Ms. Mikki

We are having a benefit to raise some money for Rio and his family. He was recently diagnosed with terminal lung cancer. The benefit is August 19th at the White Owl Social Club. Thanks to Relapse records and Sizzle Pie. Talent by: Poison Idea, Witchburn, Justin Kagan and friends(members of the oregon symphony), the Peacock's eye belly dancers. There will be a silent auction and raffle. FOR BREVITY: Rio DeGennaro started tattooing in 1962 under the watchful eye of his father, Lou Lewis, and legendary tattooer, Bert Grimm. Over the next 50 years, Rio travelled from the Pike on Long Beach, to San Diego, to San Jose, and New York, until finally settling in the Pacific Northwest. In 2002, he joined former student, Don Deaton, at Sea Tramp Tattoo Company, After taking over the Sea Tramp Tattoo School in 2003, and renaming it the Oregon School of Tattoo Arts, Rio continues to educate and instruct the next generation of Oregon tattooers, He encompassing all aspects of the tattoo history, process, and business, and helps new tattooers lay their ground in Oregon.

I say jump and enjoy the ride. If anything can shake you out of stagnation, its challenging yourself with new experiences. I absolutely love living in Portland. Its not for everyone. Just know that readjusting to a new living enviroment takes a bit of effort as you may know already. Finding new habits, which grocery store to hit on the way home, coffee shop to enjoy some catch up writing, restaurants to haunt, etc. Remember to get out to our countryside to recharge. Good luck on your new adventure. Cheers, M

My first tattoo was done at a punk house in NW portland by a guy named Nico. Several years later I began collecting more intensily. Hand poked myself. During my apprenticeship, I did a couple on my legs. Professor Don Deaton Lion King PJ English Bill Liberty Scott Sylvia Eric Hogan Aaron Cain Patrick Conlon Mike Davis Kari Barba Patty Kelley Juan Puente Mike Stobbe Corey Miller Paul Booth Henning Jorgensen Sin Yutaro Rob Nunez Christian Lyze Salem Kicker Lil'D Vince One D'Boy Lisa Schmoldt Matt Howse Rick Walters Clancy from austrailia Will Thomas and my godson Zak.

My first tattoo was done at a punk house in NW portland by a guy named Nico. Several years later I began collecting more intensily. Hand poked myself. During my apprenticeship, I did a couple on my legs. Professor Don Deaton Lion King PJ English Bill Liberty Scott Sylvia Eric Hogan Aaron Cain Schmoe Dawg Patrick Conlon Mike Davis Kari Barba Linda Tobin Patty Kelley Julie Moon Juan Puente Mike Stobbe Corey Miller Paul Booth Henning Jorgensen Dave Gibson Jack Rudy Sin Yutaro Rob Nunez Christian Lyze Salem Kicker Lil'D Vince One D'Boy Lisa Schmoldt Matt Howse Rick Walters Clancy from austrailia Oliver Peck Will Thomas and my godson Zak. This was kinda hard, hoping I didnt forget anyone.

"Every trash can, can catch a stick once in a while." I love you Danny. Keep running it true. M

Shotsie, I started calling those kinda folks, "hot topic guru's". See you in Seattle! 0x0x0. M

