Tattoosday (A Tattoo Blog): Black and Gray

Showing posts with label Black and Gray. Show all posts

Saturday, March 6, 2021

Hugo's Back (from the Archives)

Working through some old posts, I stumbled across a few from 2018's United Ink Summer Vibe show out on Long Island.

Check out this work on Hugo, featuring a Mayan theme, crafted by Roberto Castillo (@roberto_castillo1) from Sacred Tattoo (@sacredtattoonyc) in Manhattan:

Thanks to Hugo for sharing his cool back piece with us here on Tattooday!

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.

Thursday, May 9, 2019

Nicole's Stunning Tattoos

Last summer, while strolling in Battery Park during a lunch break, I met Nicole, from São Paulo, Brazil. She was kind enough to let me take photos of the beautiful tattoo work she has running from her arm up to her neck:

The black and gray floral work seems to be growing out of a face:

I didn't get much detail from her, but did find out her artist is Lucas Andrade (@lucasandradetattoo) in São Paulo.

Muito obrigado to Nicole for sharing her lovely tattoos with us here on Tattoosday!

Friday, March 8, 2019

Avii's Tattoo, Driving Out Judgments

Last July, I met Avii (@john_wayne_racy) on the Broad Street subway platform in lower Manhattan. She shared this cool tattoo on her arm:

Avii credited tattoo artist Seth (@paralysis.or.death) from Kartel Studio in Crown Heights, Brooklyn.
She said he had posted this flash and told me "I'm game for whatever, as long as I like what I see." She noted that this design is based on 15th century art, depicting the Holy Trinity - the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost "as one person, driving out judgments."

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

Saturday, February 16, 2019

The Sleeves of Annie and Griffin

Back in September, I met a couple, Annie and Griffin, walking in lower Manhattan. They were fully-sleeved and, although I don't often feature sleeves because they are hard to truly capture in a two-dimension setting, their work was remarkable.

First up is Annie, whose work was done by Kahlil Rintye (@kahlilrintye) at Ed Hardy's Tattoo City (@tattoo_city) in San Francisco.

Annie told me she has a Japanese aesthetic and that she just told Kahlil what she wanted and he designed it:

That rooster and colorful sleeve are really quite beautiful!

Annie's travelling companion Griffin, on the other hand, had a sleeve in black and gray, inspired by the work of HR Giger (@giger_art).

He referred to the figure above as his guardian angel.

Griffin's work was by Dustin Burt (@dustinburtart) at Sugar City Tattoo (@sugarcitytattoo) in Crockett, California.

Thanks to Annie and Griffin for sharing their sleeves with us here on Tattoosday!

Monday, September 10, 2018

Black And Grey on The D Train (Tattoosday Plays the Alphabet Game)

Continuing on our subway journey (the whole trip is summarized here) ...

Next up is the D train.

At 9:36 A.M., I got off the C train at West 4th Street to transfer to a D train.

At 9:43 A.M., I got on a northbound D train.

After just two minutes, I met Mike, who shared a trio of tattoos that are really quite good, all from East River Tattoo (@EastRiverTattoo):

Actually some of the work at East River, like the scorpion above, was done by a visiting artist. The scorpion was done by Spider Sinclair (@spidersinclaire), who works out of Two Hands Tattoo (@twohandstattoo) in Auckland, New Zealand.

Then there's this neat skull and fern design, by Mike Adams (@mikeadamstattoo), currently out of Frederick, Maryland.

Last was this piece, proclaiming "Life's Short" and burning the candle at both ends:

This was done by Duke Riley (@dukerileystudio), one of East River Tattoo's resident artists.

Thanks to Mike for sharing his awesome tattoos with us on the subways!

Friday, July 27, 2018

Dylan and the Black Pearl

At the NY Empire State Tattoo Expo (@nyempirestatetattooexpo) a couple weekends back, I met Dylan, who shared this amazing tattoo:

Dylan credited this work to Paul Tochluk (@tochlukdesigns) at The Abyss Fine Art and Tattoo Studio (@abyssartstudiolbny).

This amazing black and gray work is a nod to pirates, as the ship at the top of the design is the Black Pearl, Captain Jack Sparrow's ship from the Pirates of the Caribbean film series.

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

Tuesday, July 24, 2018

Amazing Back Piece by Legion (NY Empire State Tattoo Expo)

This amazing back piece was spotted on Tony at last weekend's Empire State Tattoo Expo (@nyempirestatetattooexpo) in NYC:

The work is by Legion (@legion_avegno) from Fallen Sparrow Tattoos (@fallensparrowtattoos) in Kissimmee, Florida. We've featured work from Legion before here.

Thanks to Tony for sharing this with us here on Tattoosday!

We certainly hope to see more work from Legion in the future!

