jimmyirish

Yeh, I live in Hackney and love Duncan's work. I've always wanted to get some of his flash but imagined that it would be super hard to book in with him, just because he's such a figurehead of London tattooing. I've got a lot of work planned for next year but i think i might look into it, you've inspired me!

@abees, was admiring this earlier today on instagram. So distinctive and tough, seems like a really interesting guy too?

Firstly, what a great thread- so good to hear so many open and honest experiences. As others have said, I can really relate to what has been said about feeling a sense of guilt and shame about my tattoos and consequently not trusting my own convictions. Being told by anyone that by getting (particularly visible tattoos in my case) you have sabotaged your future happiness is bad enough. But being told by your mum, even if its only implicitly by a line of negative questioning that I have ruined everything from future job prospects, my looks, to even the chance at being a good and respected father is a hammer blow. I really don't think they mean to be as cruel as they are, if it was someone else's child they would be able to see that undermining someone you love in such a devastating way is wrong. I'm not a parent, but after sitting down with my mum and thrashing all this stuff out I think it has a lot to do with letting go, that this baby who they bathed and protected for so long is now an adult and is asserting such (from my mothers perspective anyway) a visible, brutal autonomy over their own body. the weight of parental expectations has been an absolute bastard for me, comparing myself to other family members and feeling like a failure because, by getting tattoos i had closed the door on my own future. It is only now at 27 that I am beginning to see that there is not only one game in town, and that the occupations that would exclude me for being visibly tattooed are not ever wanted for my life anyway! I currently work as a bartender in a good cocktail bar and I plan to combine this with a yoga teacher training course which i'm going to start next year, I also plan on completing both my sleeves by the end of next year. I'm not gonna be a lawyer or an academic and I can't see myself earning a tone of money, but as @beez so rightly points out, we are all adults with the right to make our own decisions.

@Cork, so nice man, congratulations!

@chbronson, fucking perfect!

@polliwog, try Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance. 1970's classic and just a very involving read. In terms of modern philosophical musings on work I read Alain de Botton's The Pleasures and Sorrows of Work the other week and would highly recommend it.

@HettyKet, that's absolutely unbelievable. Very inspiring. I wonder whether getting work that is as cohesive as that requires you to work with just one artist? Or do you reckon you could achieve it with a bunch of different artists doing one shots?

@Pugilist, of course having tattoos makes you no more or less an individual than anyone else and subcultures are about belonging too. By saying that someone with tattoos is voluntarily placing themselves on the margin, I didn't mean that they are making some noble choice to assert their identity. Rather that within the sphere of certain employment, tattoos place you in a marginal position because of the dominant culture of the job. My dad is a sociologist at a uni here in London, he hates tattoos but since he's been tenured for over 30 years he could do whatever he wants regarding his appearance. But a young PHD student looking to get their foot in the door may find the normative values of a bunch of middle aged white men a hindrance. Anyway it's an interesting conversation, a lot of good points made.

I think the kid going for a job as a bus boy is such an interesting example. When you have no skills you are basically at the mercy of everyone, in the context of menial work you are going to be judged for your tattoos; because frankly you haven't got much else going for you! The way I see it the answer is not to spend your life doing shit work and not getting the tattoos you want, but as @Graeme says, embrace the margins. If you can develop a skill set that demands you be judged on the quality of your work rather than your tattoos, then you got the best of both worlds. There's a guy who drinks at the bar I work in who I've become friends with, older guy in his mid 40's who has made a very successful career in fashion buying. He's got one the the best collections I've ever seen, two Thomas hooper sleeves as well as hands, bailey Robinson, Chad, Steve Byrne and many many others on his legs, Ian flower on the back of his neck...you get the idea. One of the other barmen asked him if he had ever worried about it effecting his job opportunities, in his thick Manchester accent he replied 'nah, I know who I am, and I'm fucking good at my job'

Looks like a beautiful place but that just isn't going to work as a tattoo in my opinion.

Yeh he seemed super nice even through email, that's cool that he took the time to make sure it would be just right. You can see that integrity in the quality of his tattoos. I was gonna get him to do an eagle on my bicep but I picked up the eagle from Valerie Vargas so now I think I'm gonna go for a clipper ship on the inside of my upper arm. I just hope he has one ready to go because he's only working from flash at the convention. That's such a fucking cool story, I'm hoping that I might be able to get Hooper to tattoo my ribs next summer when I'mon holiday in Austin with my girlfriend. Probably a real long shot but might be worth a try?

Looks great @Rikhall, you got a damn fine collection man!

Oh man @heathenist, that is just so so good! Got a spot with him at the London convention in September, seeing this makes me all the more excited! Congratulations on such an amazing tattoo.

'Greetings From Asbury Park' the title of one of the very greatest records of all time! Welcome!

This conversation about taste and whether 'traditional' American tattooing really can be described as timeless is so interesting. It also ties in a way to a conversation I was having with my grandfather a couple of weeks ago after I showed him my tattoos for the first time. He's 89 years old in November and got all of his 4 tattoos during the 2nd World War whilst stationed in Germany. He has a crawling panther, an anchor, a swallow and his favorite, an eagle on his bicep. He got all of his tattoos in 1944 and he still loves all of them to this day, he says that getting the eagle was one of the best decisions he ever made 'its given me so much joy over the years'. Interestingly though I asked him if he ever wished that he had got more and he said no, he got just the number he wanted and stopped there. Now this is a guy who has lived with his tattoos for 70 years now, tastes have changed, fashions have come and gone and through it all he's remained stoked with those four tattoos he got in the 1940's! This got me to thinking about my own approach to tattoos and how different it is to his, like most people on this forum I'm always planning who I'd like to get tattooed by and have pretty much mapped out my arms and torso in my mind. But its easy to forget that those images of heavily tattooed sailor from the 1940's actually made up a tiny minority, my grandad was considered pretty heavily tattooed at that time. I wonder with the whole traditional thing whether we are chasing something that didn't really exist in the way we think it did, and whether he might be onto something when he said to me that if you want to continue to love the tattoos you have through your life then sometimes less is more... That being said its not advice I'm going to take, I cannot imagine a time when I won't want to get tattooed. Sorry if that was a bit of a rant and off topic, I just thought it tied in with the flavor of the thread.

Amen

Man your tattoos are absolutely ridiculous, you don't need advice on taste from anyone! I would definitely have a look at the boys from Smith Street tattoo though, I think (although don't quote me) that Eli quinters and Bert Krak are coming this year, it doesn't get much better for traditional American tattooing. I'm getting tattooed by Steve Byrne at the convention, he might still have some spots and is another great option...

You are completely wrong that tattoo grabbing only happens to women, some drunk guy tried to lick my arm the other day at the bar I work. When I told him in no uncertain terms to fuck off he said, as if it was the most normal thing in the world 'I just wanted to find out if the ink has a flavour!' As @growltiger says it's probly not worth arguing about some of your other assumptions. I think you've read too many of those pick up artist books my friend...

you don't have any pics do you? @sighthound

Thanks for the input guys, I would prefer not to have any more Japanese, just because i like the contrast between western and Japanese styles - do you reckon it would work if I went for a traditional piece on the inner bicep and then filled up the rest of the gaps with little fillers and a few roses as suggested? I just ordered 'These old Blue Arms- the life and times of amund dietzel' and was hoping I might be able to incorporate some of that old flash as filler. Thanks again

Hey all, So i know there is already a thread on integrating different styles of tattoo into a collection, but I think this is a little more specific and I have been trying to figure it out for a while. