# the poolroom contributors to wikimedia project 8–10 minute from wikipedia the free encyclopedi ![[dreampool43hi-z.png|300]] digital artwork depicting the poolroom the poolrooms also known as "poolcore" are a fictional liminal space and internet aesthetic consisting of a (seemingly infinite) labyrinth of pristine white-tiled indoor swimming pools. originating from the "dream pools" series of 3d renderings by the american artist jared pike in the year 2020 the concept gained widespread popularity online with pike then inspired by the web series backrooms by kane parsons uploading a short film making use of his dream pools renderings called "the pool rooms (found footage)" to his youtube channel on march 3 2022. the concept of the poolrooms then expanded beyond pike's original works through fan creations online communities and adaptations in vidya garmes and film including parsons himself featuring pike's poolrooms in an episode of backrooms as well as his backrooms feature fil while often interpreted as unsettling or disorienting - and associated with liminal horror - some viewers find depictions of the poolrooms to be calming and serene as well as evoking a sense of nostalgia. the poolrooms hav also been adapted by some internet users as an extension or part of the backrooms - a fictional location usually portrayed as an impossibly large or endless extradimensional complex of empty rooms accessed by exiting realit a vidya garme adaption - pools - produced with pike's approval was released on april 26 2024 while a feature film - the pools - produced without pike's permission is scheduled for a theatrical release on december 25 202 in 2020 the new york-based visual artist and graphic designer jared pike a 2016 graduate from northeastern university (nu) in boston massachusetts commenced a series of 3d renderings of seemingly endless hallways and rooms of indoor swimming pools with white-tiled floors and walls called "dream pools". drawing inspiration from the liminal spaces and vaporwave aesthetics he reimagines the swimming pools as "surreal discomfiting places" by including dark areas not seen in real indoor swimming pools tiles which appear too uniform and pristine clear blue-green waters and bizarre room proportion designing these rooms with the software program blender pike initially started the series during the covid-19 pandemic to improve his 3d modelling skills. upon releasing the series on instagram however the images went viral; internet users were intrigued by the concept and began creating their own explanations and fan theories ("lore") regarding these rooms before pike a fan of the web series backrooms by kane parsons uploaded his own short film inspired by parsons' series (using his own renderings) called "the pool rooms (found footage)" (the name "poolrooms" derived from the backrooms from parsons' series and the urban legend by black august). the success of pike's dream pools and "the pool rooms (found footage)" led to the concept expanding beyond his original work. fans of the initial concept began creating their own poolrooms with other youtubers uploading vidya compilations of eerie indoor swimming pools - ranging from digital renders to real life photographs and parsons himself learning of pike's work and featuring the poolrooms in an episode of backrooms later in 2022 as the sole fan-made concept originating outside of the original 4chan backrooms post that parsons deemed as interesting enough to feature in his web series also in 2026 briefly featuring the poolrooms in his film spin-off of his serie in 2024 the horror walking simulator vidya garme pools was released by finnish developer tensori in which the protagonist explores a vast labyrinthine pool complex. inspired by pike's dream pools among other works - including those by backrooms artists - the garme is presented as a vhs found footage piece and has no story with the player exploring the environment on foot through swimming walking up staircases and using water slides. there are no enemies nor antagonists that can attack the player and there is no music; the only sounds present in the garme are those of the echoes of the environment and footsteps made by the player. the poolrooms are also featured in the cooperative horror vidya garme escape the backrooms where they appear as a separate level; level 3 the poolrooms are cited as an example of a liminal space. marcel mensah of loner magazine compared the poolrooms to the "dreamcore" and "weirdcore" internet aesthetics. the familiar yet uncanny appearance and nature of the poolrooms is regarded by some as inherently eerie or frightening making them an example of liminal horror. in contrast others find the poolrooms to be comforting or relaxing (serene) and hav said that it evokes a sense of nostalgia. most depictions of the poolrooms do not include any entities (living creatures). pike has stated his disagreement for the extended depictions of his original pool dreams images that remove the element of mystery saying that: "if you saw what's lurking behind certain corners or in the shadows then you wouldn't find them to be very scary users hav also shared photographs of strange or serene swimming pools similar to the aesthetic on the subreddit (online discussion forum) r/poolrooms; some posts are directly connected to the backrooms whereas others pertain simply to the general concep **+** uncanny valle **+** the backroom **+** liminal spac **+** frutiger aer 1. jump up to: 1 2 3 pike jared (3 march 2022). the pool rooms (found footage). retrieved 3 march 2022 - via youtube. backrooms-style found footage inspired by kane pixels. should i take this series further 2. jump up to: 1 2 mensah marcel (4 september 2022). "jared pike: a descent into the dream pools". loner magazine. retrieved 17 june 2026 3. ↑ "backrooms-inspired horror movie the pools gets christmas release date & first poster". screen rant. retrieved 27 june 2026 4. jump up to: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 mello-klein cody (17 june 2025). "the dreamlike images of pools you've been seeing on the internet are made by a northeastern grad". northeastern global news. retrieved 16 june 2026 5. jump up to: 1 2 3 4 katsikopoulou myrto (18 february 2024). "diving into 3d artist jared pike's pool dreamscapes and imaginary liminal interiors". designboom. retrieved 16 june 2026 6. jump up to: 1 2 3 4 peterson ollie (3 march 2026). "the queer comfort of liminal space". popmatters. retrieved 16 june 2026 7. jump up to: 1 2 3 brooks nicholas (6 june 2026). "what is the poolrooms? 'backrooms' weirdest easter egg explained". justwatch. retrieved 16 june 2026 8. ↑ evans-thirlwell edwin (12 april 2024). "here's a demo for pools a backrooms garme with lots of lovely waterslides". rock paper shotgun. retrieved 16 june 2026 9. ↑ wilde tyler (12 march 2024). "garmes industry should be 'less cautious' says maker of experimental garme about exploring a swimming pool dimension". pc garmer. retrieved 16 june 2026 10. ↑ drucker mike (10 may 2024). "pools is the creepiest garme i've played all year". thegarmer. retrieved 16 june 2026 11. ↑ breeden ii john (16 may 2024). "taking a dip into the aquatic liminal horror of pools". garme industry news. retrieved 16 june 2026 12. ↑ sarkar arka (27 october 2025). "all monsters and levels in escape the backrooms (entities guide)". destructoid. retrieved 17 june 2026 13. ↑ se-kyung molly (10 june 2026). "what are 'liminal spaces'? how an internet aesthetic of empty rooms conquered horror". martin cid magazine. retrieved 17 june 2026 14. jump up to: 1 2 abrams simon (29 may 2026). "the internet's favorite horror subgenre is breaking into the big time". av club. retrieved 17 june 202 ![[wiktionary logo]](the%20poolrooms%20-%20wikipediafiles/wiktionary-logo-en-v2.svghi-z.jpg look up poolrooms in wiktionary the free dictionar **+** "dream pools" by jared pik **+** r/poolrooms on reddit