10 questions for a tattoo artist

DarkMan · Joined: 18 Mar 2008 Posts: 123

1. Do you draw your own designs?

I obviously push custom work. The ideal custom work is: you come in, you give me a design and I draw it from scratch.

Lately, we get the Internet custom work which is: you find something on the Internet and then you come in and use me as a human Xerox machine. Sometimes that's really fun when you've got someone who's got a very unique style.

Copycatting a Hallmark border or something ...I mean, it makes you money. You don't really want to complain about that, but hopefully you can push someone to generate some more original ideas.

2. Are there body parts you would refuse to tattoo?

The face, definitely. I'll tattoo the neck. We'll give people the speech: It's a job stopper. But necks are popular. If they're 18, they're an adult. You give them the quick speech and make them aware of it. If they still want it, you do it. But I definitely don't tattoo the face.

Why not?

It's pushing the realm. You're really changing your whole lifestyle from that point.

3. Do people ever come in and you're like -- in your head -- why are you getting that tattooed?

Daily. It's just crazy because sometimes you throw stuff out there like, 'Why are you getting this? What does it represent?' And a lot of times they've put no thought into it and they're just doing it. But you can only counsel an adult so far. At some point it's like, hey, they chose it, that's what they want.

4. It seems like you take really seriously -- even if the customer doesn't -- the idea that this tattoo is here forever.

I try to. A lot of other people don't. There are a lot of ideas that are horrible. Well, not horrible...but...a death tattoo is the No. 1 thing. Somebody I love and care about and was an important part of my life just died. So I'm going to come and I'm going to get gravestones and maybe a name and birth date and a death date.

I try to advise people: I know you're in the moment and you want to get something to commemorate them, but you're commemorating the worst part of their life. They're dead. And you're doing it with their name, their birth date and their death date. Those are three things that they had no choice over. They didn't get to name themselves; they didn't get to choose the day they were born; they didn't get to choose the day they die.

But they lived their life here and you did things together. Why not get a symbol -- an illustration -- that represents something they were into or something you did together? Maybe it's your grandfather and you took a road trip one time. Maybe on the road trip the only thing you remember is grandpa getting up, having a cup of coffee and he would buy you a donut. A cup of coffee and a donut can represent everything.

Who knows? Maybe 40 years from now you might be buying a cup of coffee, jumping in the car and buying your grandson a donut. And the circle repeats itself.

5. Does that resonate with people?

Usually once I start talking they just gloss over. 'Just give me a gravestone and their name.' Which is sad.

A woman just came in the other day -- and it's a fine line because you're really treading on someone's feelings -- she wanted a broken heart because her husband had just died. I understand that, but I'm like, 'Did you have a horrible marriage?' She said absolutely not. Well, instead of taking the worst part -- his death -- let's pick the best part, when he was alive, and figure out an image that really represents what you guys did together.

6. How often do you get people who come in and say: I don't care what it is, I just want a tattoo?

All the time. They don't ask me what I think would be cool, but they say: 'I don't care what it is, I just want to get something.'

Until you start throwing out ideas and they say: 'No, that's way too crazy. I just want to get a tattoo.' Which means they want something small and safe.

7. Do people really get 'Mom' tattooed on their arm, or is that just cartoons?

More people should get 'Mom' tattooed.

8. I was going to ask you how many tattoos you have, but is that considered one tattoo?

You only got one piece of skin. It's like having one big canvas framed in your front room and a bunch of different pictures on it -- ultimately, it's one painting.

9. OK, but how many tattoos do your parents have?

My dad, none. My mom, she's got several.

10. What's the oldest person that came in for a tattoo and what did they get?

I think she was 82. Wanted a tattoo her whole life and had all the stigma and all that. And she finally got to the point where she said, 'I don't care what people say.' And she got a little rose on her ankle.