Hi Jazz, I hope you were able to get the angst out that you needed to express. I havent figured out how to, yet; without having my intent be misunderstood. As for what I was told, once, when I asked how I may be included in some of the painting projects, book publications ect, I was told I needed to "hang out" more with certain folks. Yeah...no thanks. I got too much shit to do, than to hang out. Not to mention, that seems a little too much like being asked to hang from someones balls, so I may be accepted. I stepped into this business, surrounded by men. And in no way, was it easy to establish myself or set my boundaries in this male dominated industry. I gave it a go. I was blessed to share the city with MaryJane Haake. And have Vyvyn close by in Seattle. But that was it, on the nearby female support front. We were still isolated in a territory code of honor relationship. I reached out to Suzanne, Kari and Patty for support later and was relieved to make friends with them. In the beginning, being a pretty young woman gave me a lot of grief. Being more talented than some of the guys I worked with, also gave me grief. I wanted to be recognized for doing good work, having good work ethics, doing good tattoos and being a good artist. I struggled my entire career, with want to be accepted on those merits. "I still struggle". When I began, there were maybe ten out of hundred women that were any good at tattooing. The statistics for men in that hundred were about fifty to hundred. Its still about the same ratio. Even though there are many more men/women in the industry today. Why? I have my theory. But we can touch on that another time. Here, I am hoping to support Jazz in the "making of history" topic. I down played my feminine self, as to not be a distraction on the work site. I kept my integrity and didnt become a star fucker to "improve my career opportunities". Unlike many I have witnessed over time. Ya wanna know what I went through in detail, here's some short examples. Lets see...my first year in the business, I was drugged and given as a birthday present to one of the tattooers I worked with. I was socked in the face another time, same year, when I didnt respond to another tattooer's advances. The same guy, hired one of the bum's to come in and tell my Sensai, that I was reusing needles and not sterizling my tubes. He also, when I got in my motorcycle accident, that layed me up for a long while, told everyone, all my clients, that I was never going to tattoo again and that he would finish what ever works I had begun. I was on my own, fresh out of jail, trying to hold on to something. Not wanting to fall back to old street habits and a deadend road. I fought hard to keep going. I never said anything to anyone, not wanting to cause trouble in the work place. I just wanted to learn my trade from the man that offered me an apprenticeship. I am grateful, my Sensai, never once tried anything on me. Never gave me any sexual pressures. It helped me. Knowing at least one man, in the bunch, had some code of honor. And did'nt think with his dick. The next situation I had to figure out, was working with a man, that I didnt want to reject. But was not interested in sexually either. The sexual pressure, went on for a couple of years, until finally, somehow diverting the relationship to, "she is my daughter, he is my father" attitude helped sway any angst that could have resulted in not participating as a hole. I loved the man, but was not interested in having sex with him. Something had to be done. And playing the card that we were "related"...worked. Later, and at another shop. I had, what I thought was a friendship with a young man. New to the scene, he was an up and coming...going to be the next cream cheese in the business. I always laughed off his advances trying not to let him feel too rejected. I wasnt a prick tease. I respected him. I actually liked him. I wanted to be his friend. Period. We worked together for a year. And after having a curt dicussion on how I was never going to fuck him. Friendship lead to tension at the shop, and the boys club finally rallied and I was fired. I kept working hard. Trying to get better as an artist/tattooer. I wanted so badly for the barrier to be lifted and the boys club to go away. I thought it would die away, when the old timers died. Taking with them the archaic programming of where a "woman's place" should be sequestered. I got rallied up reading a blog on here a few weeks ago, and then again when Vyvyn was down visiting. She has been going through this, for nearly forty years. And we both, almost in unison, stated, in wonder, how we as women, are still not recongnized in the light we feel we deserve. I am honored to have been the first woman to work out of HB tattoo, Temple tattoo, Skull and Sword, and AWR. I have know these guys for years, saw most of them come up in the business and am stoked that they gave me a seat, based on my being who I am, soley as a person. I hoped to show them all, that not all women are holes, trouble in the work place; or give them reason, not to consider hiring another woman down the road. I understand, men and women are different. Even in sweat lodge, it is part of ritual to hide our womanly attributes as to not tempt the male libido in ceremony. This rift is everywhere in the arts, in sports, in music, in the writers league and in daily life. So, how do we evolve out of this predetermined human practice of segregation? Be more self aware? Be more conscious of how we are responding to one another on an animal level? As Vyvyn made light of, how do we get the men, who are more "clan like in nature" to include us as women without threat to their ego's or make them feel out of place as a man, by having a woman of equal standing, standing right next to them? I hold my own. Im not trying to break anyone down. Im here to nuture and support. But I also want to be accepted. Some get it. Most don't. So, how do we as women in this industry, obtain this stature? Part of the overall discussion, began with this topic and went on to what's been happening in the tattoo publications. Seems everyone, wants to rewrite history or re-invent the wheel. Some of our worry, is that these people that are pushing books about themselves, and their buddies, are indeed making history. Ten years from now, these people that some of you were programmed to admire and worship, will be known as having been the top twenty five of this era. The people that were excluded from such publications, or did not participate, or rally to publish themselves will be swept under the rug and long forgotten. I guess, when Lyle and Ed decided to nuzzle themselves into the public limelight, as to make their mark in the history books. They succeeded. They knew they had to keep the buzz going about themselves to stay in the game. I remember some of the old timers scoffing at them, talking about what big ego's they had and remarking in discust with where they were taking the industry with their need for stardome years ago. Well, here we are, a generation or two later and now weve got considerably less deserving figures calling the shots. And the old timers that scoffed, many are trying to jump on whatever band wagon they can, to not be forgotten. History...as Jazzy, is pointing out, is being made right now, by people, that should step to the back of the line. If you are going to publish a book, would you please consider doing some research on what tattooers male and female, that actually contributed something unique, and innovative to this industry. Please stop the circle jerk of publications, that regurgitate the same imagery of the past fifty years, and showcase the next ball swinger that had time to hang out.

