Amazing New Site! Check Out Fellowship Supply!

Last month I reviewed the amazing book Skin Graf, co-written by Michael "Kaves" McLeer and Billy Burke. Revisit the review here.

The day after my review appeared, I was fortunate enough to attend a talk about the book and graffiti tattoo, I met several of the artists featured in the book, and also had a chance to speak to both authors, including Billy Burke.

We resumed our conversation several days later when Kaves held a book-release party at his shop in Bay Ridge, Brooklyn Made Tattoo.

Burke told me about his latest project, working with Fellowship Supply Company, "Purveyors Of Creative Tools For The Tattoo Artist."

He urged me to check out the website here, and spoke with great excitement about Fellowship's vision, embodied in this statement:

"Fellowship exists to promote craftsmanship while furthering the artistry of the tattoo community. We honor the dedication of artists before us through dedication of our own, shunning shortcuts in favor of sacrifice. For those who find joy in creating, the role of a maker is a life, not a living. In the art of tattooing, we blur lines between timelessness and mortality, between skin and canvas, between outcast and visionary."

Aside from a whole section of tattoo supplies, there is a lot of great content featuring the words, wisdom, and talent of some of the greatest tattooists and machine builders working today, like Freddy Negrete, Mark Mahoney and Timmy Tatts, to name just a few.

An amazing back piece by Timmy Tatts

Work by Mark Mahoney

Detail of a machine part by Dan Dringenberg

And check out this tutorial clip from Negrete on the art of black and grey:

That's just the tip of the iceberg.

Tattoo artists, aficionados, and fans can get lost in the site, which just launched in the last two weeks. I can hardly wait to see what other rare treats visitors to the site will be getting in the future.

I'm looking forward to seeing how Fellowship grows and expands its amazing collection of articles, biographies, and tutorials. Readers should certainly bookmark this site for exploration in the weeks and months to come!

This entry is ©2013 Tattoosday.

If you are seeing this on another website other than Tattoosday, without attribution, please note that it has been copied without the author's permission and is in violation of copyright laws. Please feel free to visit http://tattoosday.blogspot.com and read our original content. Please let me know if you saw this elsewhere so I contact the webmaster of the offending site and advise them of this violation in their Terms of Use Agreement.

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DOODLES.

I have been so busy lately in between tattooing and working on designs for D9 Reserve. That's why when I have a chance to draw, it's either free handing things on skin or doodling on whatever stands in front of me. Here is some characters I drew with a ball point pen on some brown paper bags. I'm going to try to do more of them so I can build up a  collection and one never knows do a little art show.

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Tattoosday in Massachusetts: Ariel and Her F-Holes

On our way back to New York after a brief stint in Boston, we stopped in Northampton to visit our friends, Anne and Liz.

At their house, I met their friend Ariel.

At one point in the conversation, I asked Ariel if she played the violin.

Initially, she looked surprised that I would ask, but I pointed to the tattoo on her inner forearm, which had tipped me off:

Ariel explained that these are, indeed, representative of a violin's sound holes, commonly referred to as the "F holes." She elaborated:

"I play the violin. I love violin music and fiddle music and this is exactly where, if you h0ld the violin ... if the sun were shining through ... the violin,  I feel it would pierce right there, while you were playing ... It's just a good spot that always reminds me of it, but it's also not very visible and ... these are abstractions of it, they're not perfect, I drew them myself. They're not traced from an actual violin."

Ariel had this tattoo done at Lucky's Tattoo & Piercing in Northampton.

Thanks to Ariel for sharing her musical tattoo with us here on Tattoosday!

This entry is ©2013 Tattoosday.

If you are seeing this on another website other than Tattoosday, without attribution, please note that it has been copied without the author's permission and is in violation of copyright laws. Please feel free to visit http://tattoosday.blogspot.com and read our original content. Please let me know if you saw this elsewhere so I contact the webmaster of the offending site and advise them of this violation in their Terms of Use Agreement.

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Star...

One of the samhain shots again, a dream became true...
Thanks again to Christina: h2fotografie.blogspot.com

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Die Niedertracht Gottes (Loki Tattoo)

 This is Loki, the malicious one, depicted here in classic viking age weaving with his mouth sewn shut, perfest solution for people, who talk too much bullshit...

...and off course Fenriz, his son and one of the great beasts, in his mouth he has the hand of Tyr, the god of justice and war.
This is just a part of a whole tigh design, wich will contain at the end Loki and his offspring.
As you can see, it's still work in progress...

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Tattoo Convention Faroe Islands

As you can see, hairy me will be at the Tattoo Convention at the Faroe Islands, look forward to be out there with you, guys:)

Check out the website: http://www.fotattfest.com/

See you...

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Copenhagen Ink Festival

Off course we will participate in the Copenhagen Ink Festival, come by, say hallo and if you have a nice piece from me hop on stage and show it :)

Check out the website: http://www.inkfest.dk/

Vi ses...

