Tuesday, July 23, 2013

Katrina Shares a Pair of Audrey Kawasaki Designs in One Tattoo!

Earlier this month, I rode my bike in the Tour de Queens. At one point in the ride, all the riders had stopped in the hot sun as we waited for traffic. I looked at the person next to me and noticed she had an amazing tattoo on her right thigh. I introduced myself and she told me her name was Katrina. She told me a little about the tattoo and allowed me to take a picture of it:


I know, I know, the photo seems a little washed out. I shot it in bright sunlight and that was the best I could do. However, Katrina gave me her artist's info and I was able, with permission, to post the tattooist's photo from his online portfolio:

Photo Courtesy of Andy Pho
So, you can see, it's a pretty amazing tattoo.

Katrina later e-mailed me with her explanation of the piece:
"The whole piece on my thigh just basically gives me a representation of who I am and who I can be.
It took me 3 years to finally go with it. The artist who did it is Andy Pho (www.andypho.com) who at the time tattooed at Omni Ink in Sunset Park, Brooklyn. I've always admired geishas for their perseverance and aiming to be better performers. The whole presentation of them is just beautiful and broken at the same time. Their make-up covers their whole face so you can't really tell what they're thinking or how they feel. Just a piece of mystery.
I found the geisha from one of my favorite painters, Audrey Kawasaki. I absolutely love her work. I basically combined two paintings into one. The geisha (Yuuwaka) and the anatomical heart (My Dishonest Heart) are probably my two favorite ones from her. I'm very keen on detail and Andy just did a phenomenal job for someone who had only been tattooing for a year and a half at the time."
Here are the two Kawasaki paintings in question:

"Yuuwaku" 誘惑 allure

oil and graphite on wood 20"x 26"
"Hajimari"@Jonathan Levine Gallery in NY 2009 
© Audrey Kawasaki 2004 - 2013
and

My Dishonest Heart

mixed media on wood 10"x12"
'The Drawing Show' @ Thinkspace 2008
© Audrey Kawasaki 2004 - 2013
Andy Pho, the tattoo artist responsible for this great tattoo, has since left Brooklyn and Omni Ink for his own shop in Las Vegas, called Skin Design Tattoo.

Andy adds, by way of a bio:
"We are currently undergoing a major relocation to a larger studio set to open in late August. Please follow the artists there as well (the artist roster and work will be updated for the grand opening).
I am a Brooklyn native (born in Coney Island, lived in Midwood, Flatbush, Boro Park, Dyker Heights, Bensonhurst, and Gravesend, before relocating to Vegas)."
For the latest on Andy and Skin Design's progress, you can follow him on Facebook here.

Thanks to Katrina for sharing her awesome Audrey Kawasaki two-in-one tattoo, and to Andy Pho, for helping us really appreciate his fine work!

This entry is ©2013 Tattoosday.


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