Graphic Design Communication
Chelsea McGann
Love Letters
Many people have an obsession with things such as singers, bands, fashion and even serial killers. The obsession with serial killers is a strange one as it makes you question how people, mainly women, can admire and condone what happens to people just like them. This sort of behaviour is known as hybristophilia, which is described as an attraction to people who’ve committed extraordinary crimes. This sort of behaviour was more prevalent in the 70’s and 80’s as the likes of Ted Bundy, Richard Ramierz and Jeffrey Dahmer were the center of media attention.
Women were more likely to reach out to incarcerated criminals as there was thousands of letters sent to these killers, declaring love and admiration for them, ignoring the horrific crimes they have committed, so this book looks at the letters that are exchanged between prisoners and the women that write to them.
It also takes an interesting approach by turning the question onto the audience and making them question why there is a romantic obsession around killers and why their looks tend to diminish the horrendous acts they carried out.