Update... 11/28/2011
I'm off to Octopus Ink today to go meet with Joss (the owner) and sort out the final details of my slot there. I've booked loads of appointments in, and I'm still scheduling a few more too. I've got some really interesting pieces to do while I'm here, which is nice. It's always fun to go work somewhere new with different people for a while too. A change is as good as a rest, as they say... I've also been doing quite a bit of work on the Victory Tattoos website. There's not much content up there yet, but the basic template for the site is done, and there's a little info. There's also a link to the contact page, so that I can start booking some tattoos in for when we open in January. Beth and I are working out plans for the grand opening, and there's going to be some fun stuff going on. Thanks to all my clients and friends for their continued support. You guys are amazing! Add Comment Print and Ink 10/31/2011
Want a really cool idea for a tattoo shop? Put a purpose built studio inside a custom t-shirt printing shop. That's what some friends of mine have done. An artist I worked with back in Toronto has gone into business with Pop Trap Inc; probably the coolest screen printing outfit I've seen. The studio part of the business is the latest addition to an already fantastic creative space, and brings a fresh concept to the tattoo boutiques and street shops that proliferate in Canada's largest city.  I think it's a great idea, so I'm stoked to say that I have a guest spot there from November 22 - January 6 when we're in town. The owner of Octopus Ink, Joss, is a great artist, and I'm very happy to work with her again. Go check out some of her work on the Facebook page, and get in touch with me if you want to book some ink time while I'm there. Abstract (Guest Blog from Bethany Hardy) 01/07/2011
Mark has offered countless times to teach me how to tattoo. The first problem with this offer is that I don't have the unusual gift of patience that he has for tedious tasks (knitting - another example). The second problem is that I simply lack the desire to tattoo. My head maintains that it is a great opportunity to learn a skill for free, but my heart says...meh. Well, today everything changed. I happened upon these images:   Gasping with excitement upon my discovery I thought, “THIS is the kind of tattoo I would love to get. Wait a second, this is the kind of tattoo I would love to create!” As a painter, you can imagine how Amanda Wachob's work appeals to me. She is brilliant. The textured brush strokes, the splatters of paint...I'm salivating here. What a magnificent idea – to essentially paint a little bit of your body. Now I will just have to convince Mark that we need to plan a pilgrimage to New York City so I can get some work done. Or I could trust Mark to have a go at a different style of tattooing. Or (this being the most likely) having been inspired I will start to experiment with this technique myself. Bethany Something new... 09/17/2010
 Work by Volka, Buena Vista Tattoo Club It seems everywhere I look at the moment, I'm being bombarded by images of work by the artists at Buena Vista Tattoo Club. I've been aware of them for a little while, but recently it seems that their work is everywhere, certainly in the tattoo press. And what fantastic images to be bombarded by. The work of Volko Merschky and Simone Pfaff is refreshingly different. It's not often that you find work that is really new and unique, but these guys seem to be breaking a lot of moulds. They refer to this style of tattoo that they have created in their studio in Wurzburg, Germany, as 'Realistic Trash Polka'. I actually don't think that it's the sort of thing that I'd want as a tattoo for myself - I'm far too rooted in the old school to use a whole arm or something for this style (although I might be persuaded otherwise in the future), but I am blown away by their creativity, and by the way that their work is seeming to redefine what constitutes a tattoo. One of the most famous tattoo artists of the last 100 years (certainly in the Western world) is Sailor Jerry. From the 30s to the 60s, he worked in Hawaii. He is often considered to be the first artist to create a fusion between traditional western designs, and the work that was usually associated with Japan. He is still considered a master, and his revolutionary style would now be classed by many people as classic tattoo imagery. In the last few years, studios like Buena Vista Tattoo Club, and Boucherie Moderne in Brussels, have been bringing something new to the scene. As far as I can see, the primary driving force for this is the use of graphic design skills and elements being incorporated into tattoo design. The result is stunning pieces of living design work, challenging concepts and ideas about what a tattoo is and can be. Of course, all of this is helped along by the fact that Volka, Simone, Jeff, and the likes are producing technically excellent tattoos. So far, this movement seems to be breaking out within Europe. It would be interesting to see, with all of the current hype around it, how quickly it develops in North America. Charge! 05/22/2010
 Good point, Jerry. But what do you think is reasonable to charge for a tattoo? It's been a philosophy of mine (and Beth's) for a long time to make art accessible and affordable. We don't think it's right to charge a huge amount just because you can, so we don't do it. Then again, when I tattoo someone, I put my all into it. I've usually spent hours working on drawings, preparing things and setting up the studio. I will often take hours to tattoo a piece onto somebody. And when I'm done, they will walk away with something that they keep for the rest of their life. I was looking at Scott Campbell's website the other day. No doubt he is a great artist. But is he really worth the $300 an hour that he charges? To be honest, I don't think he is. What frustrates me, is that a lot of people go to him, and pay his huge fees, just because of his name. Many of them are getting tattoos that most artists could accomplish just as well. The other end of the scale, and this is something that I was discussing with Jen the other day, is that you can price yourself too low, and put people off that way. Many people expect to pay more than bargain basement prices, otherwise they suspect that the service or product you are offering is sub-standard. Not only that, but in our experiences, it often leads to people assuming that they can take you for a ride. I don't, by any means, want to price people out of the market, but at the same time, I want people to value the work that I'm doing for them. Any thoughts on this? Good/bad experiences? Your Name Here... 01/22/2010
