Tattoosday (A Tattoo Blog): May 2016

Tuesday, May 31, 2016

Two from Edie on the R Train

Earlier this month, I met Edie on the platform at 59th Street in Brooklyn.

I snapped pictures of some of her work on the R train:

This floral/peacock feather combo brightened up her arm with a super splash of color. She credited the work to Johnny Thief at Seppuku Tattoo (@SeppukuTattoo) in Bloomingdale, New Jersey.

She also has this tattoo on her inner bicep, of a monster hand holding a heart:

Thanks to Edie for sharing her tattoos with us here on 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.

Monday, May 30, 2016

Repost for Memorial Day - Joe's Back Honors His Grandfathers

Reposting from 2014..... in honor of all the brave men and women who have died in service to our country.

On this Memorial Day, we're appreciating this back piece on Joe, who I met at the NYC Tattoo Convention back in March.

When he shared this with me back at Roseland, I knew I'd be saving it for Memorial Day, especially after Joe explained, "One of my grandparents was in the Air Force, the other one was in the Navy, so I did the World War II scene with airplanes ... and navy boats - I have battleship and I have an aircraft carrier."

This impressive piece took a little over forty hours and was inked by Kenny Restrepo at Leathernecks Tattoo in Brooklyn.

Thanks to Joe for sharing his back piece with us here on Tattoosday, and for helping us honor and thank all the men and women who have sacrificed their lives in service to our country!

Friday, May 27, 2016

Two Circles, Symbolizing Anything

I met Daniel last summer on Governor's Island at the 2015 NYC Poetry Festival.

He shared these tattoos:

So what do these mean?

What do you want them to mean.

My recording of Daniel's interview was lost to technological issues, so I will do my best to recall what we discussed.

Their meaning is fluid.

You can interpret these as complimentary new moon/full moon tattoos, but that really wasn't the intent. They were tattooed for the sake of being tattooed, and their meaning has as much to do with the discussion of meaning.

Daniel, thank you for sharing these with us here on Tattoosday!

Thursday, May 26, 2016

NERDS!

I met Emily last August in front of Federal Hall.

She has a lot of tattoos, but shared this one with us:

This tattoo on Emily's upper arm is tiny, maybe a little larger than a quarter, but it packs a punch!

This is "Ogre," portrayed by actor Donald Gibb, from the film series Revenge of the Nerds.

Emily explained that this was something she used to say back and forth to her friend Vinny Romanelli (@vinnyromanelli), the talented artist from Red Rocket Tattoo in NYC, that did this mini-portrait on her arm. Vinny is no stranger to Tattoosday, as his work has appeared previously here and here.

Thanks to Emily for sharing this fun tattoo with us here on Tattoosday!

Tuesday, May 24, 2016

Adam Shares a Trio of Tattoos

I met Adam on the steps of Federal Hall last week and he shared several tattoos, starting with this gypsy on his upper right arm:

He got this because his grandmother used to call him "My little gypsy" because, as he told me, "I would always be travelling around and staying out and [be] constantly on the move." This was done by Matty Monaghan (@monzuki) at Skin Deep Tattoo (@SkinDeepTattooNY) on Long Island.

Monaghan also inked the "Mom" tattoo below it, which Adam explained "Me and my mom live so many miles apart and I have it to remind me of her every day."

Adam has a lot of tattoos, but we both really liked the juxtaposition of these two, when he rested his right arm over his knee:

The skull in the rose on the knee was done by Richard Smith (@RichardSmithTattoo) at Three Kings Tattoo (@ThreeKingsEastVillage) in Manhattan. The woman with owl headdress was done at a tattoo convention on Long Island several years back. The artist was Jason Voss (@VossTattoo) who is currently working out of Absolute BodyArt (@AbsoluteBodyArt) in Duluth, Minnesota.

Thanks to Adam for sharing his tattoos with us here on Tattoosday!

Monday, May 23, 2016

Andrew's Phenomenal Front and Back Pieces

I met Andrew last week on Wall Street. His arms were covered in cool tattoos, but he revealed some insane art on his chest for me. I always wonder what everyone walking around us must be thinking when this happens. Likely, it is "Wow!"

I don't know who did the naked lady in the hammock on the lower abdomen with the banner "Rise & Shine," but the majority of the chest, that insane dragon, was inked by Aaron Coleman (@Clam13) at Immaculate Tattoo (@ImmacultaeTattoo) in Mesa, Arizona.

Andrew told me, "I just wanted a dragon," so he gave the artist free reign to lay it down. Even more remarkable was that he got this in one sitting in six and a half hours ("hurt like a motherfucker").