Friday, July 20, 2018

Kevin Shares Amazing Work by Jacob Sheffield

Last weekend I spotted this gorgeous tattoo at the 2018 Empire State Tattoo Convention (@nyempirestatetattooexpo):

When I asked Kevin (@kevbo.smith_tattoos), whose leg this was on, what it represented, he said, "It's a tesseract." His artist, Jacob Sheffield, then said to me, "It's not a tesseract."

Either way, it's a work of art, and stunning.

Jacob Sheffield (@jacobsheffieldtattoos) works out of Elysium Studios in Grand Junction, Colorado.

Thanks to Kevin and Jacob for sharing this amazing work with us here on Tattoosday!

Thursday, July 5, 2018

Chris' Stunning Landscape

Last weekend at the Summer Vibe Tattoo Festival on Long Island, I met Chris, who shared her amazing back piece:

This incredible landscape is the work of Luke LoPorto (@LukeLoporto) from Timmy Tattoo (@timmy_tattoo_shop) on Long Island.

This amazing work rightfully garnered a first place trophy for black and gray work at the convention!

Chris and artist Luke LoPorto via Luke's Instagram

Congratulations on the honor and thanks to both Chris and Luke for sharing this amazing creation with us here on Tattoosday!

Wednesday, May 23, 2018

Murphy and the Jackalope

I met Richelle last fall near Bowling Green in lower Manhattan. She had some really cool black and gay work, like this portrait of her dog, Murphy:

She referred to Murphy as her "little soulmate" and was happy to wear him on her arm.

She also shared this cool creature:

That is a Jackalope, which is a "mythical creature" that she associates with her childhood. Richelle added that she always "hoped [it] was real" and that it was "my version of a unicorn."

Richelle credited her artist, Anka Lavriv (@anka.tattoo) from Black Iris Tattoo (@black_iris_tattoo) in Greenpoint, Brooklyn, with her work.

I love how the myth of the Jackalope lives on in her ink!

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

Sunday, May 20, 2018

Vanessa's Wise Headdress

Back in October, I met Vanessa, across from Federal Hall, in lower Manhattan.

She shared this cool tattoo on the back of her leg:

Occasionally, dear Readers, I interview people and lose all my information, or I snap a photo with the person, who promises to email me with details, and then I never hear from them again.

This is the case with Vanessa's cool tattoo. All I know is that Vanessa hails from Pennsylvania and comes into New York occasionally for roller derby events in which she participates.

I have no artist to credit, as much as this pains me. I hope that by putting this out in the world, I may be able to connect the dots in the future.

Thanks to Vanessa, wherever you are, for sharing this great tattoo!

Monday, May 7, 2018

Richard's Samurai

When warm weather finally hit New York City, after an interminably long winter, inkspotters were rewarded with some great work, including this sleeve-in-progress on Richard:

Richard, who has wanted a samurai-themed sleeve for a long time, is already three sessions in on this arm, with some upcoming work anticipated on his inner forearm.

He credits Nha Nguyen (@nhaomkaratattoo) from Omkara Tattoo (@omkaratattoo) in Philadelphia, with this stunning work.

Thanks to Richard for sharing his samurai sleeve with us here on Tattoosday!

Monday, April 9, 2018

Marina Carreira and Her Nazarena (The Tattooed Poets Project)

Happy Monday! Today's tattooed poet is Marina Carrera, who shared this lovely tattoo:

Marina tells us this is a tattoo of "Nazarena", or a traditional Portuguese fishmonger.

She elaborates:

"I am Portuguese-American, with roots in Nazaré, a small coastal town now famous as a prime surfing location. I wanted a tattoo that represented the beautiful fisherman's wives/ fishmongers that are integral to that landscape, so my tattoo artist (Sid Lopes from 7 Tattoo Gallery in Newark, NJ) and I came up with this design, which deviates a bit from the women's traditional garb but perfectly captures their essence."

Marina also shared the following poem, from her chapbook, I Sing to That Bird Knowing it Won't Sing Back:

Fado for How I’d Like to Think You Remember Me

Imagine a mare splitting the tide

with its charging, the blue moon

cast-iron on its back as waves break through

that glorious gallop: the astral frenzy

of a Portuguese guitar.

Steady against its legs, its steady mane

a white flag in the wind as small hurricanes

form behind

its eyes, red embers. Its ears, a bluff’s shadow.

Its tail, a tremolo rodriguino.

~ ~ ~

Marina Carreira is a Luso-American writer from Newark, NJ. Her chapbook, I Sing to That Bird Knowing It Won’t Sing Back was published May 2017 by Finishing Line Press. Her first full-length poetry collection, Save the Bathwater, is forthcoming next month from Get Fresh Books. Marina's work is featured in Paterson Literary Review, The Acentos Review, Pittsburgh Poetry Review, Hinchas de Poesia, Luna Luna, The Harpoon Review, and Green Mountains Review, among others. Follow her on FB, TW (@maketheunknown) and IG (@thedreamisthetruth).

Thanks tom Marina for sharing with us here on the Tattooed Poets Project on Tattoosday!

If you are reading 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.net 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, February 28, 2018

Poseidon on Mark (Tattoosday Goes to Philly)

Earlier this month, at the 20th Annual Philadelphia Tattoo Arts Convention (@villainarts), I met Mark, who had traveled all the way from Manchester, in the United Kingdom, to obtain this awesome tattoo:

This portrait of Poseidon was inked by Henrique Carmo (@hcarmo_tattoo) out of Revival Tattoo Studio (@revivaltattoostudio) in Blackpool, England.

See an Instagram video of the tattoo in greater detail here.

Thanks to Mark for sharing this great tattoo with us here on Tattoosday!

Tuesday, February 27, 2018

James and the Cardinal (Tattoosday Goes to Philly)

We're still celebrating my trip earlier this month to the 20th Annual Philadelphia Tattoo Arts Convention (@villainarts) earlier this month. Check out this cool black and gray piece on James:

James told me that shortly after his father had died, a cardinal landed on the bird feeder in his back yard. He had never seen a cardinal there before and he was reminded that someone had told him that a cardinal is a sign of someone who has passed away coming to visit you.

This piece was created by "Fame One" out of Pride N Envy Tattoos in Kissimmee, Florida.

Thanks to James for sharing this amazing tattoo with us here on Tattoosday!

Thursday, February 22, 2018

Danny's Amazing Back Piece (Tattoosday Goes to Philly)

If you follow Tattoosday on Instagram (@tattoosday), you would have already seen this, but I am sharing it again as a regular post because this was one of my favorite pieces from the 20th Annual Philadelphia Tattoo Arts Convention (@villainarts) earlier this month.

This one's on Danny:

Danny's back piece, a super conceptual design by New York-based artist Jhon Campuzano (@jhoncampuzanotattoo), took second prize in the extra-large black and gray category on day 2 of the convention. Simply spectacular!

Thanks to Danny for sharing this amazing work with us here on Tattoosday!

Wednesday, February 21, 2018

Leo in Black and Gray (Tattoosday Goes to Philly)

Earlier this month, at the 20th Annual Philadelphia Tattoo Arts Convention (@villainarts), I met Ryan, who was sporting this cool celebrity portrait:

That's Leonardo DiCaprio (@leonardodicaprio), on Ryan's thigh, captured in his role as Calvin Candie in Django Unchained by the talented Mark Vincent (@markvincentattoos) from Iconic Tattoo Company in Downington, Pennsylvania.

This amazing likeness garnered 2nd prize honors in the Black and Gray, Medium, category during the tattoo contest on day 2 of the convention.

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

Sunday, February 18, 2018

Marcela's Gorgeous Tattoo (Tattoosday Goes to Philly)

I met Marcela briefly at the Philadelphia Tattoo Arts Convention (@villainarts) last weekend and she was kind enough to share this stunning black and grey artwork on her thigh and hip:

She credited Andres Ortega (@Ortega_ink) from Knucklehead Tattoo (@knuckleheadtattooshop) in Glendale, Arizona, with this amazing work. Marcela estimated that it was about 15-20 hours in the making. You can actually get a better view of the piece over on Ortega's Instagram here.

Thanks to Marcela for sharing this stunning tattoo with us here on Tattoosday!

Monday, May 22, 2017

Reconnecting With Amber

Over the years, I've passed out a lot of cards, hoping to open a dialogue with people about their tattoos, but often never hearing from them again. That's just the way it goes. Occasionally, I will run into them by chance, and we'll be able to connect and put something together.

Such is the case with Amber, who I had met and talked to a couple of times a year or two ago at my favorite local beer garden, where she had worked for a very short period of time.

Imagine my surprise when, last week, I sat down on the subway next to her and was able to capture one of her spectacular tattoos:

Amber credited this great black and gray thigh piece to Nico Negron (@niconegron) from Tattoo Afterlife (@afterlife) in Huntington, New York.

She told me it was based on several references and took about seven hours to complete.

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

Sunday, January 15, 2017

Seth's Wrists Bridge the River

I met Seth on a lower Manhattan train platform in August.

I noticed he had some interesting tattoos on his wrists and I asked about them.

These skyline tattoos are super cool, even moreso when you see that they wrap entirely around his wrists:

Seth explained that, "both wrists feature the Brooklyn Bridge, but one is as if you were going from Brooklyn to Manhattan and the other the opposite direction."

He added:

"Being a transplant, I had set a goal of living in NY for one year at some point in my life. After doing it for 8 years, I decided it was finally time to make it part of me permanently, thus the tattoo."

He credited the artist Patrick Conlon (@lurkus69) at Speakeasy Tattoo (@nyspeakeasytattoo) in Peekskill, New York. Patrick is no stranger to Tattoosday, we've featured his work previously here, here and here.

Thanks to Seth for sharing his cool wrist tattoos with us here on Tattoosday!