We Interrupt Our Regularly-Scheduled Program for a Word from a Tattooed Poet...

Those familiar with Tattoosday know that April is dedicated to the tattoos of poets, in honor of National Poetry Month. It only seems fair that, six months on the other side of the calendar, we let one of our contributors from this past April share her newest tattoo.

Theresa's original post can be seen here.There you will also find links to her beautiful online literary magazine The Holly Rose Review, which combines poetry and tattoo art. Sadly, Holly Rose has ceased publishing, but Theresa remains a lovely supporter of Tattoosday, and her new tattoo is quite fetching. Let's take a look:

Photo courtesy of Theresa Senato Edwards

I would also like to acknowledge that there, on her other leg, is a tattoo that says "life" in pink, with the ribbon representing breast cancer awareness acting as the "l" in life. Since October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month, it seems doubly fitting to share this photo here, even though the post is more about the paisley design.

But I'll hand the explaining over to Theresa:

It took quite a few months before I finally found the right tattoo artist to do my new tattoo: a � calf, color, black, and grey shading of paisleys, thorns, and teardrops. And without naming names, I approached quite a few artists, either by phone, e-mail, facebook, or in person. Some said yes but then decided it wasn�t a tattoo he/she wanted to attempt, or said the tattoo would be limited because of price, or yes but, oh, the shop only takes cash. Or yes, but maybe hold off from getting the grey shading...

Other reputable tattoo artists were recommended to me, and, hey, I�ve met a lot of great tattoo artists online because of Holly Rose Review, but, honestly, I didn�t want to schlep too far from home.

My oldest son, Richard, told me to check out Graceland Tattoo in Wappingers Falls, about 20 minutes from Poughkeepsie�yay! no schlepping! I went to the website, checked out the artists� work, saw that they were very decently mixing color and grey shading, went to the shop.

Long story quick�the shop was clean, bright, and bouncy and Shane behind the counter was great. But when I talked to tattoo artist Diego Gonzalez about the tattoo I wanted, that�s when I felt confident that I had come to the right place and that he was the one to do it. He was non-judgmental and very helpful.

And throughout the entire experience: tattoo prep/design�discussion of what I wanted, where, and why (both in person and e-mail)�and both tattoo sessions, Diego was patient, kind, and very professional.

Much respect and thanks go out to Uruguay-born Diego Gonzalez, who has been tattooing 12 years, 9 years professionally, the last 3 out of Graceland Tattoo; who also enjoys watching Syfy movies and Science channels; and who feels that �nature is the greatest muse.�

Photo courtesy of Theresa Senato Edwards

Theresa sent me an excerpt from what she e-mailed Diego prior to their sessions, which gets closer to the core of the idea behind the tattoo:

"...just wanted to tell you why i'd like to get this tattoo. maybe this will help you as you finish drawing it. to celebrate turning 50, an age that i didn't think i would like too much, but i do. in india the paisley symbolized a time of harvest, and for me it is a positive symbol of a fruitful transition. yet the thorns are to show the pain that comes with life and what we endure before we learn and change, the tears (tear drops) to show the emotions. but tears and thorns both spill into those paisleys: that "hope" in which outweighs any despair. the art should say beautiful yet brutal--not necessarily a pretty, frilly tattoo but one that's pretty with touches of "darkness," if that makes sense...�

We were originally going to run this in August but, as Theresa best can explain, "Being a perfectionist that I tend to be (not always a good thing), I realized after getting this tattoo that the pink just wasn't bright enough in the bottom paisley. So I e-mailed Diego to ask him if he could touch it up. He kindly said yes and did a great touch up of that bottom paisley, free of charge, no less. Now it's perfect!"

Thanks so much to Theresa for sharing her lovely new tattoo with us here on Tattoosday!

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The Tattooed Poets Project: A Wrap-Up

April, they say, is the cruelest month. It also seemed, for personal and professional reasons, to be the longest month. And, as many may have noticed, we ran a little over and into May.

This concludes the second annual installment of the Tattooed Poets Project. The endeavor seems to have attracted more fans this year, and I am thankful for that.

But I do need to extend thanks to all thirty-three poets who participated this year, and tolerated my incessant badgering for photos, poems, and details.

And to the dozens (and I do mean dozens) of poets across the country and overseas to whom I sent emails asking for either tattoos or news of poets the knew with tattoos, I thank you for humoring me and the project.

The person who receives what I call the Muldoon Award is G.C. Waldrep. Last year, the Pulitzer Prize winning poet Paul Muldoon declined to participate saying "Alas, I've done the uninkable." The best response this year from an uninked poet was Mr. Waldrep's:

"What an interesting idea. But no, I remain untattooed. Except by the ravages of love and pain."

Thanks especially to Stacey Harwood at the Best American Poetry Blog who, from the outset, has been a champion and promoter of the Tattooed Poets Project. Theresa Edwards, of Holly Rose Review, not only contributed, but sent several people my way. Dorianne Laux also spreads the word like no one else and this year and Adam Deutsch not only was a return participant, he helped quite a few readers and participants discover our little inked poetry endeavor.