And if that tattoo isn't awesome enough, check out his back piece:

This amazing Grim Reaper was done by Josh Palmer (@JoshuaPalmer) at The Aloha Monkey Tattoo (@TheAlohaMonkey) in Burnsville, Minnesota. This piece took"four or five sittings ... about fifteen hours"

Andrew estimates he has about 70-75% of his body covered.

He chooses artists that he likes and gives them free reign, obviously with spectacular results. "I think [when] you give the artist a lot more creativity .... toward the tattoo then I think it makes the acquisition of that tattoo that much more exciting when they get to do what they want."

On top of being a collector of great tattoo art, Andrew is also a great photographer. Check out his work on his website here.

Thanks to Andrew for sharing his amazing work with us here on Tattoosday!

Sunday, May 22, 2016

Mackenzie's Elephant

Late Friday I met Mackenzie on Wall Street.

She shared this really cool elephant tattoo on her forearm:

Mackenzie told me she loves elephants, and her mom does too. Mom has an elephant tattoo, as well.

Our encounter was brief, she told me the artist was Eric Panas who tattoos in Wisconsin. I was unable to find a link for him on the web, so if Mackenzie sees this, I hope she can correct me so I can properly attribute the artist.

Either way, it's a cool tattoo, and I thank Mackenzie for sharing it with us here on Tattoosday!

Saturday, May 21, 2016

Natasha's Geisha

Last July, I met Natasha, who shared the work on both upper arms, including this stunning geisha:

The detail in this is amazing, including the back side of the arm:

Her other arm sports a lotus blossom and a koi:

Unfortunately, I lost the name of the artist responsible for this beautiful black and gray work.

Thanks to Natasha for sharing this amazing work with us here in Tattoosday!

Friday, May 20, 2016

The Tattoos That Time Forgot

This post is dedicated to the folks who shared, told me about their tattoos, but the recordings were lost before I could transcribe them. Perhaps they'll come looking for their posts and fill in the blanks some day in the future.

First up is this compass rose from Eli, who I met in August 2015 in Owl's Head Park in Brooklyn:

Eli's friend Noah shared this pillar:

A couple weeks later, in Times Square, I met Doug, who shared this trio of tattoos:

Doug has traveled the world and has gotten inked in numerous cities. I remember the six red lines were done in Thailand on November 11, 2011, or 11/11/11. No more info on the crown or the chili pepper.

The same day I met Doug, I also met Barry and Anthony, two guys visiting from Ireland. They shared these skin-rip bio-mech tattoos which were healing. They had received the work from Mark at Groove Tattoo in Brooklyn:

That's Anthony's, and this is Barry's:

Barry also shared this phoenix, which was tattooed elsewhere:

So, there, with one fell swoop, I've cleaned out some of my lingering images from 2015.

Thanks to Eli, Noah, Doug, Barry and Anthony for sharing their work. Apologies, dudes, for the recordings being lost to the ether!

Wednesday, May 18, 2016

Birdwatching on Governor's Island

Last summer at the NYC Poetry Festival, I met Rachel, whose thigh tattoo filled me with happiness:

If you recognize the image, then we can be friends. It's inspired by the cover of Tom Robbins' third novel Still Life With Woodpecker.

It's always fun to find a Tom Robbins fan!

Rachel also had this bird on her inner arm:

She told me that this image, of an Eastern Bluebird, is inspired by a Cuban postage stamp. It acknowledges her Cuban heritage.

Alas, the artists responsible for these beauties were not recorded for posterity's sake and attempts to reach Rachel for follow-up questioning have been fruitless.

Thanks to Rachel for sharing these cool tattoos with us here on Tattoosday!

Tuesday, May 17, 2016

The Thing That Would Not Be

I have a handful of tattoos to share that are "lost." The photos are not lost, but the backstories are. This is one, spotted last August near Wall Street.

I know the host is Damien, and he hails from somewhere in Europe (France, if I had to guess).

This, I recall, is The Thing. From the 1982 John Carpenter film.

Thanks to Damien for sharing his tattoo with us on Tattoosday!

Monday, May 16, 2016

"The Peacock Is Me"

Yesterday I was participating in the 2016 AIDS Walk in Central Park when I looked to my right and saw this amazing tattoo:

Well, of course, I had to go over and introduce myself and ask about this.

The tattoo belongs to Chris and he had this done by Lynn at Dutchman Tattoo in Bohemia, New York, out on Long Island.

Chris told me, "I love peacocks ... we both drew a peacock and used the best of them to come up with the rest of it ... the peacock IS me."

Thanks to Chris for sharing his awesome peacock with us here on Tattoosday!

