What makes an image “cursed”? This is the question artist Charlie Engman asked himself while working on Cursed, a book composed of images generated with Midjourney. The goal was to evoke the same unsettling, haunted sensations found in vernacular images that have come to define the anti-aesthetic of the internet. The numerous characters that populate the book are often depicted doing something (or, at the same time, nothing at all), all wrapped in an air of intentionality behind their actions—yet without any clear motive.
Alongside Cursed, Engman also worked on Hello Chaos, a Love Story — a small book centered on Kitty, the sweet and silent protagonist of this pocket-sized cartoon book. Kitty embarks on the ill-fated mission of capturing the attention of the aloof Mickey. Through a cat-and-mouse narrative focused on unrequited attention, Engman unveils the contradictions of contemporary visual culture. As stated on the artist’s Instagram profile, “Kitty and Mickey struggle to find each other and rediscover themselves in the chaos of images, technology, and mass production.” The work touches on themes of beauty, branding, and the raw vulnerability of seeing and perceiving—concepts now inextricably linked to visual culture.
In an article for Art in America (also cited by 1granary), Charlie Engman argues that “artificial intelligence, trained on the entire creative legacy of humanity, should not only protect artists but also everyone who contributes to the collective work that feeds these algorithms.” This perspective reflects his critique of capitalism and the commodification of creative labor—issues intertwined with his approach to contemporary visual culture.
Charlie Engman’s work is particularly intriguing, not only because the themes explored in Cursed and Hello Chaos, a Love Story are so relevant to our community, but also because his methods reveal a genuine form of experimentation. This experimentation extends beyond AI, touching on broader reflections about visual culture—one that is increasingly fast, saturated with content, and shaped by artificial intelligence.
