The uncanny logic of places designed only to be passed through

Countries & Cities · Published 16 October 2026 Swipe more like this →

In short: Have you ever felt a prickle of unease in an empty school hallway or a deserted parking lot at dawn? This isn't just a mood; it is a psychological phenomenon. These spaces feel "off" because they exist on the threshold between where you were and where you are going.

The term originates from the Latin word 'limen,' meaning threshold. In anthropology, Arnold van Gennep first defined liminality in 1909 to describe a middle phase of rites of passage. During this period, individuals are no longer who they were but have not yet become who they will be—they occupy an intermediate state suspended between identities and social roles. Victor Turner expanded this in the 1960s, describing liminality as a condition where normal rules are temporarily suspended and social structures loosen, creating a space where transformation becomes possible.

In physical architecture, liminal spaces are transitional areas like hallways, stairwells, airport terminals, and hotel lobbies. They are designed specifically for passage rather than lingering. When these environments are stripped of the human activity they were built to facilitate—such as an office lobby at 3 a.m.—the familiar becomes uncanny. This 'failure of presence' creates a surreal quality where the space feels unfinished or suspended in time, often holding traces of past lives like peeling paint or stopped clocks.

Beyond physical locations, liminality describes psychological states: the period after losing a job but before starting a new one, or the months following a significant loss. These are 'neutral zones' where old maps no longer work and new ones haven't been drawn. While these periods of uncertainty can be uncomfortable and disorienting, they are also considered fertile ground for personal growth because the collapse of familiar structures creates the necessary space for something new to take shape.

Modern internet culture has popularized this as an aesthetic centered on 'uncanny' built environments. This fascination surged in 2019, linked to the 'Backrooms' urban legend, and peaked during the COVID-19 pandemic when images of empty public spaces became widespread. Research suggests that deviations from familiar structural patterns can trigger an uncanny-valley response, while personal memories allow viewers to project nostalgia onto these contextless scenes.

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