“Beryl Cook, (10 September 1926 – 28 May 2008) was an English artist best known for her original and instantly recognisable paintings of people enjoying themselves in pubs,girls shopping or out on a hen night. Drag shows or a family picnicing by the seaside or abroad – tangoing in Buenos Aires or gambling in Las Vegas. She had no formal training and did not take up painting until middle age”. – Wikipedia. Photo: “Ladies Night”, 1991. Artwork by Beryl Cook.

Ornamental chicken breeding clubs have emerged in Indonesia, Thailand, North America and even European countries such as the UK and France. Malaysia is however the epicenter of this cultural phenomenon. These chickens are prized for their build, size, behavior and showmanship by their owners and competitions or beauty contests as they are often described are held almost every week in at least one village in Malaysia. Judges sit around a square table inspecting each chicken for a few minutes trying to determine a champion specimen in its own weight class based on its stance, temperament and physical assets like wings, tails and comb. The walk or strut by an ornamental chicken in a beauty contest, much like a runway model, constitutes a large part of the scoring system. (Photo by Ernest Goh/2013 Sony World Photography Awards)

“Fly cap for a vine snake”. A fly lands on the head of a vine snake in the Choco of Colombia. (Photo and caption by Robin Moore/National Geographic Traveler Photo Contest)

ATTENTION! All pictures are presented in high resolution. To see Hi-Res images – just TWICE click on any picture. In other words, click small picture – opens the BIG picture. Click BIG picture – opens VERY BIG picture.

Performers of circus company Circa perform during a photocall for the Edinburgh Festival Fringe on Calton Hill on August 1, 2017 in Edinburgh, United Kingdom. (Photo by Murdo MacLeod/The Guardian)

A sunflower “smiles” in a field in Tokyo on August 7, 2014. Some 20,000 sunflowers were enjoyed by visitors to the area this week. (Photo by Yoshikazu Tsuno/AFP Photo)

A Tyrannosaurus Rex dinosaur costume runs on the field as young boys play an exhibition soccer match during halftime of the MLS soccer game between the Los Angeles Galaxy and Seattle Sounders FC in Carson, California May 26, 2013. The dinosaur was on the field to promote the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County. (Photo by Danny Moloshok/Reuters)

Indian Air Force soldiers toss their rifles as they perform during the full-dress rehearsal for Indian Air Force Day at the Hindon air force station on the outskirts of New Delhi October 6, 2015. (Photo by Anindito Mukherjee/Reuters)

Children play on a donkey cart belonging to an elderly Afghan refugee sleeping on a roadside on the outskirts of Islamabad, Pakistan, Wednesday, February 18, 2015. (Photo by Muhammed Muheisen/AP Photo)