The Floating World Guitar
Based on the Japanese art form ukiyo-e (floating world) or more specifically nishiki-e (brocade print) from the 16th century. All of the original woodblock prints were created by the great master, Suzuki Harunobu who was best known for his use of bijin (beautiful women) in his prints.
This guitar will be off the charts and I really can't imagine putting a price on it. The idea for this guitar came from an inlay I cut a while back of Er Lang Shen, a mythical Chinese warrior (above). The detail I plan on using for this guitar will be along the same lines but of course cover a much larger area, including the back of the guitar. To get an idea of where this thing is headed cost-wise imaging that each figure will be about as detailed as Er Lang Shen and he took about 25 hours all by himself... I wouldn't be surprised if this guitar takes longer than the Asian Dragon and Merlin combined. Right now I'm planning on the usual fretboard, pickguard and headstock as well as a rosette and even a scene on the back of the guitar.
Guitar specs:
Top (possibly stained), back
and sides - Black Ebony (I want to create the black lacquered look)
45 style trim - crushed white pearl
Binding - ebony
Price: $100,000.00