And I would be remiss if I didn't thank my lovely wife Melanie, who supports me and all things Tattoosday, even though it doesn't pay the bills. She recognizes how much I love to write about tattoos, and without her by my side, I wouldn't have had the strength and wherewithal to have made Tattoosday the blog it is today.

Those of you who have come to Tattoosday to see inked poets, I invite you to still visit, there's a dozen posts in the works documenting Tattoosday in Hawai'i, and then a long summer after that.

Before you know it, the Tattooed Poets Project 2011 will be upon us!

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The Tattooed Poets Project: Jeanann Verlee

Here on the final day of the 2010 Tattooed Poets Project, we are featuring two tattooed poets (in two separate posts).

First up is Jeanann Verlee, who holds the distinction of being the one poet this year who met with me in person to discuss their tattoo.

Jeanann offered up her upper left arm:


The incredible detail of this piece is in the hummingbirds:



This whole tattoo is based on the cover art from her just-released first book Racing Hummingbirds (Write Bloody Press, 2010).


Jeanann knew she wanted her next tattoo to have something to do with the upcoming book. When she had the opportunity to work with an artist she respected, Tyson Schroeder, Jeanann held off on getting new ink and waited to see his art for the cover. She was happy she waited and, loving what she saw, she took the design Tyson created to her tattoo artist, Mark Harada at East Side Ink.

The racing hummingbirds design was placed adjacent to one of Jeanann's approximately fifteen other tattoos. The piece already on her arm consisted of a symbol comprised of Celtic and Nordic runes, and calla lilies, which represent transformation.

It was truly a pleasure meeting Jeanann at Grand Central Station and talking with her about her tattoos and her poetry. One of her poems, dedicated to poet Eboni Hogan, can be seen here over on BillyBlog. Eboni's tattoo (here) follows this post, and her poem is dedicated to Jeanann.

Thanks to Jeanann for taking the time to meet with me, sharing her tattoo, and rounding up an exciting 2010 Tattooed Poets Project!

*****

JEANANN VERLEE is a former punk rocker who collects tattoos and winks at boys. She is author of Racing Hummingbirds (Write Bloody Press, 2010) and her work has appeared in a number of journals and anthologies, including The New York Quarterly, PANK, FRiGG, Danse Macabre, and Not A Muse, among others. An acclaimed performance poet who co-curates the weekly reading series Urbana Poetry Slam at the Bowery Poetry Club, Verlee has performed and facilitated workshops across North America. She was co-author and performing member of national touring company The Vortex: Conflict, Power, and Choice!, charter member of the annual Spoken Word Almanac Project, and is an ardent animal rights and humanitarian activist. She lives in New York City with her best pal (a rescue pup named Callisto) and a pair of origami lovebirds. She believes in you. Learn more at JEANANNVERLEE.com.

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The Tattooed Poets Project: Eboni Hogan

On this final day of the Tattooed Poets Project 2010, we have a double treat - the tattoos and poetry of both Jeanann Verlee (here) and her friend Eboni Hogan.

What follows is a tat-alogue of Eboni's body art.

She prefaces her work with the following proclamation:

"A Note About The Artist: A majority of the work (the shoulder piece, the peacock and the cherry blossoms) on my body were done by an amazingly talented artist named Craig Spencer out of Whatever Tattoo II on St. Mark's Place who was also my boyfriend of almost four years until fairly recently. Yay! It's a sado-masochistic love story! Some liken this to getting a man's name tattooed across my boobs but I can say he is truly one of the only artists I trust with my flesh."

And now the ink:

"This shoulder piece is a custom design that took the most amount of tweaking before I actually got it inked. There are three quill pens, a skeleton key and a key hole, all tied together with ribbons. I'd had a strange dream one night in which a creepy old woman handed me a set of keys, tied to three feathers and told me that if I could find the door, the key would let me out...


...In my dream, I draped the key over my shoulder for safe keeping (dream logic...) but when I finally reached the promised door, the key and the feathers were adhered to my skin. The image stuck when I woke up and I talked to the artist about designing a similar piece. He suggested that the feathers be quill pens to pay homage to my love of poetry."

Next we have an image linked inexorably to the history of tattoos in the West, with its background in naval history. It was inked by an unidentified artist at Capitol City Tattoo in Madison, Wisconsin:

"I adore old school tattoos of the Sailor Jerry variety. I am also really active in the poetry slam community and every team I have ever been coined "the anchor"- the poet put up towards the end of a slam to (fingers crossed) make a home run. At the 2008 National Poetry Slam in Wisconsin, I decided it would be suitable to get this piece on my ribs."

