Not everybody wants to go to a tattoo shop to get a tattoo. I actually don't like the atmosphere of most of the shops I've been to. Part of it is that many inkers have no sense of identity outside of their work, so a lot of tat shop flexing and posturing goes on. They tell tat stories, talk pain and skill, and could care less about their clients lives, except to see what other ink their artwork will share real-estate with on each paying skin canvas that books an appointment. There's also a tendency for tat shops to be decorated as if they were a meth lab or the backdrop for a 1st person shooter video game. The truth is that half the people who get inked these days are not sailors, bikers, gang bangers, or prisoners. They are accountants, retail clerks, mommies, soccer coaches, and pastors. Not the kinds of people that usually open fire on strangers or drop by to pick up the latest batch from Meth-Mart.
Two such incredibly boring people are Brendan & Janelle Hojara. We met in Haiti a couple years ago and when I went to visit them recently in the U.S. of A., they asked if I could bring some gear with me and ink them up at home. This turned into a veritable Tattoo fiesta, complete with tacos and really yummy guacamole. Extended families and Tattoo eager friends crowded around to enjoy the sights of Brendan containing his agony while I put a crown around his arm in black and grey. Brendan already had a small Hebrew text tat of the name "Ezra" on his arm to signify the birth of his first son. He was looking for another piece to honor his second son, Kingston... so a crown made perfect sense. As we designed the tattoo, Brendan's love of music inspired him to ask for the band of the crown to resemble a piano. We were both pretty happy with the result. I love it when people have creative and unique ideas. Of course, being creative and unique is Brendan's job, since he is a media/marketing producer in Florida. Not that boring after all. If you need web & media work, consider looking him up at
http://hojostudios.com/.
Janelle wanted a non-traditional looking lotus in black and grey with some Arabic text to celebrate her relationship with her sister. She had preexisting artwork to work from and the text written and approved by her sister, who lives in Abu Dabi. Or Ubuntu Gumbi. Or somewhere like that. I'm pretty sure that instead of "sister" I wrote something like, "meat slurpee" or "puppy slingshot", but Janelle was happy with it and convinced that I had written her sanskrit or klingon or whatever language text correctly. Unfortunately time ran out for me to do any other tattoos that night, but there were many people gathered around that wanted to make appointments for the next time I could come. Tattoos at home... I love it.
Not everybody wants to go to a tattoo shop to get a tattoo. I actually don't like the atmosphere of most of the shops I've been to. Part of it is that many inkers have no sense of identity outside of their work, so a lot of tat shop flexing and posturing goes on. They tell tat stories, talk pain and skill, and could care less about their clients lives, except to see what other ink their artwork will share real-estate with on each paying skin canvas that books an appointment. There's also a tendency for tat shops to be decorated as if they were a meth lab or the backdrop for a 1st person shooter video game. The truth is that half the people who get inked these days are not sailors, bikers, gang bangers, or prisoners. They are accountants, retail clerks, mommies, soccer coaches, and pastors. Not the kinds of people that usually open fire on strangers or drop by to pick up the latest batch from Meth-Mart.
Two such incredibly boring people are Brendan & Janelle Hojara. We met in Haiti a couple years ago and when I went to visit them recently in the U.S. of A., they asked if I could bring some gear with me and ink them up at home. This turned into a veritable Tattoo fiesta, complete with tacos and really yummy guacamole. Extended families and Tattoo eager friends crowded around to enjoy the sights of Brendan containing his agony while I put a crown around his arm in black and grey. Brendan already had a small Hebrew text tat of the name "Ezra" on his arm to signify the birth of his first son. He was looking for another piece to honor his second son, Kingston... so a crown made perfect sense. As we designed the tattoo, Brendan's love of music inspired him to ask for the band of the crown to resemble a piano. We were both pretty happy with the result. I love it when people have creative and unique ideas. Of course, being creative and unique is Brendan's job, since he is a media/marketing producer in Florida. Not that boring after all. If you need web & media work, consider looking him up at http://hojostudios.com/.
Janelle wanted a non-traditional looking lotus in black and grey with some Arabic text to celebrate her relationship with her sister. She had preexisting artwork to work from and the text written and approved by her sister, who lives in Abu Dabi. Or Ubuntu Gumbi. Or somewhere like that. I'm pretty sure that instead of "sister" I wrote something like, "meat slurpee" or "puppy slingshot", but Janelle was happy with it and convinced that I had written her sanskrit or klingon or whatever language text correctly. Unfortunately time ran out for me to do any other tattoos that night, but there were many people gathered around that wanted to make appointments for the next time I could come. Tattoos at home... I love it.
You are welcome in our home anytime! But just not TOO often, or I will be completely covered with tattoos!;)
ReplyDeletePS: thanks for the plug.
Now I want a tatoo too! But I don't want it to say 'meat slurpee', like Janell's.
ReplyDelete