Talk:Art and Deco

Art is a Jizo statue, right?

Hello there! This is my first discussion post. I was reading this article when I realized that nobody seems to have noticed that Art (the little grey guy) is probably supposed to be a Jizo statue, correct? His short height, grey complexion, and red scarf certainly make him look the part. While riding with the band, he even holds a staff! I just thought it was strange that the only descriptor for his appearance is "imp-like"; while he does superficially resemble Red, his attire makes it pretty clear that he is, or at least greatly resembles, a Jizo statue. I wanted to confer with others about this before I made any changes to the page itself. That's all for now! --Esoteric Dynamo (talk) 19:49, August 19, 2024 (EDT)

...I think you might've taken the wrong impression of the Jizo statue's depiction of Super Mario Odyssey. Statues of Kṣitigarbha/Jizo are commonly modeled after Buddhist monks, and are not defined by their short height or having red scarves. In fact, Jizo is commonly depicted with a robe, a bald head, looong earlobes, a bindi (that red spot on the forehead common in Buddhism), and the staff he carries has a specific design with a ring attached to it. The Jizo statues in Odyssey (and even Super Mario Bros. 3 on behalf of Statue Mario) checks all of those, but Art...? Art doesn't have most of those features. His short gray body doesn't resemble a robe in the slightest, he doesn't have ears at all, let alone long earlobes, and the only red spots I see on his face are on his cheeks. The staff he carries with him on the ride does kinda resemble Jizo's staff, but it's got a red/orange orb instead of a ring, so it might just be a coincidence... in fact, looking closer at it through sprite sheets, I think that "staff" might actually be some sort of brush. Art's headgear is also something I wouldn't typically associate with Jizo or Buddhism either, being some sort of pointed hat resembling a brush or a dollop of paint with a white brim (or I guess orange in Smooth Moves). I don't know what Art is supposed to be (aside from being partially themed after art tools), but I don't think he was intended to be a Jizo statue at all. Both him and Deco are named after Art Deco in all languages, which has nothing to do with Jizo statues either. Since they're both named after a specific thing like that, I would sooner believe they're both supposed to be (based on) things that compliment each other (in a Dribble & Spitz kind of way), and I don't think much about Deco's appearance would compliment Jizo all that much. rend (talk) (edits) 21:13, August 19, 2024 (EDT)