Saturday, May 14, 2016

Yeny's Poignant Memorial

I was leaving my office on Broad Street earlier this week when I spotted a woman with a lot of work on her arm, waiting outside.

I stopped and introduced myself and she agreed to share some of her work.

Yeny is actually in the process of getting a whole sleeve done, so she shared just one section:

Yeny told me her artist is Roberto Martinez (TheBeardedGentNYC on Instagram) and he is doing a cool Gemini tattoo on her forearm, but this rose and clock are a section of the sleeve that is a memorial to a baby she lost.

At the time, she wanted a black rose, but Martinez convinced her to add color, so that it represented a little bit of life. The clock marks the time when she lost the baby.

Thanks to Yeny for sharing her poignant and beautiful tattoo!

Friday, May 13, 2016

Ruby's Dagger Heart (Tattoosday at Ghost Ship Tattoo in Virginia)

A long overdue post from last August, when travels took me to Virginia Beach and, well, I just had to check out a few tattoo shops. First on the list was Ghost Ship Tattoo. It was a quiet weekday early afternoon, so there was not a lot going on, but I did snap a photo of this tattoo on Ruby, who was working the front desk when I visited:

This dagger, piercing an anatomical heart, was inked by Ghost Ship owner and tattoo artist Cliff Evans.

I also left with this totally awesome shirt:

The shop is big and spacious and the portfolios of the artists all looked top notch. I clearly piked the right shop to drop in on!

If you're ever down in Virginia Beach, do check out the shop.

Visit their website here.

Thanks to Ruby for sharing her cool tattoo with us here on Tattoosday! Thanks Ghost Ship!

Thursday, May 12, 2016

Aaron's Inner Arm Awesomeness

The following tattoo from Aaron was spotted last September outside of Federal Hall in lower Manhattan:

I wish I could tell you more about this, like the artist and shop, but this post's recording was lost and I had no way to follow-up with Aaron about his work.

Thanks to Aaron for sharing this cool tattoo with us here on Tattoosday!

Wednesday, May 11, 2016

Sam's "Chubster Owl"

Last summer at the New York City Poetry Festival on Governor's Island, I met Sam and, well, I just had to find out what this tattoo was all about:

Sam explained how this magnificent creature came into existence:

"The tattoo was done by Craig Moore at Leviticus Tattoo in Minneapolis. It was a going away gift done a few days before moving with my girlfriend to Indiana to get her MFA.

I initially gave him free range to create whatever he wanted. The owl originally had a skull belly, but I was under strict orders not to come home with any more 'creepy' tattoos. After some quick redesign, we put it to a vote among the staff and customers at the shop, and the chubster owl won in a landslide.

His name is Goose. He is my spirit animal."

Thanks to Sam for sharing Goose with us here on Tattoosday!

Tuesday, May 10, 2016

Two from Jacqui by Betty Rose

I ran into Jacqui a couple of weeks ago in lower Manhattan, across the street from Bowling Green. It was this tattoo that caught my eye:

She credited this awesome tattoo to Betty Rose, who works out of Eight of Swords in Brooklyn.

Jacqui told me, "I asked for a fox headdress and she worked with me to pick out the face and everything ... [she] did a couple different drawings for me and this is what she came up with." Needless to say, Jacqui was very happy with the end result.

She also told me, "I knew that [Betty Rose] did really good cat tattoos, cattoos," which resulted in her getting this piece, as well:

Thanks so much to Jacqui for sharing her beautiful tattoos with us here on Tattoosday!

Monday, May 9, 2016

The Return of Musician Mondays - Marcie Bullock's Rockin' Tattoos

Last September, I was outside of the Belasco Theater on West 44th Street, prior to a show of Hedwig and the Angry Inch, when I spotted a woman nearby with some cool tattoos.

I went up and introduced myself and she agreed to share some of her work.

Her name was Marcie and she told me she was a singer, visiting New York from Tennessee. This certainly explained her music-related tattoos. She said she had about 20 tattoos in all, and shared the following:

There's a lot going on in this piece, including Bonnie Raitt's guitar at the bottom of the tattoo and Janis Joplin's glasses. The snapping fingers are also a nod to Stax Records.

Above, we can also see the label from Sun Records in Memphis and the Aerosmith logo.

And on the inner section of the tattoo, there's the logo from the Beatles' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, as well as Elvis Presley's TCB "Taking Care of Business" logo.

She also had this pinup on her left arm:

She explained, "I’m a singer and I really just like the classic solo in the spotlight Barbie so I had him do her a little curvier with the longer hair, like me.”

The "him" she is referring to is the artists responsible for all the work posted here, Matt Hays at New Hope Tattoo Gallery in Huntington, West Virginia.

