Model is Rayn
When samurai women committed suicide ("jigai") they tied their thighs so that their clothing would not be disarranged by their collapse. Jigai was usually performed with a small, sharp, knife ("kaiken") jammed into the carotid artery where it's accessible at the edge of the throat.
This piece is a companion-piece to Dark Farewell
The plate is boxed in a 2nd generation box: solid oak and plywood with rosewood corner-splines, died black. The background is applique'd with an antique piece of kimono fabric printed with falling plum-blossoms and the plate is held at the corners with red paper rope. The 2nd generation plate-box features a separate glass lid that can be removed so the plate can be viewed without a glass barrier between the viewer and the art-work.
Atristically, this is probably the best plate I've ever produced. So far.
Listed on Ebay in January 2012