Chances are that if you’re on TikTok during the month of October, you’ve stumbled across Spooky Lake Month. This curated series is artist and teacher Geo Rutherford’s brilliant project that educates those watching about the haunted and spooky hydrology of our world. And from the very first “Uhmmm yes, hello,” their 1.6 million followers on TikTok know they’re in good hands as they learn about lakes, bogs, and the dangers of our world.
Every day for the month of October, Rutherford publishes a haunted hydrology video on their TikTok and Instagram. And their videos have become so iconic and so viral that Rutherford is taking it a step further with a book! Titled Spooky Lakes: 25 Strange and Mysterious Lakes That Dot Our Planet, the book is a “thrilling nonfiction book that plumbs the depths of unusual lakes around the world.”
But that’s not all there is to know about Rutherford! They are also an artist and illustrator whose work includes printmaking and “large-scale mixed media works focusing on notions of invasiveness, impermanence, and the unseen in relation to the Great Lakes.” The artist’s books that were born out of this project are a creative and dimensional way of experiencing the Great Lakes. And I’ve truly never seen someone create an experience quite like this that is educational and unique to them. Seriously, check out the project here.
Rutherford has also transformed their Spooky Lake Month content into apparel, stickers, and pins & magnets. And let’s not forget the prints as well! Some of them are pretty self-explanatory like the underwater graves or the 10/10 spookies stickers. But some of them are subtle nods to the work that Rutherford has done with Spooky Lake Month and it’s even more reason to check their work out this October!
Here are some of the most recent Spooky Lake Month entries for 2023.
1. The Jacuzzi of Death
2. The Bends
3. Bog Bodies
4. Keyhole Canyon
5. Cuyahoga River Fire
If you’ve enjoyed Geo Rutherford’s work, please make sure to go and follow them on TikTok and Instagram.
And don’t forget to check out more information about the Spooky Lakes book here.
