Courtesy of NZ On Screen: We have just added to our website Signatures of the Soul, the 1984 documentary fronted by Peter Fonda (directed by New Zealander Geoff Steven) that tracks the art of tattooing from New Zealand, through Samoa and the East L.A. and San Francisco scenes (including interviews with Ed Hardy and Bob Roberts) and on to Japan. Click this link to watch full video: http://www.nzonscreen.com/title/signatures-of-the-soul-tattooing-today-1984 Read More »

By Nick Baxter  Or, The Transmutation of Artistic Critique. While reading Becoming Animal, a beautiful treatise on the sensual interaction between humans and the perceptual world around us written by David Abram, I came across a startling bit of truth that resonated with my visual artist’s mindset… Read More »

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UqNPLm3uOr8&w=560&h=315] Courtesy of Salior Jerry: Chris Trevino is an expert in traditional Japanese tattooing who earned the nickname “Horimana” after studying for five years under the legendary master Horiyoshi III. His elaborate, full-body representations of Asian symbology reminds us of the later works by Norman “Sailor Jerry” Collins aka Horismoku. Trevino now runs Perfection Tattoo in Austin, TX which was founded by Bob Moreau in the late 70s…Read More »

By Crystal Morey I met Sandi Calistro in Montreal last year and was struck by how sweet she was and by how amazing her business cards were! I went back to my hotel and pulled up her website that night. For someone so young her portfolio is very strong and it looks like she has really redefined the way artwork is translated onto skin. It has been my experience that many tattooers can’t draw on paper, and many artists have a hard time satisfactorily tattooing their illustrations… Sandi not only works well in both mediums, but her work transcends and she brings her trademark ladies to a new level of distinction with each new piece. Suffice it to say, I am a big fan of both Sandi and her work…Read More »

Here’s a contest for tattooists looking to share their realism work and also get the chance to win prizes that could help further their craft: The Nikko Color Contest is a collaboration between portrait phenom Nikko Hurtado, Sullen Clothing, Tattoo Artist Magazine and Fusion Tattoo Ink… Read More »

Interview By Jojo Ackermann Jojo Ackermann: I love pre-Internet how-to-make-it-work stories. It’s putting the footwork in that makes you appreciate what you’ve got down the road. Robert Atkinson: I was a totally different game, man. It really was. But it wasn’t until after the L.A. earthquake in ’94 that I moved down to Redondo Beach. I was painting houses with a friend to pay my rent and doing tattooing on the side. I really wanted to get into a shop and this friend of mine knew this guy (that had a lot of work from Kari Barba. He had a bodysuit of all these clowns and shit, remember him? He bought Melrose tattoo from Kari… He gave me my first real job tattooing. I worked there with Stephanie Suhm. She had done a real apprenticeship with Kari. She taught me how to mix colors, make needles and make stencils. I hadn’t ever made a stenciled tattoo before that. When I was at Melrose Tattoo I met Clay Decker. I met Dan Dringenberg there, back in ’94. Then in ’95 I got a big panel from Pote Seyler. Pote had tons of work from the Leu family… battle royal on the back, a Hardy design tattooed by Felix and Filip, rib panels from Alex Binnie, Eddie Deutsche had done huge snakes on his upper legs… He started Body Electric on Melrose. He was Swiss and learned a lot from the Leus… No one was doing tattoos like he was in the ...Read More »

By Canyon Webb Have you ever felt a lack of motivation or inspiration? Welcome to the world of an artist. An artist’s biggest battle is to stay inspired and motivated. Outside of the creative world this is a very normal emotion, one we tend to ignore when we’re filling our time with TV or political propaganda, (distractions in general). The most inspiring thing can be the most unexpected… Read More »

By Crash Some may recall my enthusiastic blog report last fall on the Paradise Tattoo Gathering… Well, I’m gonna do it again! The World Wide Tattoo Conference, brainchild of Italian tattoo artist Alex De Pase and co-hosted by Gabe Ripley and TattooNOW.com, is a new first in the tattoo world; a two-day seminar event for professional tattooers, boasting lectures from six highly respected and influential global artists. More than 200 tattoo artists from around the globe travelled to St. Charles, Illinois to attend this specialized tattoo conference… Read More »

