Jorōgumo is a spider yōkai that resembles the golden orb weaver spiders (Nephila) or the Joro spiders (Trichonephila clavata) found in caves, forests, or houses. Jorōgumo eats regular spider prey like bugs but eventually feasts on young men through deception of appearing like a beautiful woman.
"Written with modern kanji, their name means 'entangling bride.' However, these characters were added much later to cover up the original meaning of jorōgumo—'whore spider.'"
I wanted to allude to the name translations with the design of this piece. For the 'bride' concept, the outfit resembles a hikifurisode wedding kimono. She also carries a red umbrella which is traditionally seen in weddings to ward off evil spirits.
I was hesitant to make references to the "whore spider" as it is a derogatory term (and I don't like using the word myself). However, I think that alluding to the oiran profession, or high-class prostitutes, is fitting as it was popular during the Edo period--the same period when yōkai began its presence. Although the clothes picked is not traditional oiran attire, I felt that the traditional hairstyle would aesthetically read spider-like with the hairpins.
18+ hours of drawing