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Michelle Shares A Pin-Up Modeled After Her Passion for Pool

Last month I was hanging out with some friends at a bar called Niles across the street from Madison Square Garden.

It was a gathering of old work friends, actually, and my friend Brooke (who last appeared on Tattoosday here) and her husband were going to Eric Clapton's Crossroads Festival concert at MSG.

At some point in the evening, I spotted a woman near the front of the bar, standing with several people, including a gentleman wearing a jacket from the Buddy Guy band.

What jumped out at me, however, was the tattoo on the woman's left calf. As she was leaving the bar, I approached her and was thrilled when she agreed to let me photograph her work:

When I asked her why the woman on her calf was holding a pool cue and an eight ball, she explained that she was a competitive pool player.

It turns out I was talking to Michelle Hughes, a member of the Northwest Women's Pool Association and their 2009 Rookie of the Year.

Michelle Hughes in action, from Flickr

The tattoo was inked by Paula Hathaway at Industry Tattoo in Bellingham, Washington.

Thanks to Michelle for sharing this cool pin-up with us here on Tattoosday!

This entry is ©2013 Tattoosday.

If you are seeing this on another website other than Tattoosday, without attribution, please note that it has been copied without the author's permission and is in violation of copyright laws. Please feel free to visit http://tattoosday.blogspot.com and read our original content. Please let me know if you saw this elsewhere so I contact the webmaster of the offending site and advise them of this violation in their Terms of Use Agreement.

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Japanese TATTOO Horimitsu Style step by step!!!

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Japanese TATTOO Horimitsu Style A customer from Sweden!!!!

Thank you for coming always! see you again soon.

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The Return of Saturday Links

It has been a while since we posted about the tattoo-related items we browsed on the web over the last week, so here's a few to whet your weekend appetite.

One of those not-so-often-discussed benefits for getting tattooed?

It's easier for the authorities to identify your body, like this John Doe whose ink helped the powers-that-be identify him. Full story here.

The Department of the Medical Examiner (Hawaii) released a photo of an eagle or phoenix tattoo found on the body of a man recovered from the ocean off Sand Island Thursday morning. (Courtesy Department of the Medical Examiner)

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On the flip side, if you get a unicorn tattooed on your butt, you might still be regretting it thirty+ years later, as this writer recounts in the New York Times here. Thanks to Marisa at Needles and Sins for pointing that gem out to me. There's no photo, but if you're jonesing for one, it might look like this:

Or perhaps not, but you can see more like that one on Holy Taco's gallery of 30 Awesomely Bad Unicorn Tattoos.

Then again, Buzzfeed always rocks out with their awesome lists, like this one I saw late Friday: "47 Cringeworthy Tattoos Being Regretted As We Speak" here.

~ ~ ~

The big news this week in New York was Rapid Realty's promise to give significant raises to any employee who got their logo tattooed on them. 

via CBS

Read about the deal here (among others).

~ ~ ~

And my favorite link of the week came from those mammoth sources of all thing tattoo, Inked Magazine.

Among other goodies, they feature "The Best Tattoos in Movies Ever" in three parts. One of my favorites:

Gotta love those Blues Brothers!

That should whet your appetites for the weekend!

This entry is ©2013 Tattoosday.

If you are seeing this on another website other than Tattoosday, without attribution, please note that it has been copied without the author's permission and is in violation of copyright laws. Please feel free to visit http://tattoosday.blogspot.com and read our original content. Please let me know if you saw this elsewhere so I contact the webmaster of the offending site and advise them of this violation in their Terms of Use Agreement.

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LATE NIGHT.

Jeff came from New Jersey to start a half sleeve. I was really happy with the ideas he bought to the table as we managed to come up with a really strong, meaningful piece. I enjoyed working on this tattoo BUT it was one hell of a long night! By 4:30am,  we managed to get it finished!

Enjoy!

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Tattoosday in Massachusetts: Katie's Candle Illuminates Her Arm

On our last full day in Massachusetts, we stopped to visit friends in Northampton and ended up at  Woodstar Cafe for some delicious coffee and afternoon snacks.

The cashier, Katie, had tattoos, and shared this one:

She told me that this piece, on her upper right arm, was based on an old illustration from a history book. The idea, she explained, was "something I'd been carrying around for a while and it just felt right to me."

She credited the work to Jeff Ash at Horseshoes & Hand Grenades Tattoo in Chicopee, Massachusetts.

Thanks to Katie for sharing her tattoo with us here on Tattoosday!

This entry is ©2013 Tattoosday.

If you are seeing this on another website other than Tattoosday, without attribution, please note that it has been copied without the author's permission and is in violation of copyright laws. Please feel free to visit http://tattoosday.blogspot.com and read our original content. Please let me know if you saw this elsewhere so I contact the webmaster of the offending site and advise them of this violation in their Terms of Use Agreement.

