21 Eerie Artworks by Students + Alumni to Celebrate Halloween
Detail of artwork by Ann Siddall.
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This chilling concoction of haunted artworks makes the perfect pairing for your favourite shadowy autumn activity.
The Scary Season is upon us! To help you howl at the moon, we’ve brewed up a diabolical collection of hair-raising images by our supernaturally talented students and alumni that explore the unsettling, the creepy and the macabre.
Our sincerest thanks to all the wonderful folks who participated this year. And to our readers, a word of advice: these artworks are best enjoyed with friends and your favourite Halloween treat!
Scroll down ... if you dare!
1. Zeynep Algun
Zeynep Algun, Possession, ink drawing.
ECU foundation student Zeynep Algun says her drawing “talks about how we let the complex emotions of others take over us as well.”
What’s your favourite Halloween tradition?
Dressing up in costumes because I feel like it’s the one night of the year I can be whatever I want without judgment from anyone.
2. Eliana Carlos
Eliana Carlos, Rockstar Manananggal, acrylic on cardboard.
ECU student Eliana Carlos says the character in her artwork is “based on the manananggal, a self-segmenting vampire originating from Philippine mythology. During the day, she appears as a beautiful lady, but at night, she splits herself in half to prey on pregnant women for their babies. It was interesting to turn this mythological creature into a popular rockstar, since her unique form will definitely attract attention. However, her popularity limits her to drinking pig’s blood instead of human meat as it would upset her human fans.”
What’s your favourite Halloween tradition?
Trick or treating!
3. Ash Chan
Ash Chan, Gardening, digital painting.
About their artwork, ECU Foundation student Ash Chan says, “Yes, this is sapphic. Yes, flowers are growing out of her exposed ribs. Otherwise, interpret this work as you wish.”
What’s your favourite Halloween tradition?
It’s not particularly shadowy, but I recently found that I really enjoy pumpkin carving with friends while watching bad movies.
4. Carol Diaz
Carol Diaz, Mental Plane, mixed media on cardboard.
About their artwork, second-year Visual Arts student Carol Diaz says, “This work is a representation of random thoughts and states of mind we might find ourselves living in.”
What’s your favourite Halloween tradition?
Watching scary movies.
5. Jaehyun Jun
Jaehyun Jun, Hands Off!, digital painting.
ECU student Jaehyun Jun says in his image, titled Hands Off!, “An archaeologist stumbles upon an ominous artifact in a deep dark cave.”
What’s your favourite autumn tradition?
Admiring the fallen leaves on the ground.
6. Rebecca Lau
Rebecca Lau, FALLEN, mixed media.
ECU alum Rebecca Lau (BFA 2023) says FALLEN “depicts the fallen of countries and cities, when the expansion of a society destroyed nature. It is inspired by recent years of developments within Vancouver.”
What’s your favourite Halloween tradition?
I do enjoy seeing kids in my classrooms working on their own special costumes!
7. Mina Mitic
Mina Mitic, Through the Window, oil on canvas.
Third-year Visual Arts student Mina Mitic says Through the Window “explores the unsettling feeling of being watched and looking on into worlds beyond. It is a glimpse into the eerie feeling of being alone yet never feeling quite at ease. It breathes quiet loneliness and the urge to sink back into the darkness.”
What’s your favourite Halloween tradition?
My favourite autumn tradition is carving pumpkins!
8. Miyoume
life and death by Miyoume.
Miyoume, a Teen Programs alum, says of her work, “Come and reach out for my hand, you’ve got this!”
What’s your favourite Halloween tradition?
Splurging on Hallowe’en candy for trick-or-treating but ending up “accidentally” eating it all before I have a chance to give it away.
9. Paige Neufeld
Paige Neufeld, Haunted, acrylic and gouache painting.
Paige Neufeld is a Communication Design student at Emily Carr who also loves illustration and paintings. She says Haunted is “a depiction of the line ‘everything’s growing in our garden, you don’t have to know that it’s haunted’ from Garden Song by Phoebe Bridgers. Every time I hear this line it always resonates with me in its contrasting melancholy and soft-ness so I wanted to convey that in an illustration of it.”
What’s your favourite Halloween tradition?
Although I did not participate this year, my favourite fall tradition is Inktober! I like having a sort of accountability that comes with popular drawing challenges as it pushes me to work outside of my comfort zone. Its also the perfect activity to do after a long, rainy fall day.
10. Aisha Nguyen
Aisha Nguyen, Eternity, gouache on paper.
Of her artwork, ECU student Aisha Nguyen says, “This artwork is one of the hand-drawn pieces in my portfolio for Emily Carr. It was finished by gouache on paper, with some characterization of ancient Dong Son bronze drum on the bone. Furthermore, it depicts the life beyond humans and at the end of the human civilization.”
What’s your favourite Halloween tradition?
My favourite autumn tradition is the Day of the Dead in Mexico, as I was influenced by Coco.