 Lettering is a HUGE part of tattooing; it always has been. At least 50% of my clients want some lettering in their tattoos, and many choose to have lettering as the sole element in their design. Recently, I've found that I'm wanting to move away from using computer based typefaces so much. They're perfect for smaller pieces, where legibility is the key, but they can be a little limiting, and if you're not careful, you might choose a typeface that ends up as the next Comic Sans or (possibly worse) the next Papyrus. BJ Betts is a legend in the industry. Most custom artists will have one if not all of his Lettering Guides 1-3. So when I was wanting to work on my custom lettering, I had no question as to where I would look. Betts looks at the art of custom tattoo lettering in a whole new way. Here's what he has to say on the matter in the introduction to his second Guide: “I think, looking at a name or a character that you'll be tattooing, you should approach it as an illustration, versus a typefont. “Draw” the name, instead of “writing” it, if that makes sense. Draw the lettering as if you're drawing a heart, panther, eagle, whatever. People say their handwriting absolutely sucks. I say draw that name, don't write it if your writing sucks.” It's a whole different approach, and it makes for great results. I drew the piece above for a friend's scrapbook. I feel much more confident now in my custom lettering, which is invaluable when you work in the way I do. Do you have a piece that you want me to create with custom lettering? Drop me a line! For the birds... 11/16/2009
I've been tattooing a lot of birds lately. And I'm not saying that I've had more female customers than male, either. It just seems that I've had a lot of requests for tattoos of our feathered friends in the last few weeks. When I first got interested in tattooing, one of my major inspirations was the work philosophy of Dave Berwick, of Physical Poetry in Leeds. All of his work is custom, and there is no flash on the walls. He believes that all tattoos should be unique to the wearer. Now that I'm working as an artist, I have the same passion for custom work. The shop that I work in is also custom-only. Which means that just because I've been doing a lot of bird tattoos, doesn't mean that they're all the same. See for yourself:  I did these two birds a couple of weeks ago. She already had some text on her high ribs: "beauty is in the eye of the beholder" She wanted two swallows to go just below the text, one on each side of her ribs. One had to be green, and one red, to represent the struggle between good and evil. I went with an old school feel, but I think that the colours bring it a bit more into the new school. They're also fairly big - nearly six inches tall.  This is a work in progress. The finished piece will stretch across his whole chest, and onto his upper arms too. The theme is life and death/good and evil. When he first came for the consultation, to look at what I'd drawn up for him, he was about to tell me that he changed his mind on having the owl, but he said when he saw the drawing that I'd done, that he decided to get it. The phoenix was much more difficult to work with, because it's not real. Putting it next to a real bird presented some challenges. I dealt with it by making the owl look less real, and by giving a similar shape to the feathers on both birds. When this client comes back for the next session, we're on to the next part of the tattoo - a heart that's been ripped in half then sewn back together.  The client in this picture emailed me to say that she'd been looking for a Christian tattoo artist for a while to do a piece for her. As she wanted a bluebird, I went with the old school tradition, because I think it lends itself really nicely to the colours on this bird. It was also really important to her to have the heart in there, as this tattoo is in memory of her grandmother. I feel like the vines give the whole thing some movement. So there you have it. Five birds, each designed especially for the client. Each tattoo entirely unique to the person that has it. If you want something absolutely unique to you on your body, just let me know! Don't forget that we now offer gift certificates, and that we have some amazing deals on at the moment. Check out the homepage for more details! Tattoo Tales... 07/19/2009
 I found this on the Reuters website. An interview with a tattoo artist from Portland, Oregon. it's a pretty interesting article. Most of what the guy says is fairly obvious, I think, but it's always good to hear insights from people that have been in the business a long time. Ideas for a Sleeve. 07/16/2009
 See this picture of Jesus? That's what my new tattoo looks like. Some of you might have seen it. It's on the inside of my upper left arm. Getting inked. 12/04/2008
 Beth and I went to Montreal at the weekend. We weren't there for long, but we managed to get a bit of shopping in (despite Montreal's habit of closing stores at 5pm on a Saturday), as well as heading to our favourite Tex-Mex restaurant for some delicious food and cocktails before a trip to a shisha (hookah) lounge. | ArchivesJanuary 2012 CategoriesAll |
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