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Tattoosday in Massachusetts: After a Good Meal, Danny Shares His Costa Rican Heritage

We're back from our Poetry Vacation and we have some tattoos to catch up on. The family and I were up in the Boston area at the end of March, and while staying with cousins in Swampscott, MA, we decided to go out for brunch on Easter Sunday.

We ended up at Mildred's Corner Cafe and Old Soul Gift Shoppe in neighboring Lynn, MA, and I enjoyed this amazingly delicious dish with chorizo and poached eggs:

Not only was the food great but, as an added bonus, our waiter Danny was heavily-tattooed, and he was kind enough to share the work on his left arm:

The emblem in the center of this sleeve is from the Costa Rican flag, which he had tattooed to honor his country of birth. He has lived in the U.S. for about nine years.

He credited the work to Ryan Murray at the Black Veil Studio of Tattoo & Art in Lynn, Massachusetts.

UPDATE: Although Ryan has done work on Danny, I was notified by the shop after this posted, that he was not the artist responsible for this particular piece. I'm waiting to hear back from Danny for the corrected information.

He credited the work to Jeffrey Brito, a free-lance artist that did it out of his house. Although initially credited to Ryan Murray at the Black Veil Studio of Tattoo & Art in Lynn, Massachusetts, we should point out that Murray has done work on Danny, not just this particular piece.

Thanks to Danny for sharing his tattoo with us here on Tattoosday and thanks to the good folks at Mildred's for a delicious meal!

This entry is ©2013 Tattoosday.

If you are seeing this on another website other than Tattoosday, without attribution, please note that it has been copied without the author's permission and is in violation of copyright laws. Please feel free to visit http://tattoosday.blogspot.com and read our original content. Please let me know if you saw this elsewhere so I contact the webmaster of the offending site and advise them of this violation in their Terms of Use Agreement.

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SISTINE CHAPEL.

Horacio was back at the studio for a second session. I worked on the gap he had at the back of his arm. I can't wait to finish the entire sleeve. Here is my interpretation of a section of the Sistine Chapel ceiling from Michael Angelo.

''Genius is eternal patience''  -Michelangelo

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The Tattooed Poets Project, Volume 5, A Postscript

Cheryl Maddalena's Beautiful tattoo from 2009

As I look back at the fifth installment of the April tattooed poets extravaganza, I am astonished by the amazing array of talented poets who have contributed to Tattoosday over the years.

This year's contributors totaled 35, and we had even more than that many who had previously expressed interest and did not submit their work in time.

That said, I have high hopes for the 2014 edition, which is only 11 months away. Also, I am going to attempt to add more tattooed poets throughout the year, contributing in non-poetry months. Just to keep our collective appetites whetted.

The list of people I would like to thank grows each year. I'd start with directing readers to the Tattooed Poets Project here and expressing my appreciation to the 155 poets who have appeared on Tattoosday over the past five years.

I am also deeply indebted to Stacey Harwood and David Lehman at the Best American Poetry blog. Their continued support over the years has been immeasurable and they have been nothing but encouraging.

I still maintain that the wonderful writer, Dorianne Laux, is also someone to whom I am deeply indebted. She referred me to a slew of tattooed poets in the first year of this project, and each year sends me more subjects.

I want to thank all the poets who answered my initial inquiries, especially those without tattoos, who often directed me to poets who they knew to be inked.

And finally, I want to thank all of my readers, in and out of the poetry community, who have continued to support and read Tattoosday, and have encouraged me each year to come up with thirty posts (or more) to help celebrate the wonders of the written word and the beauty of tattoos.

Bill Cohen
5/1/2013

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Reenactors needed !

For what?

Great midsummer ritual / fotoshoot.


Where?

Near Copenhagen.


When?

 21. Juni 12:00 (Midsummer)


What is happening?

Like so many sources show (Adam from Bremen, Thietmar of Merseburg, Picture stones, tapestrys) the vikings had some kind of sacrifical ritual, that included suspending people in trees.
That s what we want to do. In cooperation with bodyextremes.com and h2fotografie.blogspot.com nine volunteers will get pierced and hanged during a midsummer ritual.

What do we need you for?

We need you as the crowd of warriors and people participating, watching and cheering up the"victims" and as perfect background for an event, that didn't take place around 1000 years!
Off course in the dress of the vikings.

What do you gain from it?

There will be a tombola for all participants, where you can win some tattoo time with Kai and other attractive things.
There will be free mead and a nice gathering afterwards.
Musicians welcome!
There will be unfortunately no fonds for accomodation etc.


So, if you and your group want to come, just drop me a mail: tattookai@live.dk to receive all further informations.
DO NOT TRY TO MAKE CONTACT VIA FACEBOOK!!!

Hope to see a lot of you for a great time:)

Kai

Oseberg tapestry, showing people hanging in trees

Stora Hammar picture stone, showing suspended and sacrificed people, warrior crowd

http://tattoodk.blogspot.dk/2012/12/ohne-schmerzen-keine-freude.html

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