Out With the Old.....

As we wind down 2010, and look ahead to 2011, I wanted to take care of one of my several loose ends from the past year.

Back in July, I met a guy named John on the D train. He had tattooed arms and we chatted a bit. He said he'd send me photos and he did a few weeks later.

I never posted the photos because the resolution was low, and when I tried to increase the size, they blurred. I was going to include these in the Christmas housecleaning post, but the work is just too good.

So hear you have them, small photos, but recognizably amazing:

I mean, what is there to say? This work is quite excellent. The koi, the tiger, the sailing ship, sugar skull, nautical stars - it's all quite a body of work!

The artist is Nacho, who appeared once before on the blog here. You can check out Nacho's work here. in New York, he tattoos out of Studio Enigma on Avenue U.

Thanks to John for sharing these amazing tattoos with us here on Tattoosday!

And thanks to all of our fans and contributors for making 2010 a successful year of inkspotting!

More about → Out With the Old.....

Sugar Skull Sunday: Hannah and Her Family

I met Hannah in Penn Station one afternoon after spotting this amazing sugar skull on her upper left arm:

Here is a broader glimpse of the tattoo:

Hannah has over twenty tattoos and told me she wanted this piece to have alot of different elements in it. The gold tooth was a must, because Hannah loves pirates.

Gold teeth in sugar skulls are not necessarily unusual. Chainsaws, however are a bit out of the ordinary:

The chainsaw, Hannah explained, is a tribute to her uncle, who is a lumberjack. And, she added frankly, the bottle is there to acknowledge her grandfather, an alcoholic.

This sugar skull was completed in two 2-3 hour sessions by Tim Barnes at Holeshot's Premium Tattoo & Piercing in Amherst, Massachusetts. Tim has moved on to Florida, according to Hannah, but I haven't been able to identify where he is currently working.

Readers can see all of the sugar skulls previously posted on Tattoosday by clicking here or on the Sugar Skulls tag at the end of the post.

Thanks again to Hannah for sharing her sugar skull with us here on Tattoosday!

More about → Sugar Skull Sunday: Hannah and Her Family

Sugar Skull Sunday - One From Ryan

Since I seem to capture more sugar skulls than any other design, why not reserve a day just for these decorative symbols which, at their roots, have deep religious significance?

Two weeks ago, I met Ryan, who has ten tattoos.

Of that lot, he offered up this design on his left bicep, which Charlie Foos created for him at FlyRite Studios in Brooklyn.

Charlie Foos is now at Read Street Tattoo Parlour in Baltimore.

Aside from the traditional nature of the sugar skull tattoo, Ryan also loves Mexico and this design recalls that beautiful and diverse culture south of the border.

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

Work from Charlie Foos has appeared previously on Tattoosday here.
Tattoosday posts tagged FlyRite Studios are here.
Tattoosday posts tagged Reade Street Tattoo Parlour are here.

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Sebastian's Sugar Skull

A small post about a sugar skull for a Friday.

I met Sebastian on 33rd Street between Sixth and Seventh Avenues last week.

Among his several tattoos is this sugar skull that was inked by New York City artist Byron Velasquez:

Byron now tattoos out of Abstract Black NYC. Work from Byron has appeared previously on Tattoosday here.

Loyal readers will know how I seldom tire of sugar skull tattoos and, whenever I post one, I like to link the tag (click here) that unites all previous Tattoosday sugar skulls appearing on the blog.

Like snowflakes, sugar skull tattoos are never identical.

Sebastian appreciates his sugar skull mostly for the way it represents both life and death.

Thanks to Sebastian for sharing his sugar skull with us here on Tattoosday!

More about → Sebastian's Sugar Skull

Jessy's Sugar Skull (Tattoorism)

In what I refer to as tattoorism, today's selection is a reader-submitted tattoo that comes to us from Jessy, in Denver, Colorado.