11. Hailey Park
Hailey Park, Life, lithographic print.
Of her artwork, second-year Visual Arts student Hailey Park says, “It’s often said that when facing imminent death, everyone gets enlightened. Thus, to fully embrace life, one must ‘die before death.’ Paradoxically, the secret of life is death.”
What’s your favourite Halloween tradition?
I love sharing candies with children!
12. Daisy Rutter
Daisy Rutter, Waiting for a Visitor, digital illustration, 2023.
Second-year 2D Animation student Daisy Rutter says, “Here is a piece I completed in my October ‘Drawtober’ challenge. The prompt was ‘overgrown cemetery.’”
What’s your favourite Halloween tradition?
I would say my favorite Halloween activity is watching horror movies with my friends and baking Halloween-themed treats!
13. Aamiya Shetty
Aamiya Shetty, Kyon - Gire Hua, oil painting.
ECU foundation student Aamiya Shetty says of the story behind her artwork, “Following the betrayal of the human inhabitants of Kodi, Gire Hua lay quietly at the base of Perumalmalai, visibly deteriorating and decomposing, with bites missing from various animals. It was a tragic spectacle to behold as the dying creature succumbed to a profound slumber while exhaling its final breath.”
What’s your favourite Halloween tradition?
Trick-or-treating lol.
14. River Shirazian
River Shirazian, Sweetheart, acrylic painting.
Of her painting, ECU student River Shirazian says simply, “It’s a portrait of my lovely wife.”
What’s your favourite Halloween tradition?
For Hallowe’en I love exploring the night and forests, as well as making art related to the occult or supernatural.
15. Ann Siddall
Artwork by Ann Siddall.
Fourth-year Illustration student Ann Siddall says of her artwork, “Two hands cradle a shrunken head — a practice used to preserve human heads by shrinking them down as a form of trophy or ritual.”
16. Esmeralda Tejera
Top and bottom: Esmeralda Tejera, Invasion of Privacy, oil painting.
Second-year student Esmeralda Tejera, who hails from the Dominican Republic, says of Invasion of Privacy, “People need a safe personal space to feel protected, to reduce stress and to feel focused. In turn, not being able to have a time interval for oneself, being watched or controlled is a clear invasion of our personal space. Personal space is a bubble that can burst in the face of any type of psychosensory stimulation. My piece is a representation of how I feel about this situation. It is my way of expressing the invasion of people’s privacy, but from my particular point of view.
“Each human being has their own individuality respectively. In this there are territories that we do not like others to break into. The invasion of this can make people feel uncomfortable, indifferent or upset. I want to define the phrase ‘I need my personal space.’”
What’s your favourite Halloween tradition?
My favorite shadowy autumn tradition is to dress up as a vampire.
17. Paula Valentín
Paula Valentín, El Mictlán, pen on watercolour paper.
Of her artwork, third-year Visual Arts student Paula Valentín says, “Exploring the dark and turbulent trip to the underworld after we die, the Mictlán is a place one’s body must go through to reach eternal rest according to Aztec culture. It’s a way to purify yourself and leave everything behind, both physically and mentally.”
What’s your favourite Halloween tradition?
My favourite autumn tradition is definitely Day of the Dead. It’s such a beautiful tradition that keeps on passing the memory of our beloved ones from generation to another.
18. Daisy Wang
Daisy Wang, The Bride, digital painting.
ECU Arts student Daisy Wang says The Bride depicts “the girl who sits alone deep in the forest with her veil. They say you can only see her at twelve midnight when there is a moon. ‘I’ll always be here for you, deep in the forest.’”
What’s your favourite Halloween tradition?
Halloween, of course!! I love seeing everyone turn out differently than they normally do and enjoy the detachment from reality.
19. Christian Wayne
Christian Wayne, Untitled, oil on canvas.
Artist and musician Christian Wayne is a third-year Visual Arts student at Emily Carr.
What’s your favourite Halloween tradition?
My favourite spooky autumn ritual is telling ghost stories from my home reservation, where everyone has some kind of tale of ghosts, demons, centaurs or fauns. They’re guaranteed to spook everyone out at the house party!
20. Winter
Winter, Weirdlands, pencil crayon + digital.
Second-year Illustration student Winter says Weirdlands depicts “a swirl of writhing, half-formed faces spins around a bright light of unbothered joy that illuminates the grotesque forms with its light.”
What’s your favourite Halloween tradition?
Getting outside early enough to see the fog still swallowing the city.
21. Mabel Xu
Mabel Xu, Mr. Fish, digital painting.
ECU student Mabel Xu says Mr. Fish portrays, “A curious man with a fish for a head, working in a fish shop. He holds a fragile fish up. The shop is covered in blood, knives, and red light. Surely it isn’t fish blood, right?”
What’s your favourite Halloween tradition?
Staying inside under blankets, drinking a matcha latte, all while drawing and watching true-crime documentaries.