Did you ever play a game when you were a kid where you would find faces or see faces in ordinary objects like cars or washing machines? My sisters and I did, it was one of our favorite games to play on the long drive up to the cottage.
Until I came across Keith Larsen’s art, I didn’t know that seeing faces in everyday life is actually a rare psychological phenomenon: pareidolia , “the tendency to perceive a specific, often meaningful, image in a random or ambiguous visual pattern.” While my sisters and I just found faces for fun, it’s a way of life for Keith — and he’s decided to be creative with it.
He has an Instagram account, @thefaceswithinplaces, where he posts artistic renditions of the faces he sees.
With each drawing, he includes the original object, like this duck here who was found in the hardware of a laundry machine. I can totally see it now that I’ve seen Keith’s drawing. I think I’m a big fan of this sassy looking duck!
He’s also a very talented story teller.
In each post he writes adorable descriptions of the characters he creates. He gives each one a personality that brings the drawings even more to life. You can really feel that Keith has made a connection with his work and that it’s really important to him.
This is really adorable and I love it.
I would never have seen this! This is Jan and Fran, an adorable couple, wouldn’t you say? He posted this particular piece in support of love and how important it is to support one another. “But in the end, love always wins,” he writes. I think he’s right.
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I think this one is kind of creepy, but I think that’s because I think teeth are gross.
I’m not sure that I will ever look at a tomato the same way again because of this awesome picture. It kind of works out in my favor, though. See, I’ve never really liked tomatoes either, so now I can doubly hate them with good reason. At least in my mind, anyways.
This one is my favorite.
He has such a sweet little face! And he’s an astronaut! Who wouldn’t love that? I can totally see the sloth face here. Can you? I’m amazed at how talented and creative Keith is and how he’s sharing this part of his world with us. It’s always interesting how different the world can be for other people.
I remember when I moved into my apartment and had a buzzer like this I felt really cool, because Carrie Bradshaw had one.
Come to think of it, I do remember it looking like a face from time to time.
I will never be as cool as this backpack.
Look at that hair! That suaveness! I don’t even think I know anyone who could even compare… Do you?
The eyebrows are a nice touch on this one.
He looks like a professor. The kind that everyone loves and actually cares about his job. What subject do you think he would teach? I’m going to guess drama.
Getting some serious Beauty and the Beast vibes here.
This is exactly the kind of angry furnace I’d expect to see walking around that big old castle. I bet he’s got a warm heart, though…
This guy looks a little bit like a kangaroo.
Don’t you think? Maybe it’s the nose and the mouth. He’s yelling about something, though, that’s for sure. Probably telling us to remember to wash our hands.
It’s interesting to think that there are people who see the same world I do, just in a completely different way. I think it’s great that Keith is using his talents to share his unique point of view.
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