At first glance, you may not notice what's different about this box of cereal. Maybe it's just one of those special editions that's in stores for a short time. But if you take a closer look you might ask, what's up with that?
When Naomi Frierson walked into her local Walmart and down the aisle, her focus was getting her mom a box of her favorite cereal.
"I just picked it up and I kind of looked at it," Frierson said. "And I figured it was one of those special edition type of boxes. ... I didn't think much of it."
But when she got home, her husband noticed.
"We proceed to look at it further and realize that not only are there mugshots but they're serial killers," Frierson said. "Not the C-E-R-E-A-L kind unfortunately."
The box of "Life" cereal is covered with people synonymous with death. Larry, the Quaker Oats mascot is Jeffrey Dahmer. And instead of being made with 20 whole grains, it's made with 20 whole brains.
"And then on the nutrition panel you've got stuff like instead of cholesterol it says chloroform," Frierson said. "Down here it says cyanide."
Frierson said she was creeped out, but her husband loved it.
"He immediately recognized all of the different players in the game," Frierson said. "And he thought it was just the coolest thing ever and assured me that it must be art."
He was right. The box was a class project made by Lauren Miller, a senior art student at the University of South Florida.
"I kind of just wanted it to blend in with everything else," Miller said. "I took a bunch of pictures that I found online of serial killers and I used Photoshop to add them to the Life cereal box. I just thought it would be interesting to use Life cereals since these people did take away lives."
Miller has a large version of the box in her studio but wanted to see how people reacted to this smaller version in the community.
Frierson said, "I had people on my personal Facebook when I posted that thing like, 'Oh my gosh I need to have that. How can I get one? Are there more?'"
Frierson said she's keeping this box, and Miller is exploring creating more to sell.
Miller said she left a note on the box saying it was art and had already been paid for. But for Frierson, the initial jitters and overall experience was well worth the price.
"I think (it was) three dollars well spent for an interesting piece of art," Frierson said.
A creepy class project, taking on a life of its own.
"I would say a solid 'A' so if you didn't get an 'A' I'll call your professor," Frierson said.