Next up we have some cherry blossoms on the back of Eboni's right biceps:

"Blossom on the tree you know how I feel. Text by unknown artist, Addiction Ink, St. Mark's Place, cherry blossoms by Craig Spencer. If my life were a television series, Nina Simone's song "Feeling Good" would be the theme song. On my worst days, this is the never-fail anthem. The particular phrase that I decided on just happens to be the line in the song that feels infinitely more magical when sung at the tops of one's lungs. Try it."

And last, but not least, this lovely peacock:


"Peacocks are symbols of renewal and are revered by multiple cultures across the world. Furthermore, let's face it- they got a whole lotta swag. I found a vintage painting of a peacock that I loved though it's not the traditional green and blue image people are used to seeing. I got it on my left hip so that it could also serve as a cover-up for a pretty awful tattoo I got when I was 17 and foolish."

Thanks to Eboni for sending along so many tattoos for us here at Tattoosday. Be sure to head over to BillyBlog to read one of her poems, dedicated to poet Jeanann Verlee, here. Jeannann's tattoo (here) precedes this post, and her poem is dedicated to Eboni.

24 year-old poet, actress and Bronx native, Eboni Hogan, has performed in over 30 U.S. cities and facilitated workshops from refugee camps to prestigious universities. She studied theater at New York University's Tisch School of the Arts. She is the winner of the 2010 Women of the World Slam Poetry Slam, the 2008 Urbana Grand Slam Champion and a two time representative of the Nuyorican Slam Team. She is published in the anthologies His Rib and Double Lives and recently released her first collection of poetry entitled Grits through Penmanship Books.

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The Tattooed Poets Project: Cody Todd

We are extending the Tattooed Poets Project through the weekend, giving those who have been enjoying the poetic ink, a little bit more to tide them over until next year.

Today we are being visited by an old friend, Cody Todd, whose tattoos appeared here last year.

This is his latest tattoo, four weeks old, inked at Purple Panther Tattoos off of Sunset in Los Angeles:


Cody provided this explanation:

Not too much of a story behind this. It is Marv and Goldie from the "The Hard Goodbye" of Frank Miller's Sin City. The artist who did this is from Tokyo, and her name is Koko Ainai. I admire the precision of her work in copying Miller's extremely elaborate sketching. As Marv and Goldie embrace, he is holding a gun he apparently took away from her and a bullet hole is smoldering in his right shoulder as he lifts her off the ground. That tattoo is the first of what is going to be a kind of sleeve in parts in which I take different scenes from noir films or works and decorate my whole left arm with. Upon seeing Farewell My Lovely with my girlfriend last week, I decided to get the front end of a 1934 or 1936 Buick as my next tattoo.

...I am doing my critical work for my PhD at USC on the "western noir," which is a term I sort of coined for a specific genre of film and literature concerned with elements that typically comprise classical film noir, except they take place in cities in the western part of the United States. As we see in the film, Sin City, it has a "Gothic City" feel to it, but it is most certainly somewhere out in western Nevada, or California. I think the motifs of lawlessness, street and vigilante justice, and the disillusionment with the American Dream are all at work in this kind of genre, and that it also borrows many elements from the Western as a genre as well. If anyone wants to read good literary western noir, I would direct them, promptly, to read Daniel Woodrell, who takes the noir theme and brings it to the Ozarks and southwest Missouri. If Chandler and Faulkner had a love-child, it most certainly would be Woodrell.

Head over to BillyBlog and read one of Cody's poems here.

Cody Todd is the author of the chapbook, To Frankenstein, My Father (2007, Proem Press). His poems have appeared in Hunger Mountain, Salt Hill and are forthcoming in Lake Effect, The Pinch, Specs Journal and Denver Quarterly. He received an MFA from Western Michigan University and is currently a Virginia Middleton Fellow in the PhD program in English-Literature/Creative Writing at the University of Southern California. He is the Managing Editor and co-creator of the poetry journal, The Offending Adam (www.theoffendingadam.com).

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The Tattooed Poets Project: Jozi Tatham

Today's tattoo (and remember folks, we're continuing through May 2!) belongs to Jozi Tatham, who was referred to us by the Milwaukee Poet Laureate, Brenda C�rdenas (thanks Brenda!).

Her tattoo is certainly amazing:


Jozi had this tattoo done by Steve Bossler, who owns Greenseed Studios in Sheboygan, Wisconsin. She had met him originally at Papes Blue Ribbon Tattoo in Milwaukee. Steve splits his time between the two locations.

Jozi explains the inspiration behind this tattoo:

I have wanted this back tattoo for years now. Where the Wild Things Are was my favorite book growing up. Because I have since become a writer, it's extremely important to me to remember the childhood imagination and creativity that we are all born with, but which we often "outgrow". I refuse to grow up and let my imagination slip away, and hopefully having the monsters of creativity tattooed on my body will keep that close to me.

Please check out one of Jozi's poems over on BillyBlog here.

Jozi Tatham is currently a poetry MFA student at George Mason University in Virginia. She hails from Milwaukee, WI where she received her BA and the place which serves as "the inspiration for most of my being thus far." She has been published in newspapers and small publications in the Milwaukee area for poetry and nonfiction.

