Not long after I got my tattoo Advertisement for Chilkoot Charlies on my arm, I was at it again searching for the next website or company to use my body as a billboard. I decided to Google tattoo advertising and see what came up. I found that a web hosting company a while back, tattoo advertised on the back of someone’s head. I started emailing as many web hosting web sites as I could. The owner of one of those websites emailed me back. It was the owner of Hostgator.com he was very interested. He wanted very much to tattoo advertise on my forehead. I was a little hesitant at first, but then decided that I wanted to do it. Since I already have several tattoo advertisements, why not go all out right? Something came up and he decided to advertise on my neck instead. So that is what we did. I now have a tattoo advertisement for one of the largest web hosting companies on earth on my neck.

This was tattoo advertisement number 6. I am still searching for companies to tattoo advertise on my forehead and head, even my eye lids are available for advertising. The next company to tattoo advertise on me also choose to advertise on my neck, read about that tattoo in my next post. 

In early 2002 Tom Berg was commissioned to design the full back tattoo art for the title character from the Universal Pictures movie, “Red Dragon.” Tom is making signed copies of his color concept drawing available for $20 plus shipping and handling. Call 310-519-8282 to order. Here’s a glimpse.

To see more of Tom Berg’s work go to tombergart.com

We’re less than a week away from the big event.

Headlining bands for the show are Mushroomhead, (HED) P.E., OTEP, Corpus Christi, Destrophy, and DJ Marky Ramone are just one of the many highlights of this much anticipated 3 day event.

Some of the hottest tattoo artists from across the country will be on site.

Miss Tattoo features beautiful Tattooed Ladies competing for the crown.

And this is just a taste.

For more information or to purchase tickets, visit www.rocktheink.net.

Yeah. I know. I copped the title from the greatest southern rock band of all time, Lynyrd Skynyrd. Well as an old southern boy who calls himself Dr. Hook, what did you expect? Far more than just great music comes out of the south. Great and innovative tattoo artists make their home there as well.

So, without further ado from me, let me introduce you to my newest friend, Sean Herman of Royal Street Tattoo in Mobile, Alabama.

Another true southern gentleman, Sean apprenticed in Birmingham under the tutelage of Kele Idol:

“Kele showed me how to apply a solid tattoo and challenged me in illustrating and creating a visual appealing piece.  Justin Kontzen, the shop owner, also taught me quite a bit while I was there.  I’m incredibly lucky they were willing to show a young punk like me anything, and it is because of them that I’m getting to do what I love.”

I’m glad they did. As you can see from the few examples of Sean’s work seen here both Kele, and Justin have every reason to be proud of having Sean as an adept pupil. Sean’s sense of style, and solid, eye-popping work convinces me all the more that there really is no excuse for anyone to have a bad tattoo. You can see even more of Sean’s ability here at his Online gallery.

Other than cheap bad judgment that is. Lets face it, Gang. With talented artists like Sean out there working, if you got a bad tattoo, that’s on you.

Sean sites the work of the great masters, such as Bernini, as some of the biggest influences, as well as being a fan of comic book art and horror films while growing up.

“I loved Madman and other Mike Allred comics.  I also loved horror films, so the paintings of Basil Gogos have been a huge influence on me.  I was fortunate enough to meet him a few years ago, and it was a huge experience in my life.  I couldn’t believe I was shaking his hand and talking to him.  He said some of the most encouraging things I’ve ever heard, those things have kept me going to this day.”

Strangely enough Sean went to college for a lot of different things other than art, one of them being the Theater. While studying for that class, one of the things that was required was costume design. It was there that he began to do sketches for costumes. The art bug obviously caught, but he credit’s the tattoo artist friends around him for his skill. And, brother, we are talking some serious skills here.

Sean’s amazing talent has been featured in such great tattoo magazines as Skin and Ink, International Tattoo Magazine, Tattoo Revue, Skin Deep, Tattoo, Savage, Pain, Urban Ink, and on and on!

“I’ve been very fortunate to have my work published in magazines that are seen around the world.  The editors mean the world to me, and I really appreciate what they do. I’m always surprised and thankful when I hear they have published any of my work.”

Sean has also won numerous awards at many conventions in his short six years as a professional, But he keeps a philosophical outlook on such things.

“Unfortunately, many tattooers today are focused on awards and magazine articles, and they are forgetting what really matters, and that is the client.  I’ve fallen in the same trap before, but have realized that we are nothing without them.  I would say that they are the thing I’m most proud of in my career, I couldn’t do what I do without them, and we can never forget that.”