By Nick Baxter  This is the start of an occasional ongoing series on this blog where I’ll be discussing the process and techniques of sharp-focus realism oil painting. Here’s the evolution of the painting I began at my parents’ house during a recent visit. The phases of development you see here represent approximate divisions into layers, i.e. major progress stages of the painting (click on the image below to make it larger). In actuality, there were a few more partial layers and back-and-forth adjustments made to various areas of the piece which are not shown here, as they didn’t constitute major turning points… Read More »

By John Dick Blick Art Materials announced on March 31, 2012 that they would no longer carry Skin Candy tattoo ink on the store’s website. In a statement posted on the company’s Facebook page Blick spokespeople said, “These inks will remain part of a short-run promotion in our retail stores that will end in May.” The announcement comes on the heels of an immediate uproar collectively expressed within the tattoo community at large when Blick began carrying Skin Candy over a month ago. However, the statement does raise concerns about whether or not Blick will continue selling the tattoo ink in their retail outlets after May and what exactly is Blick’s, “…customer registration process designed to prevent customers, especially minors, from purchasing the products inappropriately.” Click this link to read full statement: http://www.facebook.com/BlickArtMaterials/posts/258763884216447 (Full statement also on expended page.)Read More »

By Sean Herman **EDITOR’S NOTE: This is the continuation of, Sean Herman: Krooked Ken (Part II)* Jason Reeder- What’s funny to me (and I actually talk to Sean about this a lot) is to hear you telling a story, and have the same story. You can have the people who burn their bridges and you try hard not to be that person.  Sean Herman- *I am going to interrupt the dialogue really quick: 
This is where I have to mention that my friend Jason Reeder came with me when I got tattooed by Ken. Jason has been tattooing for a little bit now. He started as a client of mine, and got an apprenticeship after I had tattooed him for a few years. He is a really dedicated, interesting tattooer. The next blog is going to be about how he got into tattooing, so this one gives you a little introduction to him. 
Now, back to the dialogue…*Read More »

Courtesy of Sailor Jerry Rum Company: Sailor Jerry will open its very own London venue later this month bringing rum, clothing, music, film and the original art of tattoo master Norman ‘Sailor Jerry’ Collins to Soho. Opening on Thursday 19th April, Hotel Street at 120-125 Charing Cross Road is named after Honolulu’s infamous Hotel Street District where Collins’ made his name. A gallery and store by day, and gig and dive bar by night, Hotel Street will be an all-round good place for bad people – open Tuesday’s to Sunday’s from midday to midnight, serving up the best Sailor Jerry Spiced cocktails in town… Read More »

By Oliver Peck(er) Last week I continued my journey and went from Stockholm, Sweden to Limerick, Ireland to meet up with Ross Nagle and Dale Turner at Allstar Tattoo. Ross is one of my favorite tattooers and his business partner and shop manager Dale is a one-of-a-kind-guy, I love them both! I have guest-spotted there a few times in the last year or so. I love it there it is an awesome shop and all the guys are the best! Ross Nagle is an amazing tattooer, if you are not familiar with him you should definitely check him out and get a tattoo if possible, he will be coming through the States a few times this year. Ross is coming to Dallas in late April to work with me a few days at Elm St. then we are heading out to the Fresno tattoo convention, he will also be working the State of Grace convention in October…Read More »

Subscribe, renew or add to your Tattoo Artist Magazine subscription now for a chance to win one extra year’s subscription to TAM and a copy of the amazing Bloodwork:Bodies book. Winner will be chosen by May 15th, 2012. (Contest is for tattooers only.) Click here to sign up: http://www.tattooartistmagazine.com/payment Read More »

By Larry Brogan Courtesy of Tattoo Road Trip: In most tattooing, a quality job starts with a well-drawn stencil. Long gone are the days of acetate stencils that wipe off with one pass of a paper towel. Today, most of us rely on thermal spirit masters and a thermal copier or Hectograph paper to hand draw our designs for application to skin. When drawing stencils, it is common to use tracing paper over the original image or a light box to help see the image more clearly. When doing more detailed or realistic designs, it is difficult to see the fine details clearly through the tracing paper, so the following techniques will help put more detail into your stencil drawing… Read More »