Thanks to Jozi for sharing with us here at Tattoosday!

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The Tattooed Poets Project: Phebe Szatmari

Well I am back in New York and posting this a little later in the day than normal. The good news for those of you enjoying the Tattooed Poets Project is that we will spill over until Sunday, May 2, before resuming our normal activities.

In the mean time, enjoy this amazing tattoo from Phebe Szatmari:

Phebe writes:

Driftwood, for me, symbolizes the worn, the weathered, the old, the beautiful�each piece takes on its own character. My wife and I have a large piece from Richardson Lake in Maine that resembles a leaping elk. Its movement and energy are striking.

I was also inspired by artist Deborah Butterfield who is known for her sculptures of horses (initially created from driftwood before being cast in bronze).

When I found tattoo artist Jason Tyler Grace, I knew that he had the artistic ability to render a realistic image that would also work with the contours of my body. I decided to get my tattoo in order to initiate a new dialog with myself�and because tattoos are hot.

Be sure to check out one of Phebe's poems here.

Phebe Szatmari was working full-time in an office in Manhattan when she learned there was a shortage of poets. She immediately dropped everything and is currently pursuing an MFA in Creative Writing and Literature at Stony Brook Southampton.

In her spare time, Phebe freelance edits, teaches writing, volunteers at LIGALY (Long Island Gay and Lesbian Youth Center), serves as a judge for teen poetry slams, and practices parkour. Her poems will be published in the forthcoming Writing Outside the Lines 2010 anthology.

Thanks to Phebe for sharing her lovely tattoo with us here on Tattoosday!

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The Tattooed Poets Project: Steele Campbell

Today's tattoo comes to us from Steele Campbell:

Steele tells us how he came to choose this tattoo:

"I debated back and forth about exactly what tattoo to get and where, but this one seemed to come from within. It should.

This is the Campbell Coat of Arms with the Campbell Motto underneath with Claymore swords behind the shield, as it was the Campbell Clan that started the Black Watch. What can I say; we are known for being ruthless. And because the
Campbell blood courses through these veins, and even spills from them on occasion, I could not find a better representation of myself. It was done in Auburn, Alabama at Shenanigan�s Tattoo Parlour by Ember Reign, a hard-yet-sweet roller-derby-girl tattoo-artist (among other things) as a celebration of permanence. But as nothing gold can stay, only this tattoo and my blood have remained. As they will."

Check out one of Steele's poems here on BillyBlog.

Steele Campbell is currently living (and I mean that robustly). He is essentially transient, but has paused his peregrination at Auburn University to complete a Master�s Degree on the fiction of Marilynne Robinson. He is the recipient of the Robert Hughes Mount Jr. Poetry Prize from the Academy of American Poets two years running and has been published in Decompression, The Boston Literary Review, Rope and Wire and Touchstones. He is the student poetry editor of the Southern Humanities Review. You can visit him at www.steelecampbell.net.

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The Tattooed Poets Project: Lisa Gill

Today's tattoo comes to us courtesy of Lisa Gill:

Lisa tells us:

"Last September, I got a rattlesnake in my living room. (I live rural outside the small town Moriarty, NM). I spent over two hours in close proximity to the snake, and ultimately ended up calling the sheriff's department and getting a deputy to help me catch it and release it off my property. After the encounter I spent months and months writing direct address poems to the snake and ended up with a play where the snake speaks back. The Relenting is both "true story" and archetypal and imagined journey, paralleling the transformation the snake sparked. The encounter, and the writing where I tried to process the encounter, changed my life, and because my life had changed (and is still changing), I wanted a tattoo to symbolize the transformation.

The only tattoo image I considered was the Minoan Snake Goddess.

I understood her intuitively in a way I'm still working to express with words. I worked with tattoo artist Serena Lander. I knew Serena's work on visual artist Suzanne Sbarge, who regularly helps bring Serena to New Mexico from Seattle. I trusted Suzanne and was right to. I had a great experience with Serena, the right kind of energy and contemplative exchange. I wanted line work, one color, kind of ruddy toned. She took images I sent her from archeological digs at the Palace of Knossos and transformed them into the image now on my arm.

I consider the image both a prayer and a mark of a turning point in my life. (I have three earlier tattoos, two black, one white, all smaller, from a decade prior, sparked by a different significant recognition.) The subtext for the new one is this: right before the encounter with the rattler, I'd just made it out of a wheelchair I'd been in for five months due to multiple sclerosis. Arms are not something I take for granted any longer... and the tattoo in that respect is simply about gratitude and facing disability with resilience, as much as I can muster..."

Please venture on over to BillyBlog to read an excerpt from the aforementioned The Relenting here.