I’ll give that an Amen! I’ve said so myself quite often in my articles here, and I’ve noticed that every artist who grants me an interview says the same thing. For artists like Sean it’s not about the pats on the back, (although those are nice, and I will say they deserve them), it’s about the collectors. With any good tattoo artist the client comes first. Thank you for backing me up on that one, Sean.

One of the questions I ask a tattoo artist in my interview is, “What would you like the Tattoo Community to know most about you?” Now, I know this is a tough question to answer. That’s why I use it. You can get a real feel for the artist by their answer.

“I would want them to know that I’m thankful that I get to participate in the magic that is tattooing, and that I’m thankful they let me be a part of it.  We are part of a lineage that has been around since the dawn of man, and must be respected, and hopefully I do that.  I would also want them to know that we are now the voices people are listening to, so hopefully we have something good to say.”

Like I said before, a true southern gentleman.

As his biggest influences in the noble art of tattooing Sean gives credit to the time he spent tattooing with Josh Woods, who taught him the art of color blending and how to use bright tones.  He also gives a well deserved nod to his partners in crime at Royal Street, CW, Pony and Pete.

“They teach me things everyday that have completely challenged and changed how I tattoo, and how I look at tattooing in general.  Their use of composition and simplicity challenges me to rethink every line I draw and do everything with complete reason.  Gabe Smith also had a great effect on me.  His constant reminder of using more lines sticks in my head everyday.  I’m really fortunate to have the friends that I do.”

You can contact Sean, through his site seanherman.com or his My Space page. As well as the entire Royal Street crew at:

Royal Street Tattoo
110 N Royal Street
Mobile, Al 36602

Phone: 251-432-4772

Either a trip to Mobile, or being lucky enough to catch Sean at a convention will be well worth the effort.

All images ©Sean Herman. All rights reserved.

A new tattoo trend is emerging in China, but this particular trend has nothing to do with artwork on human beings.  Just incase you’re wondering, it also doesn’t have anything to do with pigs.  No, this time the tattooed flesh is that of our underwater friend, the fish.

It’s a procedure which would have animal rights groups and law makers in more shall we say, “PC” countries blind with indignant rage, but somehow tattooing fish is just not that big of an issue in China.  So what exactly does tattooing fish involve, you ask?  Well, it seems that it’s the parrot fish who are the targets of this popular abuse trend.  The fish can be bought in sets of four, with each fish having a different Chinese character tattooed on their sides.  The meaning of the tattoos range from “may your business boom”, to “good fortune”, “long life”, “luck” and “happiness”.

Technically speaking however, this trend isn’t exactly new.  It all actually began in 2005, but apparently it’s taken a while to catch on.

The fish are tattooed with a laser, which burns the various (and fun!) Chinese characters on to the sides of the otherwise unsuspecting creatures.  Holy shit.  That sucks.  Naturally, no one has studied how using a laser to sear characters into fish-flesh affects the fish, but I don’t really think it takes a genius to figure out that it’s not exactly the best thing for them.  Says fisheries expert Zhang Zhicheng:

“To use a laser to tattoo will surely affect the fish. It’s like tattooing a human being’s body, it breaks the physiological balance of the fish and damages the skin’s protective surface.”

Ah well…one day when the inevitable gigantic tsunami sweeps tons of water over every last piece of dry land, finally killing off the human race in the process, I guess it will be the fish who get the last laugh.  Until then, watch your backs (er…sides), fish.  Peace.

A friend of mine was talking about writing. Naturally, being the proud bastard that I am I began to brag about writing for Tattoo Blog. His reaction kind of took me aback. “How can you keep writing about tattoos? Seems to me you’d run out of things to write about.” He said. Just goes to show what he knows.

One of the benefits of writing about tattoos is the pure diversity of the tattoo community. I’m willing to bet that I could write about tattooing, and the tattoo community for the next fifty years and still barely scratch the surface. You guys out there just keep getting more and more creative.

Believe me, that’s a good thing. On to ‘Ol Doc’s latest discovery.

While looking over Matt’s last few posts on brand tattoos I got to thinking; “I’ll just bet that there are even more themed tattoos out there, about some amazing subjects.” Well, once again the tattoo world didn’t disappoint me.

Enter “Tattoos in Flight” a website dedicated to, as they proudly say, “an ongoing gallery of flight and aviation-related tattoos collected from around the web.”

