Odd men out

I bought these pictures some time last year after a long wait. It took the better part of a year for the prices to drop, be halved, and then go on clearance at an antiques mall I visit. 

They are strange, I'll admit. Perhaps even a little ugly. A couple feet long each, the men are mounted on a cloth background. Their clothes are fashioned with scraps of fabric. The faces are hand painted. I believe they are Chinese and represent two of the eight Immortals. 

The man of the right may be Li Tieguai because of the calabash gourd on his back. He is described as "benevolent to the poor, sick and the needy, whose suffering he alleviates with special medicine from his bottle gourd." He is also identified by his crutch. 

The other may be Cao Guojiu who carries the tablets of admission to court. He is also known as Ts’ao Kuo-chiu. "As a result of his possible connections to the court, Cao Guojiu is also known as ‘Royal Uncle Cao’."

The two pictures sat with my rotating collection of art for several months as I decided what to do with them. Last week I pulled one out to photograph and it stayed on display. Tonight as I sat in the living room it occurred to me that I have a corner dedicated to Asian art and thought it was time to rotate some art out.  My Thai musicians have left the space and these two fit perfectly in the open slot.

The reflection of the shelves appears in the picture above. We are still looking for affordable wood shelves to replace these white shelves.

A late night shot had the flash reflecting off the glass so this unlit and blurry picture of the change will have to suffice. I also swapped out the plain brown background of the Thai buffalo hide cut-out figure at top right. Seeing this photographed I think it may be time to rehang my red curtains. 

My snake basket sits below and, yes, I had to use it as a snake basket just last year when a tiny snake found its way inside our home. I've had to be the snake catcher/ killer since I was seven. While they may startle me, I am not afraid of snakes, opting to hold the beasties when pets are offered to me. I love their hide and the musculature as they entwine my hands and arms. Weird, huh?