This is another portrait from my 人美真 - True Beauties -Shin Bijin - New Years Day series, inspired by the woodblock prints of the same name from the Meiji Period… During this special New Year period, my geisha friends are all dressed up in their most formal way, wearing a luxurious black kimono called kuromontsuki, a golden obi, red under-kimono, and having a special hairstyle especially for this occasion and the formal Sanbon-Ashi makeup (three lines on the back of their neck). During this festive period, they also wear signature hair ornaments made of turtle shells and a real rice stalk, signifying a long life of abundance. This year, black is deemed a lucky color based on fengshui calculations because it represents the element of wealth/ prosperity which is sorely lacking in 2024's charts. This one is called a visit to the Tenmangū (天満宮).