Why do cats dressed in their owner’s clothes look sinister?

There is probably nothing psychologically significant going on here but when the Swiss photographer/artist, Sebastian Magnani, merged – I suppose using Photoshop – photographs of the cat caretaker’s clothes (appearance) and his/her cat we end up with an image that is more sinister than amusing. Perhaps it is the way he did it. He seems to have deliberately tried and succeeded in creating an image that is slightly unsettling. There is also some photoshop work on the cats faces as well.

Sebastian says this:

‘I am so fascinated by the eyes of cats. Unlike dogs, cats all have the same head form, so there is not so much difference between each other’.

That does not enlighten me to be honest. No matter, I like the images because they are interesting.

Cats dressed in their owner’s clothes. Undercats: Owners spliced with their cats – All photos by Sebastian Magnani/REX)

He has definitely tried to make them look a bit sinister. Sometimes they look cute. However, I have seen other cats looks distinctly sinister in human clothes. What about this photo of a Sphynx cat:

Spooky Sphynx in woman’s clothes and wig. Photo: Twitter

or this one:

Spooky Sphynx in woman’s clothes and wig. Photo: Twitter

But here is cute/bizarre:

Bramhall’s pet Sphynx cat dressed up. Photo: Hayley Bramhall.

Below are some more articles featuring photo-editing:

Picture of a Sphynx cat in central London

Comments

Why do cats dressed in their owner’s clothes look sinister? — 18 Comments

Dee (Florida) on July 5, 2014 at 4:53 pm said:
It breaks my heart too, R.
You guys tried your best to get some intervention before it came to this too.
At least the kits will be taken care of.
I hate those women.
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Dee (Florida) on July 5, 2014 at 3:20 pm said:
I think it’s just dumb.
I’d rather see the reverse – the humans attempting emulate the cats.
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- Ruth aka Kattaddorra on July 5, 2014 at 3:56 pm said:
  Yes we humans would be a lot better if we could emulate cats but we never could do it as cats are far smarter and much nicer than us.
  BTW Dee, RSPCA at that house today, taken the cat with kittens, she was stuck in a gap in the bedroom window, RSPCA had to get the fire brigade out as the women weren’t home, a woman opposite the back of their house spotted her hanging! Not looking good for her, they’ve had to sign the kittens over to the RSPCA. They have also seen the others so hopefully their lives will improve, the inspector said they will spay them all, but at least two are quite pregnant right now. Heartbroken for that cat, we thought she must have her kittens as we haven’t seen her for a while.
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  - Dee (Florida) on July 5, 2014 at 4:32 pm said:
    Omg!
    Do you mean that the cat was actually hanging and may not survive?
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    - Ruth aka Kattaddorra on July 5, 2014 at 4:44 pm said:
      Yes apparently she was trapped in the opened bit of window, we are heartbroken for her Dee. The RSPCA man thought she may have broken her back, it’s just too awful, we thought she was safe in the house with her babies, none of the cats have been around as much lately, we thought their lives had improved. At least the RSPCA inspector is on the job now and they will HAVE to take notice of him.
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Ruth aka Kattaddorra on July 5, 2014 at 1:40 pm said:
It won’t surprise anyone to know that I HATE those pictures, I hate cats being in any way shape or form dressed as people, because they are NOT people, cats don’t wear stupid hats or clothes, their clothing is beautiful fur!
The idiot who posted those photos needs something better to do.
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- Michael Broad on July 5, 2014 at 2:52 pm said:
  I know you hate this sort of thing but a lot of people like it. It is funny how different people’s views can be. It is another form of the use of the cat for our entertainment.
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Barbara on July 5, 2014 at 6:15 am said:
Totally disagree with the man, cats don’t have the same head form at all, ok they all have ears, eyes and noses but our two cats have completely different shaped heads. I think the pics are something that someone with a computer and photoshop would mess about with on a rainy Sunday afternoon, just can’t understand why when he’d finished playing around he published them, they’re a bit daft really aren’t they.
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- Michael Broad on July 5, 2014 at 6:51 am said:
  I suppose to some people they look a bit daft and to other people do look a bit sinister or creepy (that’s me) and to some other people they are fun. Personally, I’m not sure about them. I am more interested in cat welfare than fancy image manipulation of cats.
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  - Barbara on July 5, 2014 at 1:14 pm said:
    Me too, well said Michael that IS the important issue
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  - Ruth aka Kattaddorra on July 5, 2014 at 1:40 pm said:
    Well said!
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Rudolph.A.Furtado on July 5, 2014 at 1:40 am said:
Very scary and thought provoking. I remember the saying among dog owners when i owned dogs. Quote, “SHOW ME THE PET DOG AND I WILL TELL THE OWNERS PERSONALITY WITHOUT MEETING HIM OR HER “! Yes, our pets are truly reflections of our own human behaviour.The same seems to apply for cats.
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- Michael Broad on July 5, 2014 at 4:50 am said:
  It does look a bit odd. I am not quite sure why. Dogs seem to match up in appearance to their owners better than cats though. It is probably because there are more types of dog – their appearance varies more widely.
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NANCY SCHWOPE on July 5, 2014 at 12:33 am said:
I LIKE THE HODDIE CAT TOO. THEY ALL LOOK AMUSING
TO ME.
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Dan in Tempe on July 4, 2014 at 8:46 pm said:
I like them too. The third cat from the top looks the most natural I think. The others necks look strange. Very cool idea.
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dmricciardi on July 4, 2014 at 6:35 pm said:
I think they are rather funny, more than sinister. . .but that’s just me. . . MOL!!
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- Michael Broad on July 4, 2014 at 9:44 pm said:
  There are a bit funny too. I guess it is an example of how we see things differently.
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  - dmricciardi on July 4, 2014 at 9:52 pm said:
    LOL!! I like the 3rd one with the hoodie the best. . .
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