If you are in the Portland area. Comemeet and or get tattooed by this Wonderful Lady of the tattoo Arts. She is at Fortune Tattoo July 18-23, 2011. 5032347071. History. (next year will be her 40th yr in the business!) Vyvyn Lazonga has been a tattoo icon for more than 30 years. She was one of the first female artists in the world who went out on her own and didn't work for her husband or partner; she worked for herself and her art. She broke many boundaries, challenged the tattoo/artistic norm, and continues to create amazing custom body art today. I have always done art, ever since I could remember, from the age of about 2. Anything I could pick up and draw with I did. Once I remember getting in trouble for drawing on all of the furniture and walls with crayons at the age of 3. The tattoo muse struck me in the early l970's after I had seen an article done about tattoos in a men's magazine. The article was on Cliff Raven and his work. At that time there were no tattoo magazines so this venue seemed to be the only happening way for a tattooist to show their work. I first tattooed on the original "skid road" in Seattle. It was called that because around the turn of the century when they were building the city, they would skid the lumber down the hill to the waterfront where it would be cut and processed for all the new buildings. This became the hub of nightlife for all the sailors during WWI and WWII. My shop is now located in one of the main historical buildings in the Pike Place Market, about 2 blocks from the waterfront. It's also about 2 blocks from where I started out on 1st Ave., skid road in Seattle. I learned tattooing from one of the old timers, C.J. Danny Danzl, who was a sailor during WWII and retired seaman with Foss Tug Boat Company. When I first heard that someone was opening a tattoo shop in Seattle I immediately ran down there to talk with him to just feel the situation out. I approached him with the idea of me being his "Go For" and helper. He really liked the idea, so that is how it started. It never occurred to me that you could create works of art on the skin until I had seen Cliff Raven's work. I thought how beautiful it would be to create not only a work of art but to be able to carry a talisman around on your skin until you died. This seemed like a very powerful way to make the ultimate affirmation for yourself. After serving a 7-year apprenticeship with Danny I struck out on my own and decided to take tattooing off of skid road to a neighborhood called Capital Hill. I had that shop for a few years and then moved around after that and wound up in San Francisco. Living and working in San Francisco was like going to school in a way. I got more streetwise. I had a shop in the outer Mission for several years and learned to adapt to Hispanic culture. After a couple of years of that I moved to lower Haight Street and started developing a very good clientele base. I made friends with some of the local tattooists there like Henry Goldfield, Ed Hardy, Bill Salmon, Lyle Tuttle, Erno and Captain Don. It was fun times, especially when Lyle would have some of his parties and all the tattoo groupies would be hanging out outside begging to get in. I met Kurinomo, (Horiyoshi II) when he was still alive at one of Lyle's parties. It was such a great honor. After the earthquake of '89 I moved back to Seattle. My place was pretty well ruined in the earthquake so I packed up what I could and moved back to Seattle where I knew I could start over very easily. That was when I opened a shop in Pike Place Market and I have been happy here ever since. I recently changed my business name from Vyvyn's Tattoo to Madame Lazonga's Tattoo, because I had that name for many years early on in my career but had changed it to Vyvyn's for numerological reasons. Now I feel it's time to go back to Madame Lazonga because it sort of conjures up it's own mythological imaginings and it's more playful. I have also recently opened a larger shop in the Market and added some talented artists. Philosophy Watching tattooing change over the decades has been very fascinating. I think one of the reasons why tattooing became so popular is because we as a culture are looking for more meaning in our lives. Technological advances have made it even harder for us to stay in touch with our bodies and our spirit and what has meaning. Tattooing is a very primitive and universal way of honoring the sacred, it seems that we crave meaning in our lives and this can be a very powerful experience when approached with conscious intent. Joseph Campbell used to say "Artists are the modern day mythmakers, shamans and story tellers." It is an honor to be able to channel my art in this way. The act of tattooing is a way of transitioning from this world into other unspeakable worlds that lend themselves for being able to create art on skin. Most of my inspiration comes from the natural world, or cultural motifs, a lot of it is non-literal and decorative. Of course, the ancient tradition of Japanese woodblock prints I've always been in awe of. One of my favorite artists is Yoshitoshi; he did a lot of art that depicted women doing every day things. This was during the Edo period of Japan, the period of their renaissance. I really like his One Hundred Aspects of the Moon series. His compositions were genius. Nature to me is like a religious experience. I can't help but see the miraculous ness of it all. It's fun to look at things that grow in nature, their markings and to use them in my art. I'm also very fond of art nouveau because of its fluidity and ability to conform to the body so easily. I get so much of my inspiration too from art nouveau jewelry books. I adore some of the last turn of the century artists like Kaminski, Miro, Chagall, Dali, Klimt, and the Russian constructivist like Leger. I have been doing more mastectomy scar cover-ups lately, and I finally realized after doing my third one, that I needed to sit down and talk to these women about their grieving process. I needed to talk to them and tell them that this process might dredge up the experience of what they went through and that it's normal, but that will pass too. At first, I didn't quite know what to do or how to console them, but now I have a better idea of how to be supportive without losing my own boundaries and still be able to do the work; work that is very important to their lives. One thing I noticed, through all of my experiences is that so many people are beginning to see that being tattooed is a way to mark a time in their lives. I totally understand that but for me it was always something beyond time. I always liked the idea of going beyond time into a dimension where the images being put on the body would be something that wouldn't necessarily represent time but a profound and universal concept. By having maybe one well thought out tattoo, it saves the body from having a bunch of pitchy-patchy, (that's what I call it) tattoos that don't have any congruency. That's why I think when a person does extensive bodywork that it becomes an expression of their mythological belief system. Mythology, in my opinion, has always been the glue that has held societies together. What a fabulous thing to see so many people now as an expression of what holds meaning for them. I'm excited to see tattooing changing in this manner. Finally, after 30 years of watching and waiting, we're finally getting it.