New Mexico poet Lisa Gill is the recipient of a 2007 National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship in Poetry, a 2010 New Mexico Literary Arts Gratitude Award, and just earned her MFA from the University of New Mexico this April. She is a literary arts activist, currently booking poets for "Church of Beethoven," and the author of three books of poetry, Red as a Lotus, Mortar & Pestle, and Dark Enough. A fourth book, The Relenting, is forthcoming with New Rivers Press (June 2010) and can be considered either a play or a poem scripted for two voices, rattler and woman. She'll be touring the play in the upcoming year, starting with a staged reading with Tricklock's Kevin Elder at 516 Arts in Albuquerque in June and then onward to Minnesota, LA, hopefully even to NY.

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

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The Tattooed Poets Project: Gina Myers

Today's tattoo comes to us courtesy of Gina Myers, who is the third poet this month to come back to the Tattooed Poets Project after appearing last year. Check out her 2009 contribution here.

Gina sent along this tattoo, which graces the inside of her left wrist:


Gina explains that this tattoo:

"... was done by PJ at Old Town Tattoo in Saginaw, Michigan. In addition to the word bird, I have several other birds tattooed on my body: a pigeon named Franklin, a phoenix, an eagle, and a number of swallows. "Ginabird" is one of my nicknames, and "bird" is a nickname I share with my best friend. I always thought it was weird when people got either their own names or their own nicknames tattooed on themselves, but this seemed okay since it was a shared nickname. It's not really about me. My best friend said she is getting the same tattoo in the same place, but that hasn't happened yet."

Be sure to head over to BillyBlog and read one of Gina's poems that she picked for us here at The Tattooed Poets Project.

Gina Myers lives in Saginaw, MI, where she works as the Associate Editor of 360 Main Street, the Book Review Editor of NewPages, and the Reviews Editor of H_NGM_N. Her first full-length collection of poetry, A Model Year, was published by Coconut Books in 2009.

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The Tattooed Poets Project: Amber Clark

Today's tattooed poet is Amber Clark, whose tattoo is not only on a poet, but is itself a line from a poem:


This tattoo is om Amber's upper back, just below the neck. Amber explains how this tattoo arrived to become engraved in her flesh:

"The artist was Randy Ford at Maverick's Tattoos in Destin, FL. He is soft-spoken, gentle and engaged. He also gives guitar lessons. We talked at length regarding the nature of his work - in effect, branding people permanently, acting as conduit for the indelible. And I remember thinking that we both attempt to act in the world in very much the same way; he with ink, I with writing. This is brand new; I got it in January 2010 as a 34th birthday present to myself because I found this line of Mary Oliver's poem returning and repeating in my mind again and again over the years, like a mantra. It pushes me to create, to make, to be engaged with the world - which is both ironic and (maybe) shamefully delightful. Of course, I joke about the shame, but given the context of the poem, the connotations of 'mantra' seem silly."

The following is Ms. Oliver's poem that inspires so:

What I Have Learned So Far

Meditation is old and honorable, so why should I
not sit, every morning of my life, on the hillside,
looking into the shining world? Because, properly
attended to, delight, as well as havoc, is suggestion.
Can one be passionate about the just, the
ideal, the sublime, and the holy, and yet commit
to no labor in its cause? I don�t think so.
All summations have a beginning, all effect has a
story, all kindness begins with the sown seed.
Thought buds toward radiance. The gospel of
light is the crossroads of � indolence, or action.

Be ignited, or be gone.

Please head over to BillyBlog to read one of Amber's poems here.

Amber Clark teaches English and literature at Northwest Florida State College as well as Gulf Coast Community College. She reads for Tin House, and she will be guest judging the Scratch Poetry Contest in June 2010. While most of her own work can still be found on napkins and matchbooks, in personal journals and private word docs, and on the windshields of friends' and lovers' cars, most recently, her work can also be found in Pebble Lake Review, SandScript, Slow Trains, Underground Window, and Poetry365. A graduate of The College of William & Mary and The Radcliffe Publishing Institute at the Center for Advanced Study at Harvard, she also holds a MFA in Creative Writing from Queens University at Charlotte.

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The Tattooed Poets Project: Aaron Anstett

Today's tattoo comes to us from Aaron Anstett who had also initially inquired about joining us last year on the Tattooed Poets Project.

Although the quality of the image may have a lot to be desired, the age and nature of the tattoo make it worth a peek, in my opinion:


Aaron explains:

"The main image was based on an illustration by a college girlfriend and applied nearly two decades ago, at a tattoo parlor outside of Iowa City, Iowa (at that time, I don't recall there being a shop in town, but who knows). The words from [John] Donne's The Sun Rising were applied a couple years after that, at a shop in Houston. Donne has long been among my favorites, though other poems more so with the passing of time."

It should be noted that "BUSY old fool, unruly sun" are not merely words from the poem, but the memorable opening line. You can read the whole Donne poem here.

Aaron Anstett's collections are Sustenance, No Accident (Nebraska Book Award and Balcones Poetry Prize), and Each Place the Body's. He's completing the last weeks of his term as the inaugural Pikes Peak Poet Laureate and lives in Colorado with his wife, Lesley, and children, Molly, Cooper, and Rachel.

