24-Inch Kathakali Wall Art - Hand-Painted Kerala Dance Face

What the colours mean

In Kathakali the paint is the casting. Pacha, green, is the virtuous hero. Kathi adds a red moustache for the arrogant villain. Thaadi is the bearded type, Kari the black-faced demon, Minukku the polished face of women and sages. The green face on this panel is the one an audience reads first, and the one the tradition is known by outside Kerala.

Why this one

2,800 g (approx. 6.2 lb) - the heaviest disc in the 24-inch series, because the headdress is the most heavily worked area on any of them. Mirror pieces are set individually into the crown and the border, which is what gives the piece its glitter under a downlight. At two feet across the facial detail is legible from across a room, which a smaller version of this subject never manages.

Where it goes

Entryways, a dining room wall, a stair landing, or above a sideboard. It is a high-contrast piece - green, red, white and gold - so it wants a plain wall and clear space either side rather than a crowded gallery arrangement.

The rest of the series

Five 24-inch discs share this format, each a different subject: the Adiyogi Shiva, the Warli village scene, the Yin Yang and the maroon and blue mandala. Hung as a pair or a row of three they read as a set, because the diameter and the thickness match exactly.

Hanging it

A hook is fitted to the back. At this weight the fixing should go into a stud or a drywall anchor rated for it - a plain picture nail is not enough. Screws and wall anchors are not supplied.

Care

Dust with a dry, soft cloth. If there is mirror inlay, use glass cleaner on the mirror only, applied to the cloth rather than sprayed, so nothing runs onto the paint.