Jessy writes:

"I was looking at your blog, and since you love sugar skulls, I thought I'd share mine with you...I had it done in Santa Fe by Guido Baldini [As of publication, Mr Baldini's site is not connecting, but he is tattooing at Inborn NYC in Manhattan through July 2, 2010, according to the shop's MySpace]. A bit of a story behind it... at the time, last September, I was just developing a chronic pain problem that was mainly in my left arm. The pain was (and still is) so excruciating that while on vacation with my family, when I should have been out to dinner and having fun (it was a bit of a reunion) I was instead in the hotel room, eating percocets, and just miserable and crying and pissed off and not understanding WHY this pain wouldn't leave me the hell alone. So the next day my brother and I wandered into a tattoo shop [most likely Four Star Tattoo] and a couple hours later I emerged with this - my 1st tattoo!  It was meant to kind of scare the pain away while also reminding me of a (otherwise) great trip with my family to a town I fell in love with. I think Guido did a great job. I love my sugar skull. I plan to go back to Santa Fe soon and have him add some more flowers to it."

Those of you regular readers with good memories may recall that I recently ran into the artist's cousin and he shared this piece, inked by Mr. Baldini in New Mexico.

Thanks to Jessy for sharing this cool sugar skull with us here on Tattoosday!

More about → Jessy's Sugar Skull (Tattoorism)

Juli's Right Calf: A Sugar Skull and More!

Back in April, I met Juli, who hosts a dozen tattoos, and counting.

She offered up two pieces, both on her right calf.

First was this sugar skull, inked by Chris Strangebreu, who currently is working out of Studio 33 Tattoo on St. Mark's Place in Manhattan:

Always a fan of sugar skulls here on Tattoosday, I was glad that Juli was more than happy to share this tattoo. She pointed out that the flowers are Gerbera daisies ("my ultimate favorite flower ever") and that the eyes and the tips of the daisies have unusual accents. Chris used an ink known as "Japanese pink,"  which makes the specific areas of the piece glow in the dark.
 
The other tattoo Juli shared is part of what she envisions to be a larger piece that will wrap around her calf and thematically connect with the sugar skull:

This was done by Geoff Horn at the Philadelphia Tattoo Arts Convention.

I'm hoping that this won't be the last we see from Juli, and I thank her for sharing these great tattoos with us here on Tattoosday!

More about → Juli's Right Calf: A Sugar Skull and More!

Amy's Sugar Skull from New Orleans

Amy shared this sugar skull with me a week or so ago:


Clicking this link will display the vast range of sugar skulls that have appeared here on Tattoosday over the years.

They are one of my favorite types of tattoos to post, because they tend to vary from one to another and can be uniquely personalized.

Amy got this one on All Saints' Day, in honor of her grandfather.

She was at the New Orleans Voodoo Tattoo Convention and an artist named Joey just free-handed the drawing on her arm.

Thanks to Amy for sharing her sugar skull with us here on Tattoosday!

More about → Amy's Sugar Skull from New Orleans

Day of the Dead Special: Electrical Sugar Skull

I met Mike at the end of September, but have been hanging on to this post to share today, on the Day of the Dead:


I've posted numerous sugar skulls here (click this link to see all posts tagged as such), but this one is particularly interesting due to its proximity to the tattoo below, which is the logo for the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW), or the electrician's union, to which the contributor belongs.



The tattoos were done by Rob Hotte at the incomparable Lotus Tattoo in Sayville, New York.

For an extra El D�a de los Muertos bonus, I encourage folks to check out my old friend Mike's Day of the Dead Mariachi troupe here.

As for this post, I thank Mike for sharing his incredible tattoos with us here on Tattoosday!

*

Extra bonus material:

About 2 months ago, a reader named Leslie sent me the following blurb:

Hi! I ... sent you a link to Albuquerque's Tinta Cantina - the shop does all kinds of work but they really do a lot of Day of the Dead stuff - in particular - look under the artist Jason. I do not work there, nor am I trying to promote them - I just think that the tattoos done here in New Mexico are quite different from the interpretations you show from the East Coast and that you might find it interesting.

Thanks to Leslie for sharing this link with us here on Tattoosday!

