Turn a light on, maybe.
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#2
Took This Photo Inside An Abandoned Settlers Cottage Near The Coast In Rural South Australia
#3
A Jar Of Beetroot Leaked In The Fridge And It Looks Like A Kubrick Movie
#4
So I Was Searching For My Car And Suddenly
#5
The Indoor Pool At Hearst Castle
Karl der Große 4 months ago
I was at a hotel in Scottsdale where you could dive down in the indoor swimming pool, go through a short tunnel, then come up in the outdoor swimming pool. It was amazing.
#6
Descending Into The Abyss
Rick Murray 4 months ago
The childhood me would have been dropping jelly babies on people below.
#7
My Friend Lives In A Mall That Was Converted To Apartments
#8
My Office Has Been Empty Since March 2020. I Am The Only Person Still Working Here
Karl der Große 4 months ago
It would be weird if your food started to disappear from the refrigerator.
#9
I Was The Last To Board The Plane Today And Turned Around
#10
Liminal Pics I Took On A Walk
#11
Ever Get That Sinking Feeling?
#12
A Hallway In A French Hostel
#13
My Hometown Movie Theater
#14
A Stop For A Bus That Never Comes
#15
Something About This Place Felt Off
#16
I Was Walking Out In A Corn Field This Morning, It Was Foggy And Overcast, And I Thought This Was Pretty Creepy. No Wind. Silent
#17
There Are Tunnels That Connect The Buildings And Parking Garages Within A Couple Blocks Of My Job So On Rainy Days I Can Get Around And Stay Dry
#18
The Subway At 6 Am
#19
This Neighborhood Made Up Of Copy And Paste Homes
Ewok living on Kashyyyk 4 months ago
Little boxes on the hillside, little boxes made of ticky-tacky, little boxes on the hillside, little boxes all the same.
#20
Funky And Trippy Hotel In Belgium
#21
On A Night Walk, Southwestern Ontario Canada
#22
Cafeteria In An Old Canadian Nuclear War Bunker
#23
Is This An Image On The Wall Or Hole?
#24
Between Embankment And Charring Cross Tube Stations In London
#25
Italian School
#26
Is This One Of Those Liminal Spaces That's Popular With The Kids?
Karl der Große 4 months ago
I used to work in Reno setting up conventions. You'd show up and have to turn a space like this into a (presumably) welcoming space. After three days, tear it down all down. Spiritually harrowing work.
#27
Bliss Under Stoplights
#28
Pic I Took Inside A Washington State Ferry At Night
#29
The Clouds And Horizon Viewed From Our Airplane Appear To Be Perfectly Flat
#30
House In Berlin, My First Liminal Space Picture, Taken Yesterday
#31
Another Day At School
#33
Weird Picture I Took On Öland (Sweden)
#34
Actual Backrooms I Found Above A Car Dealership I Did Some Work For
#35
Burj Al Babas: A $200 Million Disney-Style Nightmare In Turkey. Over 500 Identical, Abandoned Chateaux Rotting In The Middle Of A Forest
#36
I Work A Delivery Job And I Hate Getting Apartments With Hallways Like This. How Do People Live Here?
Michael Largey 4 months ago
They spend most of their time in their apartments, not the hallway.
#37
Down The Corridor Of A Storage Facility Under Construction
#38
Moving Truck With A Single Arcade Cabinet In It
#39
Is My Hotel Liminal?
#40
The Hotel Floor I'm Staying On Has A Hallway With Stairs That Lead To Nowhere
#41
This Area At Work Makes Me Feel Like I'm Being Watched
#42
Closing Day Of A Grocery Store
#43
The Hospital Wing I Stayed At For 3 Months
Janissary35680 4 months ago
There really needs to be a plastic Big Wheel tricycle at the end of the hall. I'd put one there just for the Hẹll of it.
#44
This “Lounge Area” In A Local Hotel Makes Me Uneasy
#45
This Mini-Golf Course At A Resort I'm Staying At
#46
Bouncy Castle Park In Germany. I Was The Only One There
#47
This Tiny Escalator In Vienna
#48
Bathroom Pods At A Bar I Went To In London
#49
My Son In The Door Of Our Hotel Room
#50
This Huge Restroom In A San Antonio TX Store
Bi.Felicia 4 months ago
What a massive waste of space. I'm wondering if the bathroom was originally made to have multiple stalls, but the project went over budget and this is the result?
#51
Going To A Movie Theater At 10:30am On A Wednesday
#52
The One Place You Visited Years Ago
#53
Strange Neighborhood
#54
My Home For The Next Few Nights
Jay Scales 4 months ago
That photo and the word 'home' don't fit together unless you're some sort of hive creature....
#55
This Roof Shingled Closet At An Otherwise Normal House’s Open House
Bi.Felicia 4 months ago
Maybe they were trying to make it into a cedar closet, but took the cheaper route and used shingles?
#56
My BF Went To The Bathroom Of A Cafe, Sent Me This Pic
#57
What Should I Do With This Space?
#58
Polka Dot Wear Pattern Under Removed Cubicles
#59
Liminal Church
Beak Hookage 4 months ago
In this context, the word "HOPE" suddenly comes off as threatening. Like you'd better HOPE you get out of here alive.
#60
My Local Theater Has A Screening Room With A Playground In It
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Caffeinated Ape 4 months ago
I enjoy liminal spaces. Nice inclusion of a bunch of brightly lit ones this time, that's not common with this theme.
Beak Hookage 4 months ago
Interesting timing; I watched "Backrooms" just yesterday and boy did that movie manage to get under my skin in just about the creepiest way possible. I came out of the cinema feeling like I was going to barf up my lunch.
Caffeinated Ape 4 months ago
I enjoy liminal spaces. Nice inclusion of a bunch of brightly lit ones this time, that's not common with this theme.
Beak Hookage 4 months ago
Interesting timing; I watched "Backrooms" just yesterday and boy did that movie manage to get under my skin in just about the creepiest way possible. I came out of the cinema feeling like I was going to barf up my lunch.
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