Now I do like all things to do with flying as well. I love the feel of being high above the ground just soaring through the clouds. I even tried my hand at hang gliding a few times. That’s a rush I’ll have to get back into at some point.

But I digress, if you have a thing for planes, and cool tattoos click the link and check this brand of themed tattoos out. Hell, if you just like some damn fine origional tattoos check them out. This one picture can not do the site justice, and you’ll learn quite a bit about planes and aviation as well, if your interested.

Peace out, Gang! 😉

For most of my tattoo advertisements up to this point, I found companies to advertise on me by auctioning off advertising space on Ebay. I thought it was time for a new approach. I decided to start emailing companies to see if they would be interested in advertising on me for life, with a permanent tattoo advertisement. I emailed tons of websites, most did not write back. Some thought it was a cool idea but could not afford it with the economy the way it is. I decided to email a few local companies and see if they might be interested. One of those companies being a night club, which I have been to millions of times. Well maybe not millions of times, let’s just say I had enough vodka, Bacardi and other drinks to last me a lifetime maybe several lifetimes. They emailed me back and now I have an awesome tattoo advertisement for the World Famous Chilkoot Charlies. This is currently my only tattoo advertisement that is not a website.

Rock the Ink is the ultimate inked lifestyle event that brings together over 200 premier tattoo artists, over 30 cutting edge bands and hot DJs, celebrities, star athletes and inked VIPs for three days and nights of non-stop entertaining events.

Designed for the hard-core inked, newly inked, and simply curious, Rock the Ink delives sensor stimulating attractions that include the Miss Tattoo Pageant, Submission Ink grappling tourney, midget wrestling, roller derby exhibitions, fashion shows, tattoo contests, daily giveaways, after-parties, and much more.

In its commitment to the fan, Rock the Ink is providing all this and more for the low single day admission price of $15.

For more information or to purchase tickets for the event, visit www.rocktheink.net.

A few weeks back, I blogged about Switzerland’s rules and regulations on tattoo products such as ink.  I had surmised that the Swiss were leading the pack in this sort of cautionary investigation and that over in North America we hadn’t even really begun to realize that there could potentially be problems with the ink we use for tattoos.

Well, according to a recent article that I read online, not only are there zero regulations in place in the United States for tattoo related products such as ink and its ingredients, but until now with the growing mainstream popularity of tattoos, it’s never even really been considered.

“There is really no regulation,” said Charles Zwerling, an ophthalmologist and chairman of the American Academy of Micropigmentation, a nonprofit group that certifies permanent makeup professionals. “The FDA doesn’t do anything. If you are concerned about public safety, we need rules and guidelines.”

Now, for the first time, the FDA is beginning to do just that.  Scientists have begun studies on the chemical composition of tattoo inks as well as permanent make up inks.  The demand for these sorts of tests has grown over the past few years, as many tattooed people have complained of rashes, blistering and swelling in the areas in which they are tattooed.

Not to suggest that tattooing isn’t a safe practice, of course, but I personally find it astounding that this has never been considered as within the realm of public interest before now.  For example, the American Academy of Micropigmentation has already identified more than 50 pigments found in inks, which are actually:

“…industrial strength colors suitable for printers’ ink or automobile paint.”

Not only that, but these pigments have never been approved for injection into human skin.

“Some of these inks have caused allergic reactions, including itchy and inflamed skin. In the case of a 2005 recall of 52,114 containers of pigments made by a Texas company, more than 150 cases of swelling, cracking, peeling, blistering, scarring and chronically inflamed tissue were reported to the FDA.”

Man.  That’s kind of scary.  Of course, as with all things related to health issues, perspective is important.  These studies certainly don’t represent the ink used in every tattoo shop that you see.  Some inks, like those provided by American company Huck Spaulding Enterprises, have been tested in Germany before making their way to American shops.  I also think it’s safe to say that the more reputable a tattoo shop, the more reputable the gear used will be.

Still, it is important to have serious tests done to ensure that body art lovers everywhere can have access to the tattoo work they desire and not have to give the quality of the ink used even the slightest thought.  The FDA however, says it will take several years for them to complete their studies.  Oh well, at least it’s being done for the first time ever.  Better late than never.

Ed Hardy might be reconsidering licensing his stuff to Walmart, the over exposure really has caused quite the backlash, people seemed to hold back there temper when it was just the t-shirts but with the notebooks and car fresheners it was bound to happen…

Oh and if you want some free Ed Hardy shit… here is a contest we are putting on.