More about → Day of the Dead Special: Electrical Sugar Skull

Magie's Unique Sugar Skull, Inked by Big Ant (1978-2008)

I was a happy little inkblogger last Friday night when I made it to the 4th anniversary group art show at Tattoo Culture in Williamsburg, Brooklyn.

Happy, because I got to meet the awesome Marisa Kakoulas from the fabulous Needles and Sins tattoo blog, along with the equally-cool Brian Grosz, who is also a major creative force behind the site.

And happy because I was in a bright room with art on the walls, created by talented tattooists, and I was surrounded by people with incredible body art.

But therein lies the conundrum: great tattoos, in a hip tattoo setting, are top quality and, despite Tattoosday's success, I am still reluctant to whip out the Polaroid digital camera when, for all I know, the ink around me may have been professionally photographed and featured in glossy tattoo magazines.

So I had resigned myself to leave sans photos, knowing I had a groovy time and was able to meet other tattoo writers, when I noticed a very interesting sugar skull on the back of a young woman's right arm. Voila:


Of course I chatted a long time with Magie before I asked her if I could snap a picture, so I learned a bit about the tattoo before I asked.

Magie Serpica is an artist and tattooist who works at the newly-opened Bound for Glory Tattoo Studio in Staten Island.


The shop was co-founded by Nick Caruso who also tattoos at Flyrite Studio in Brooklyn. One of Nick's tattoos appeared here back in July on Tattoosday.

One of Magie's paintings was hanging on the wall at Tattoo Culture:

(reprinted with permission of the artist)

We talked at length about tattoos, what she called an under-served market on Staten Island (they are the first full-custom shop) in the borough (no flash on the walls, please) and have a promising future ahead.

We also discussed how difficult it has been in the past to be a female tattoo artist, how frustrating it is not to be taken seriously, and how Kat Von D. and the multitude of tattoo reality shows have helped break down the stereotypes and allowed Magie, as a female artist, to receive more respect as an artist.

Like most tattoo artists, Magie is covered in ink, with no idea how many tattoos she has ("If you can still see skin, it's not enough").

The sugar skull in question was tattooed by Anthony Gregory, aka Big Ant, a Staten Island artist who tragically passed away last year after falling ill in Las Vegas (see the sad news reported here).


She had asked him to give her a sugar skull and she had a general idea about his style, so she gave him total artistic freedom. The end result was fascinating - a unique, almost post-modern interpretation of a classic tattoo design. The angled perspective and the depth to the eyes give this tattoo a greater three-dimensional feel than your standard sugar skull.

I also like how the rose is just as important as the skull, its stem wrapping around it and adding another layer of depth.

I thank the good people at Tattoo Culture for opening their doors and allowing me the opportunity to meet some great people.

A special thanks to Magie for sharing her awesome tattoo with us here on Tattoosday. Be sure to visit her in the new shop, Bound for Glory, in Staten Island.

Here's hoping we'll see more of their work in the future!

More about → Magie's Unique Sugar Skull, Inked by Big Ant (1978-2008)

Valarie's Sugar Skull

Tattoosday is no stranger to sugar skulls. They are popular tattoos and always welcome additions to the site. It certainly seems, like snowflakes, no two sugar skull tattoos are exactly alike. Clicking here will allow you to see all the sugar skulls in the Tattoosday family.

Well, it certainly has been a while since I posted one here and, running into Valarie on the subway platform at West 4th Street, afforded me the opportunity to capture another for Tattoosday readers to admire:


Valarie is working on a half-sleeve and has both feet inked. She is particularly sentimental about this sugar skull because it was the first tattoo she received.

Like many folks, she loves the color and symbolism of Mexican Catholic art and the way they translate so well into tattoos. This traditional piece is on her inner left forearm and she has a sacred heart on the outer side.

Alex Franklin at Brooklyn Ink is the artist of this lovely tattoo.

Thanks to Valarie for sharing her first tattoo with us here on Tattoosday!

More about → Valarie's Sugar Skull