Head over to BillyBlog to read one of Aaron's poems here.

Thanks to Aaron for sharing his tattoo with is here on Tattoosday!

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The Tattooed Poets Project: Daphne Lazarus

Today's tattoo takes my breath away.

The work comes to us from Daphne Lazarus, who does not have the extensive poetry credits that many of our other contributors have, but does write poems. She heard about the Tattooed Poets Project via Theresa Edwards (day 1 of this year's project), editor of Holly Rose Review, an online poetry/tattoo publication in which her work has appeared.

But let's just take a look at the photo Daphne sent, shall we?


The first thing I would recommend is to click on the photo to see it enlarged. Daphne did want me to acknowledge the photographer Irvin Tan at Monochrome Meese Photography. The amazing artist behind this phenomenal back piece is Shane Tan. Clicking his name will take you to the site where you can see several more photos of this work, as it was being created.

With a piece like this, as Daphne put it, the work "speaks for itself". Agreed, but I did seek clarification on the piece at the top on her neck:


This is a traditional Thai tattoo, sak yant, also known as yantra tattooing, which serves as an emblem of protection. The whole work took place over numerous sittings in a one and a half month time span. "Sometimes I had to work the next day," Daphne told me, "it was...a hell of an experience but it marked a milestone in my life. So worth it." Indeed. We are fortunate to have such amazing work displayed here on Tattoosday.

Daphne was born in Singapore. She received her BA (Hons) in Arts Management from LASALLE College of the Arts in Singapore in 2009. She has curated several contemporary art exhibitions featuring emerging Singaporean artists and an exhibition featuring art works of pioneer Singapore artists from a permanent collection of an art institution. Daphne writes for a tattoo website at www.horinaka.com in collaboration with tattoo artist Shane Tan. She was also one of the event organizers for Singapore�s first body suspension show in conjunction with the first tattoo convention in Singapore.

Daphne�s passion lies in writing about art and tattoo culture and has several articles featured in several contemporary art publications. She has also written a thesis on tattoos for her undergraduate study. She will be pursuing a Master�s in Art History at the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) at the University of London.

Daphne is not a poet by profession, but she uses it as a tool for catharsis. She has published literary works mostly in contemporary art journals and aspires to be an art writer and art historian.

Check out one of her poems over on BillyBlog here.

Thanks again to Daphne for sharing her back piece with us here on Tattoosday!

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The Tattooed Poets Project: Rebecca Wolff

Like Brendan Constantine yesterday, Rebecca Wolff was a carryover poet from last year. That is, we couldn't quite coordinate getting a post together for the Tattooed Poets Project in 2009. Fortunately, we were able to get everything lined up this year.

Good things come to those who wait.

Rebecca sent us two tattoos. We'll let her describe them for us:

"I have seven tattoos, and the ankle is number 4. I got it in 1990, in a dock-side sailor-type tattoo parlor in Glasgow, Scotland, when I was about 22.


The artist was kind of a big lug, and none too bright, and at a certain point in the tattoo (I had my eyes closed) he said, "Uh, did you want the Z and the A to meet?" and I was like, "Yeah," and he was like, "Uh oh," so if you look closely at the latter end of the alphabet (right around the STUV) you'll notice it kind of gets all squinched up, and then the WXYZ is kind of all spread out so as to make it all the way around.

The wild rose on my side is what I still believe to be my final tattoo, though I find myself craving sleeves often.


I got it when I was about 31, in about 1999, and it's the only really super figurative tattoo I have. The others are all kind of ironic symbols of symbolism. So the idea was to jump into full-color symbolism and then leave it at that, and that's what I've done.


This one was done at a place on Canal Street in NYC by a young Japanese artists whose name I never really caught."

Be sure to head over to BillyBlog to read a poem Rebecca selected just for us!

Rebecca Wolff is the author of three books of poems: Manderley, Figment, and The King. Her novel The Beginners is coming out in 2011 from Riverhead Books. She is the editor and publisher of Fence and Fence Books, and publisher of The Constant Critic. She lives in Athens, New York, with Ira Sher and Asher Wolff and Margot Sher.

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

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The Tattooed Poets Project: Alexandra Teague

Someone recently asked me where I find all of these tattooed poets. A great question, and I owe thanks to many people, for most individuals come by way of word-of-mouth from other poets. But I also reach out on my own, often sending dozens of e-mails to writers around the country, and the world. It's like shooting an arrow into the dark, one can only hope the missive strikes a target.

I was recently poring over a copy of the anthology Poetry Daily Essentials 2007 and picking poets to e-mail. I stumbled across Alexandra Teague's "House Guest" and sent her my standard "ink-query." And sure enough, she became one of the few poets I wrote to out of the blue who replied because, not only is Ms. Teague tattooed, one of them is poetry-related. As she so aptly put it, "I sort of had to reply to you."

