Halloweenin

Halloween is just around the corner and for some, it is the holiday of the year.  Sure, kids love Halloween – that’s a given, but there are plenty of adults who seem to love Halloween even more than the little trick or treaters do.  I guess it’s fun to dress up like a total fool and get absolutely wasted at your local pub/club, but it can also just be fun to take in the spirit of the holiday and enjoy the spookiness of it all.

So, if you happen to be one of those aforementioned folks who can’t get enough of the Halloween ghoulish times AND if you happen to live in or near Scottsdale, Arizona, then you are in luck.  Scottsdale tattoo shop EZ Tattoo and Body Piercing (which just happens to be Scottsdale’s oldest tattoo shop, i.e.: a perfect place for ghosts and other such spooky things) is offering spooky Halloween themed tattoos from the 17th of October until Halloween for just $31 each.  But the deal isn’t just limited to tattoos, either: the folks at EZ are also offering the same $31 deal on body piercings (excluding genital and surface).  The piercings will include standard jewelry and aftercare.

The tattoos are only quarter-sized, but you can’t really expect a full sleeve for $31, now can you?  If you are interested in taking advantage of EZ’s offer, then you can contact the staff at 480.941.8720 or click on the above link to be taken to their website.

Guard Yer Goods

Though I’ve read time and time again that tattooists have not been affected by the current economic downturn, I still have a hard time believing it.  Even if it were 100% true, the fact of the matter remains that economies around the world are turning to crap and people everywhere are starting to really feel the sting of it all in some way or another.  So maybe tattooists themselves aren’t feeling too much of an effect of the crummy economic times, but it seems like someone in Houston, Texas either can’t afford to buy their own equipment or has just realised that there is easy money in pawning off stolen tattoo gear.  Whatever the truth is, it ain’t good either way.

In July, Cynthia Courtney’s small shop on the East Freeway was ransacked. Thieves ran off with $18,000 worth of tattoo equipment.

Just last weekend, two tattoo shops were targeted. Rene Garcia, owner of Big City Tattoos in Southeast Houston, reported the theft of $3,000 worth of machines and supplies. Another shop on Westheimer also reported a burglary. The two separate surveillance cameras show a car of similar style leaving the scene of both crimes.

All I can say is that I hope the tattooists who were ripped off have insurance.  That is so essential to all tattooists who run their own studios that I can’t emphasise it any more than I already have again and again on this blog.  INSURANCE!  And, if these artists don’t have insurance, then I really feel for them.  I guess all that can come out of this is a stern warning to all other tattooists in the Houston area to batten down the hatches and guard your gear.  If you don’t have insurance and you have a tattoo studio in the Houston area, do whatever you can to make sure your stuff stays safe.  Good luck!

Cannibal Tattoo

Tribal tattoos have been around for thousands of years and they range from very different styles and meanings depending on where you go and which tribes you encounter or study.  I myself have spent a decent amount of time looking into the different meanings of different traditional types of tattoos, but it was only today that I actually encountered a tattoo that signifies that its bearer is a cannibal.  Yes, you read that correctly – a tattoo that signifies that its bearer is indeed the type of person who eats human flesh, aka a cannibal.

How do I know this?  Well, unfortunately, there has been a cannibal attack on the French Polynesia island of Nuku Hiva and it has been revealed that the man suspected of the attack has a tattoo of the Kaioi tribe below his left shoulder.  31-year-old Henri Haiti had acted as a guide for 40-year-old German traveller Stefan Rami, taking him into the jungle to hunt for goats.  Haiti is a guide, registered with the local authorities.  But Rami never returned from the goat hunt and his charred remains were later found at a campfire site by authorities.

‘Fears that outdoor fanatic Mr Ramin had been cooked and devoured erupted after his charred remains were found on a campfire on Nuku Hiva following a goat hunt.
Although locals described their shock at the island being linked to cannibalism, a picture of Haiti revealed that he sports a tattoo of a Kaioi warrior on his left shoulder.’

This story is just plain crazy and at present time, Haiti remains on the run.  Locals claim that there would not be any cannibals on their island and that such a thing has long since gone out of fashion.  Yet it’s difficult to deny that cannibalism is indeed a possibility given Haiti’s tattoo, signifying his connection to the Kaioi people.  I guess it’s true that some tattoos are more dangerous than others.  I would recommend not getting too close to anyone who has a tattoo like Haiti’s and my sincere condolences go out to the family of Stefan Rami.

Coppoletta Contest

What’s up folks,

Any Londoners out there, reading this? How about anyone in the UK who has the potential to get to London in a relatively timely manner? Well if you’re out there and you’re reading this, then I suggest you take advantage of a great opportunity that has been set up by the kind people at Time Out London, and of course, by tattoo crackerjack Mo Coppoletta.

Here’s the gist: as part of the London based art show The Other Art Fair (April 25-28), Coppoletta will be setting up shop and tattooing those who have made it on to his rather lengthy waiting list. You, my fine as-of-yet-untattooed-by-Mo-Coppoletta friend, are now being presented with the very rare opportunity to not just be tattooed by Mr Coppoletta, but to actually have your pick of one of four original Coppoletta tattoos designed specifically for The Other Art Show. Does that sound good? I think it does. I think it sounds pretty damn good, in fact. A free tattoo from one of the world’s best tattoo artists? For free? Not many things better than that.

So how do I do this, you ask? It’s very simple. Follow this link and answer the most basic of basic questions (hint: the answer is Damien Hirst) and you are officially entered in the draw. But do it now because the contest ends at midnight on April 15th. After that, you’ll have to get on the waiting list like the rest of us poor chumps. In the meantime, here’s a bit of Coppoletta stuff to whet your tattoo appetites.

Dan Santoro

Anyone up for a little tattoo documentary courtesy of the Vice crew?  Of course!  These guys make the best tattoo mini-documentaries out there.  This time the focus is on Dan Santoro, a wonderful, multi-talented tattooist who can be found at Smith Street Tattoo in Brooklyn, New York.  Dan’s work is truly original and his thoughts on tattoo as well as the tattoo process are invaluable.  So sit back – if you’re at work make it look like you’re working – and have a sneaky little viewing of this excellent three part doc on a wonderful artist.

Masters of the (tattoo) Universe

Thought I’d take the time to send a few works of amazing tattoo art your way.  If you happen to just love quality tattoo, these works are undoubtedly courtesy of some of the best names tattooing today.  If you tattoo, take a good look – the bar doesn’t get much higher than this.  Very inspiring, very talented, very unique works of art.  I’d like to send a big Thank You out to all these artists for the hard work and dedication that they have to this artistic medium.  This is the stuff that keeps me loving tattoo…

 Ben Hamill 

 Bert Krak 

 Den Yakovlev  1

 Den Yakovlev 2

 Jef Palumbo 

 Jo Pink 

 Johan Finne  1

 Johan Finne 2

 Nazareno Tubaro 

 Nick Baxter  1

 Nick Baxter  2

 Nigel Kurt 

The Old School

Don’t forget about the old school.  Respect your elders.  I’m sure that’s something that’s been told to many a tattoo artist throughout the years.  How many young, up and coming tattooists do exactly this, well I can’t say.  I do know that it is wholly beneficial for anyone trying to improve their abilities to listen and respect those who came before them.  After all, if it wasn’t for the pioneers, the trailblazers, the people who swallowed their own fair share of shit in the process of trying to do something worthwhile, there wouldn’t be a next generation of tattooists.

With that in mind, I invite you to check out this documentary that deals with some of the greats of the tattoo world and the vanishing history of tattoo.