Ayane Matsunaga's Persona: Ibaraki Doji

Ibaraki Doji is an oni from Japanese folklore, the focal point of several similar stories.  Poorly defined, Ibaraki Doji is sometimes considered male, sometimes considered female.  The most common thread in Ibaraki Doji’s tale is that it has its arm lopped off by a hero and it attempts to retrieve it.  Often, Ibaraki Doji takes the form of a small girl in the process.

So there are some clear connections to the myth in this design—primarily the arm motif.  It wields its “arm” (actually armor) like a crude club.  This both came out to be very distinct looking but it also helped call back to my Shadow Ayane design, which was an armless oni.  Also, Ibaraki Doji was said to be born with teeth, so I gave it some scary looking teeth.

My main focal point in this design was to make something tough and imposing, but kind of in a ridiculous kid’s idea of it.  So its equal parts scary and goofy.  The horns jutting out of its eye sockets are crazy, and it’s huge and wide.  But the skulls on the breasts are just silly and the blonde locks of hair give it kind of a childish look, like it’s a kid dressed in scary armor.  It’s Ayane’s attempt at asserting herself, making her place known in the world that she has such a hard time doing.