Japanese Twitter users turn the meaning of this Miffy illustration upside-down.
No matter how talented an illustrator or graphic designer may be, the products of their labors are visual representations of an idea, and not the idea itself. Even when most would agree a piece of art is depicting one thing, each viewer filters the representation through his own perspective to arrive at his individual interpretation.
Recently, we’ve seen this phenomenon turn innocuous intents into sexually charged messages, but that’s not the only way the darker corners of the mind can affect how we perceive visuals. Japanese Twitter user @le_pomme2332 was recently looking at a piece of cloth decorated with a pattern featuring Miffy, the Dutch picture book rabbit who’s much-loved in Japan as well.
A heartwarming drawing of two bunny buddies snuggling up to one another while relaxing on a cushion, right? Maybe. But if you’ve got a vicious current running through your brain, and you happen to see the pattern upside down, you might instead see it as…
…Miffy being eaten by a terrifying ghost that lacks a face, but has gigantic, gnashing teeth!
なんやこの柄・・・ミッフィーが変なオバケにモシャモシャされてるやん！子ども泣くで。。。！！
— 𝕃𝕒ℙ𝕠𝕞𝕞𝕖/さよならアンドロ.メダ (@la_pomme2332) June 26, 2017
とかおもってたら、クッションに座っていたらしいけど、もう咀嚼されてるようにしか見えない。。_(:3」∠)_ pic.twitter.com/qDQLF8vStL
The alternative interpretation even holds up in three dimensions, as another Twitter user shared an inverted snapshot of a music box based on a similar scene.
失礼します…。
— ゆきえ_絵描き (@yukie_ekakibaka) June 30, 2017
家でオルゴールを発見してしまいました。 pic.twitter.com/dWCdnAa0IX
Yet another commenter pointed out that the “ghost” is devouring his rabbit snack much like an Attack on Titan Titan munching on a puny human.
https://twitter.com/REMEMBER_1020/status/879879094329946112So once again, Miffy, cute as she may be, proves that she can star in tales of horror as easily as she does children’s stories.
Source: Twitter/@ le_pomme2332 via Togech
Images: Twitter/@ le_pomme2332
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