The art of tattoo

Howdy Folks!

  So, it's been a super moon weekend, but let us not forget that the sun has also been shining brightly. The warmth has been incredibly welcome. Aside from being a good excuse to get out into the garden, it's also served to remind me of how it was to have skin. (If you have skin, it's important to take care of it when out in the sun.) Apart from feeling the rays on one's epidermis, the other thing I miss about having skin is tattooing. (Before anybody suggests it - I can't have my bones tattooed because the vibrations cause my remaining teeth to rattle. These days I have to be satisfied with the tattoo transfers that come free with bubblegum.)

Of course, we can't really talk about machine tattooing without first mentioning the history of traditional tribal tattooing. If you have an interest in this, as I do, I recommend that you check out this page http://www.janeresture.com/oceania_tattoos/index.htm


And..if you'd like to see some traditional tribal tattooing, and learn even more about it, then here are the guys at Black Wave. If you check out the photo albums on the artists' pages you will see some amazing stuff. http://www.blackwavetattoo.com/index.htm


So, without further ado, let us celebrate the art of some of the world's tattooists. Some you may have heard of, some you might not have.



Kat Von D

                

     Kat Von D is almost certainly best known for her appearances on the tattooing programme LA Ink.  Even if reality shows, or even tattooing, aren't really your bag, it's hard to deny just how talented a portrait artist this woman is. 

 You can find out more about the woman herself, and see more of her exquisite work on her official website, http://www.katvond.net/index.php

John Treharne

      

John Treharne is an award winning tattoo artist and, when you see this guy's use of colour, it's really not difficult to see why. John works out of the Skin Creation in Cardiff. You can see more of John's astounding work on the Skin Creation Myspace page, http://www.myspace.com/skincreation

Corey Miller

                

Corey Miller is another tattoo artist probably best known for his work seen on LA Ink. Because of the very confusing UK scheduling of this programme, it's been hard to keep up with Corey's story. However, I think very few artists portray birds, on skin or otherwise, as well as he does. You can learn more about Corey and his tattooing on his official website, http://www.sixfeetunder.com

Gray Silva

If ever there was a reason to visit Nottingham, Gray Silva & his crew at Rampant Ink may just be it. Gray himself seems to be as characterful as his artwork, (although I've chosen some works from his black & white gallery, his work is delightfully bright and colourful.) He also creates some wonderful spider tattoos but, due to the sheer number of arachnophobic individuals out there, I opted not to show you those. You can check out more of Gray's, and the rest of the crew's, work on their official website, http://www.rampantink.co.uk/page/1/home

Michelley QueenofQueens

   

Michelley QueenofQueens has been tattooing for about ten years now. She is currently working privately in California. As a keen gardener, I must say that these tattoos particularly appeal to me. Michelley is another colourful artist whose characterful work reflects the kind of attributes we at Catbird Craft are rather fond of. To see more of Michelley's wonderful artwork, both on skin and paper, check out her official website, http://www.michelleyqueenofqueens.com/

Petra Kempka

   

 My first thought on seeing these wonderful dot work tattoos by Petra Kempka was 'that head tattoo must have really hurt'. Petra works at Alpha Tattoo in Essen, Germany. I confess that my grasp of the Deutsch language spans as far as being able to order bratwurst with chips. But, no matter which language you speak, Petra's work speaks for itself. To see more of her varied work, check out her website, http://www.alphatattoo.de/index.html

Hannah Aitchison

Hannah Aitchison is another artist brought to prominence by LA Ink. Another talented artist with many strings to her bow. She is probably best known for her specialty of 50's pin-up girls, yet her tattooing skills encompass many other styles. I am thankful that she flew out of the kitchen and into the tattoo parlour. You can check out more of her work on her official website, http://www.hannahaitchison.com/

Now, even if you aren't up for getting some ink for yourself, I hope you've been amazed and impressed by some of the very talented skin artists out there. 

Regards to you all,

Frank

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