You can check out Marcie and her music at ReverbNation here.

Thanks to Marcie for sharing her cool tattoos with us here on Tattoosday!

Sunday, May 8, 2016

Tattoosday in Baltimore - Steven's Tributes to His Mom (and Dad)

Last weekend I was in Baltimore and ran with the family into a Planet Aid thrift shop near my daughter's college. I met a guy named Steven who had two tributes to his parents on his arms.

Seeing as it's Mother's Day today, let's start with the tattoo for his mom:

That's for his mom, Rosemary, with a stethoscope wrapped around a red rose.

And, rather than wait until next month for Father's Day, let's see his tribute to his dad, as well:

Steven had both tattoos incorporate elements of his parents' hobbies and vocations, and was quick to point out that these are not memorial tattoos, as both his folks are alive and well.

He credited the work to Infinite Art Studio in Toledo, Ohio.

Thanks to Steven for sharing his tattoos with us here on Tattoosday and Happy Mothers Day to all!

Saturday, May 7, 2016

Tonya's Feather

Our previous post featured Aisha, a Canadian tourist visiting New York City last summer.

When I met her across from Federal Hall, she was with her friend, Tonya, who also shared a tattoo:

This feather tattoo, Tonya told me, is "symbolic of coming into" who she is.

It was inked by Mike at Lady Luck Tattoo in Vancouver, British Columbia.

Thanks to Tonya for sharing the feather tattoo with us here on Tattoosday!

Friday, May 6, 2016

Aisha's Dragon

Last September, I met a couple of Canadian tourists across from Federal Hall in lower Manhattan.

One of them, named Aisha (pronounced "Asia") shared this cool dragon:

Aisha said she got this because the dragon is her brother's Chinese Zodiac sign.

She credited Dan from Adrenaline Vancity in Vancouver, British Columbia with this work.

Thanks to Aisha for sharing this cool dragon tattoo with us here on Tattoosday!

Thursday, May 5, 2016

David's Munster of a Portrait

I met David last month on the steps of Federal Hall in lower Manhattan. I have a name for people who have visible tattoos and are willing to share, but choose to reveal covered work that is even more spectacular. I call it "pulling a Foster," named after the artist Craig Foster, whose work I first encountered in 2008 on a woman's ribs (recounted here).

This time around, David wanted to also share a rib piece:

David explained that he has a lot of pop culture reference tattoos and this one, of Herman Munster from the TV show The Munsters, "My dad was obsessed with that show (The Munsters) when I was growing up," he told me, "so I watched it a lot."

He credited this work to artist Dave Allen (@DaveAllenTattoos) from Preying Mantis Tattoo in Lakewood, Colorado.

Check out David's photography on his website here or on Instagram (@DavidWilliamsPhoto).

This entry is ©2016 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.

Wednesday, May 4, 2016

Repost: May the 4th Be With You

This post appeared, in part, in July 2011, in a post entitled "Fernando's Trio of Whimsical Ink". It is abridged below, in honor of "Star Wars Day."

~ ~ ~

I met Fernando a while back outside of Penn Station and he had a lot of work to share. He estimated that he had around thirty tattoos on his canvas, but we picked three to spotlight here on Tattoosday.

As a Star Wars fan, he couldn't resist this portrait of R2-D2:

The banner "YOU'RE MY ONLY HOPE" refers to the scene in the first movie, when Princess Leia sends a holographic distress message to Obi-Wan Kenobi via R2-D2 that ends, "Help me Obi-Wan Kenobi, you're my only hope."

Both the tattoo of R2-D2 and this one, were done by Evan at Revolver Tattoo in New Burnswick, New Jersey:

That is Megatron, the leader of the Decepticons in the Transformers franchise.

~ ~ ~

Thanks to Fernando for sharing his tattoos with us here on Tattoosday!

If you are reading this on another web site 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.

Tuesday, May 3, 2016

Diana's Homage to The Breakfast Club

Last month I met a woman named Diana outside of a office building on Broadway in lower Manhattan. She had some lovely black and grey tattoos on her arm, all done by her boyfriend, Javier Rodriguez, at Euphoria Ink in Roselle, New Jersey.

Check out this portrait from The Breakfast Club:

That's Brian Johnson, as portrayed by Anthony Michael Hall. Diana said that he was her favorite character in the film and that she totally related to him.

The owl above him is a separate piece representing wisdom.

She also shared this lovely tattoo of Marilyn Monroe:

You can see more work by Javier on his Instagram @JavierTattoos.

Thanks to Diana for sharing her cool tattoos with us here on Tattoosday!