diff --git a/i3lock.c b/i3lock.c
index bda40a0..895d50a 100644
--- a/i3lock.c
+++ b/i3lock.c
@@ -688,6 +688,13 @@ int main(int argc, char *argv[]) {
     if (image_path) {
         /* Create a pixmap to render on, fill it with the background color */
         img = cairo_image_surface_create_from_png(image_path);
+        /* In case loading failed, we just pretend no -i was specified. */
+        if (cairo_surface_status(img) != CAIRO_STATUS_SUCCESS) {
+            if (debug_mode)
+                fprintf(stderr, "Could not load image \"%s\": cairo surface status %d\n",
+                        image_path, cairo_surface_status(img));
+            img = NULL;
+        }
     }
 #endif