These kids are animals

It's picture day at school. And the kid in the maroon sweater (layered over a lavender collared shirt, by the way) is the cutest little guy ever. Of course, “kid” meaning adolescent goat.

The circa 1970s photo of a boy with apathetically slumping shoulders had his head swapped for that of a young, handsome goat by Los Angeles artist Angela Rossi. Rossi edited the heads of 19 other animals of varying yet adorable species as a set of blank cards called Picture Day Notecards, printed by Chronicle Books ($14.95). The anthropomorphic bunch includes a prissy Persian pussy in a private-school uniform; a droopy-faced, severely slouching hound dog; a scowling, buff otter; and a rascally looking raccoon in a Lacoste polo.

This kitschy collection is but a gateway to the rest of Rossi's work for sale on her website, including elegant, gilded, baroque-style vintage plates with these portraits on them. Her other plated subjects get antique with 19th-century portraits of ladies with antlers; campy with pop-culture icons, like Frankenstein's monster, Patti Smith and Mr. T—though, not on the same plate—and even classical with Renaissance human-body donors, so to speak. If that's not enough, Rossi is now plastering Billy Goat—our main goat-man from above—and a few of his classmates on T-shirts.

The note cards are the most economical way to share these humorous images with others. Anecdotally speaking, recipients immediately love and want to see more of the collection. Or sometimes they just ask for a set of their own as a gift. School picture day victory! www.chroniclebooks.com/titles/picture-day-notecards.html; www.beatupcreations.com.