Hello Hawk, I sent ya an email, a few weeks ago. Would like some of your brain memory as to this machine. I had also been told it was a collaborative effort. Hence why there is no marks on frame. Kinda like, when Danny and Juan put their know how together to tweek the philosophers stone. Looking forward to hearing from ya. Cheerios, M

pull your head out of your ass and show us what ya got. Red shoe penny collector! :) M

There is so much to chew on. Where to start. I guess, time does distort perspectives in alot of cases. I used to think my pop's was heavily tattooed. I know my mom was when she was alive. She even had a monarch on her hand. Then, years later I started hanging with my pop's as an adult, and I remember, being shocked, when seeing his tattoos, that he really wasnt as blasted as I had remembered as a kid. I mean he was heavily tattooed. But by this time, I had full sleeves. It was odd to wrap my head around, the distortion of my childhood perspective. When I started getting tattooed, you were either an adventurous collector which consisted of the norm, you were a stripper, in a band, a convict, or a tattooer. The adventurous collector, didnt reveal their tattoos unless they had crossed the line and jumped head long into the freak catergory. I dont mean freak in a bad way at all. It was just how society treated them. They were people who went way out of the standard of the norm. Past the military regulation. Past the caution of their tattooers advice. Past what their family thought of them. They jumped out there, when no one else was out there...just to do it. The price they paid was being treated poorly by their peers, their families, by society in general. Not all of course. Some, and I still think this is a variable, had mental illness. Attention seekers, one shot ponies trying to make a name for themselves, being a freak. The magazines pushed this into the limelight. I saw quite a few people dive into the trend because after a couple shots of themselves in the magazines, it seemed they became addicted to the exposure. Every magazine for a stretch, you can see them having more tattoos in a short amount of time. I won't name the obvious. All you have to do, is look back in the archive of the rags. I thought I was heavily tattooed with my half sleeves and chest panel in the early nineties. I was to my biker boyfriend. Then I met a young woman in Sacramento that blew my mind. She was younger than me and had her entire body tattooed. I loved it. I had known Elizabeth Weinzirl, and a couple other heavily tattooed women. But not any around my age. I had been the freak amongst my peers, until I met this other young lady. It was inspiring to me. She was beautiful. My point being. It wasnt so common to be obviousily tattooed. The norms hid their bodysuits under their fancy suits and white ties. The little old swinger lady carefully dressed herself while in public as to not stir a commotion of interest in her until she wanted to reveal her secret. The rest of us, didnt care what anyone thought and we werent trying to be apart of a clan. Then, the mtv generation hit. Every dumb fuck from every part of the planet wanted to purchase the look of a rockstar. Neck sleeves, hand tattoos and socks. Let me tell ya, you get those boys naked and it was a huge turn off. They had run the course backward. It was a turn off to me, because of the time I came from. I was brought in through a different door, so to speak. So, in the beginning of my career, there was no, tattooers being tattooed vs. norms being tattooed. We were all in the same boat living on different islands. As society became more seasoned to the art of tattooing. I noticed high end restaurants in SF and NYC hiring tattooed beauties as servers. It had become schick. And it certainly was. Main stream had caught on, with how beautiful tattooed people