Without further ado, here are Alexandra's tattoos:

I was inspired to get the Japanese kanji for "poetry" after seeing a pin at the Poetry Magazine table at the Association of Writers and Writing Programs conference in 1999.



I'd been thinking about getting a tattoo and couldn't decide on a design, but as soon as I saw the kanji, I knew it was exactly right. I see it not only as a symbol of the art of poetry but also as a reminder to live poetically. I got the tattoo at a shop in Miami (I don't remember the name). I did a bit of research to confirm that the kanji was correct (since I don't know any Japanese), but I didn't have it really confirmed until several years later when a new friend, from Japan, said, "Do you know what your tattoo says?" And I said, "I hope so." Fortunately, according to her, it really does mean "poem" or "poetry."

She also shared this lovely tattoo:

The other tattoo is a couple of years old. It was done by Amy Justen at Sacred Rose Tattoo in Berkeley, California. I've always loved the ocean and wanted to live by the coast, so the California seagull is symbolic for me of my migration out West. Amy Justen has a background in fine art and does some really interesting, painterly work with white and grey, which I love, but which made some people think the tattoo was a decal when I first got it!

Be sure to head over to BillyBlog to read one of Alexandra's poems here.

Alexandra Teague�s first book of poetry, Mortal Geography, won the Lexi Rudnitsky Prize and has just been published (April 2010) by Persea Books. Her work has also appeared in Best New Poets 2008, Best American Poetry 2009, and The Yale Anthology of Younger American Poetry, as well as journals including The Missouri Review, The Iowa Review, and New England Review. She was born in Fort Worth, Texas, and has since lived in Arkansas, Missouri, Florida, Montana, Hawaii, and California. She currently teaches English at City College of San Francisco and lives in Oakland. For more information about upcoming readings and publications, visit www.alexandrateague.com.

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

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The Tattooed Poets Project: Julie Platt

I always feel like I'm not doing a tattoo justice when it wraps around a curved limb. Generally, I will be reluctant to showcase a piece without displaying the entire tattoo, even if that means multiple pictures shot from different angles.

Today's tattoo is one of those rare designs that is worth sharing, even if the reader can't behold every inch of it.

Julie Platt sent these photos, along with an explanation, which follows:




Julie says

"It's the audio waveform of a blackbird song made into bracelet around my left wrist. It's inspired by an image on the cover of Kate Bush's album Aerial.


I got this tattoo to commemorate earning my MFA -- I wanted something visible to remind me of poetry, whose root is song."

The tattoo was inked by Chris Boilore at Fish Ladder Tattoo, in Lansing, Michigan.

Check out one of Julie's poems over on BillyBlog here.

Julie Platt was born and raised in Pittsburgh and now lives in Michigan. Her print poetry chapbook, In the Kingdom of My Familiar, was published by Tilt Press in 2008. My mini e-chapbook, Imitation Animals, was published by Gold Wake Press in 2009. Two poems from
Imitation Animals were selected to appear in Dzanc Books' Best of the Web 2010. My work will also appear in the forthcoming e-anthology Poems to Sweat By: Hungry Young Poets 2009, published by VanVinkinroy's Indie e-Book Emporium.

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

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The Tattooed Poets Project: Rob Talbert

Today's tattooed poet is Rob Talbert, who was pointed in our direction by Adam Deutsch.

Rob has seven tattoos, but points out that 80% of his back is covered. The tattoo he submitted for us to enjoy has special meaning for him:


Perched on his upper back, a quick glance might prompt someone to say "What is that?" Clicking on the photo will enlarge it for better detail. But more importantly, iy's not really about what it is, but what it represents to Rob. We'll let him explain:

I lived in Corpus Christi, TX for three years. It's one of those towns where there's an impressive absence of entertainment and an overabundance of bars. I've always wanted tattoos and decided it was a suitable time to get inked since all my money was going to booze. And college. Those are synonyms, I think.

Forever Art Tattoo is a small shop in the corner of an eroding shopping center along South Padre Island Drive. The first time I walked I met Jim Sweeney, a hardcore biker who never opened his eyes all the way, called me Brother, and spoke in a very loud monotone voice. I liked him immediately. It was obvious I'd never been in a tattoo shop before and, though I didn't know it at the time, he was charging me very reasonable rates. Jim wound up tattooing my whole back and did a damn good job of it. Most of the work is custom, and a good percentage was done free-hand; some people don't trust their spouses that much.

My favorite aspect of this particular tattoo is that it's original. It's not something I pulled off the wall or brought in to him. This tattoo doesn't represent something in MY life, or MY ideas, or MY friends and family. It represents Jim completely and independently artistic of me. Jim conjured this from the depths of his mind and my only instructions were "give me something badass." I believe he did.

Wherever you are Jim, I hope you've got a good looking woman and your bike is riding smooth. Thanks Brother.

From what I can tell from the shop site and their MySpace page, Jim is still going strong.

Please head over to BillyBlog to check out one of Rob's poems here.

Rob Talbert is a native Texan and currently pursuing his MFA at Virginia Tech. His poetry has appeared in Alaska Quarterly Review, The American Poetry Review, Ninth Letter, Painted Bride Quarterly, and Southern Poetry Review. He was selected for 2009 Best of the Net and nominated for 2009 and 2010 Best New Poets.

Thanks to Rob for sharing his tattoo with us here on Tattoosday!

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The Tattooed Poets Project: Jackie Sheeler

Today's tattooed poet is no stranger to us here on Tattoosday. Jackie Sheeler appeared last year on the Tattooed Poets Project and came back to share some more. Be sure to look at last year's contribution here, to get a little perspective about Jackie and her ink.

This new piece is on her outer right thigh:


Jackie says she doesn't "have a long story about this tattoo the way [she] did about [her] others!". Nonetheless, it's lovely work and no less worthy of sharing, story or not.

Jackie credits this piece to �Triple X Jess,� who works out of The Kingdom Tattoo & Body Piercing in Manhattan.

Be sure to head over to BillyBlog to check out a new poem from Jackie here.

Jackie Sheeler is a poet, musician, and performance artist in New York City. You can also read her blog, Get Angry With Me, here, or visit her band, Talk Engine, on MySpace Music here. Her other site www.poetz.com is being redesigned and the new site is launching later this week.

Thanks again to Jackie for sharing her tattoo with us here on Tattoosday!

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The Tattooed Poets Project: Lea Banks

Today's tattooed poet is Lea Banks.

Lea sent along several photos of her work, so let's not waste any time checking out her ink.

Descriptions from Lea follow each photo.

"Vita Nuova" was the first tattoo celebrating my divorce, my new life. I was deep into Dante, especially the Purgatorio. I had read three translations and was taking a break when someone gave me La Vita Nuova. The thirty poems fascinated me --- they were so personal, an autobiographical narrative in which Dante wove a web of romance and emotion. Such spiritual inspiration was integral at that time! I was interspersing Dante with Emily Dickinson then and I had the same artist at Mom�s Tattoo Studio in Keene, NH do the tattoo on my right shoulder. You know � �Tell all the truth but tell it slant.� I still felt I was contained lightning from the wreckage of my marriage; wanting to tell the truth in my poetry but having a hard time with it. So this was the design I came up with. I�m actually thinking of having the lightning go outside the circle � I am NOT contained anymore!

Tell all the Truth but tell it slant

Emily Dickinson

Tell all the Truth but tell it slant---
Success in Cirrcuit lies
Too bright for our infirm Delight
The Truth's superb surprise
As Lightening to the Children eased
With explanation kind
The Truth must dazzle gradually
Or every man be blind---

...Done in 2004, [this tattoo] was my version of a design from the Book of Kells, an Irish manuscript containing the Four Gospels. My daughter and I were visiting England and were staying at a B&B in Glastonbury. One day, she decided to climb the green hill of the Tor, crowned with the tower dominating the town and the surrounding landscape. I had to sit it out because my foot was giving me trouble. My foot at that time had undergone four surgeries. I picked up a book showing illustrations from the Book of Kells. I dreamt of this dragonfly tattoo on the plane ride back and took my vision to a tattoo artist at Blackbear Tattoo & Jewelery Company in Brattleboro, VT. I was very pleased with the result: three dragonflies facing different directions signifying healing movement for my foot. Although I had a fifth surgery, I started walking again and even running. I promised Sarah that we�d return and climb the Tor together.

And my personal favorite...

The fourth tattoo on my left bicep, done by Pygmalion�s Tattoo in Greenfield, MA, is a quote by William Carlos Williams, �Nothing whips my blood like verse.� I had it done right before the AWP conference in Chicago and bore it proudly. The whip that winds throughout the quote was a flourish done by the artist. I ran into a friend who was a W.C. Williams scholar and he said he had never heard it attributed it to Williams! I swear it was in a book or on the web and if anyone can tell me different, please do.

Good news, Lea, I found reference to it in The Selected Letters of William Carlos Williams (1957).

Please be sure to check out one of Lea's poems over on BillyBlog here.

Lea Banks lives in Western Massachusetts. She is the author of the chapbook All of Me, (Booksmyth Press, 2008). She was a finalist for The Pavel Srut Fellowship in Prague and had two poems nominated for the 2009 Pushcart Prize. Banks is the founder of the nationally-known Collected Poets Series in Shelburne Falls, MA and editor of Oscillation: Poetry in Motion. She was the former poetry editor of The Equinox and editorial assistant for the Marlboro Review. She attended New England College�s MFA program, facilitated stroke survivors� writing workshops, and is a full-time poet, community organizer, freelance editor and writer. Banks has published in several journals including Poetry Northwest, Slipstream, Diner, and American Poetry Journal. See more here: www.leabanks.com.

Thanks again to Lea for sharing her tattoos with us here on Tattoosday!

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