can be. The only shortcircuit feeling I get from people now, is those that get tattooed to be apart of the scene. Example. Look at when the suicide girls started. It was hot!. All those lovely punkrock grrrls I had never seen naked, were displaying themselves for the world to see. Difference from then til' now. Those first bunch of grrrls were the real deal. Most all the ones that came afterward, got tattooed to be like them, or they simply got tattooed to be a suicide girl. I hope you can see the comparison Im trying to make here. Its like watching the eighties style cloths come back into fashion and the youngsters are wearing all the crap the cool people didnt wear back then. They are caught in a trend. I definitely have been caught in a few myself. Guess thats how we learn. What you see now on tv, is because its a trend. Its acceptable, so the networks seem to be marketing towards those that they think would be interested. They too, and Im thankful for this, have missed the mark. As some of you may be experiencing. Its past tense now. So, once they see that with their ratings, they will move on to something else that strikes our fancy. Im too old and fat now adays to be sold to the public. Especially on tv. The tv shows came after my prime. We didnt have internet, websites, even some of my close tattooer pals in the industry, didnt know what I could do. They didnt seem to care who was doing what unless they were in a magazine to confirm their talents. And if a bunch didnt know you, then who were you but someone slinging ink to get by. I guess another way to explore this, is if I had a kid, he/she would be in their mid twenties now. Possibly heavily tattooed or not, having been raised in a tattoo household. Being a different generation. Even my kids, if I had had them, would not know how it used to be, accept from the stories I would have told them as to how it used to be when I was a kid. Sounds like repeated history. :) Is there a moral? If you love tattoos, then wear them. Just make sure you are doing it, because you love them and not because everyone else does too. Respectfully, Mikki ps. Sorry Deb to rant on your topic. :)=

Hi Deb thanks for the poetic insight. I feel ya. When I need a good quote, I look to Mark Twain for inspiration. He seemed like a timeless man, full of wisdom when it came to watching the trends of time pass and renew themselves. "The radical invents the views. When he has worn them out, the conservative adopts them". Mark Twain. My father talks of the same changes...having been a biker in the sixties til around the nineties. I remember people pulling off to the side of the road in fear of us coming along side them on the highways in LA. Of course I was just a little one then, wondering in awe, why I saw fear in those peoples faces. I realize now, my pops and his friends looked like demons to them. Now. Well, lets say when I see someone riding by on their new Harley, with their shiney new Harley gear, tassles and all. I know. Its just not the same. Im happy to know the difference. Im happy to have witnessed a small part of the small tattoo clan that existed. The clan has grown for sure. Some will never know what it was like to be disowned from family/friends because of our want to be tattooed/die our hair blue/cut it into a mohawk, fight to show our individuality, in a time when society looked down on us for choosing to go against the norm and follow the life we loved. Quality still shines, even then. Because of quality, mainstream adopted us. Love and respect, Mikki

Hawk, I was told by Chuck Elderidge it was an Owen Jensen. This of course was a long while back. Please share with me your info on it, if you have it. And Dringenberg and company, you made my precious collection years ago. Ill post those when I remember to take my camera home. You are in good company. :) Always, M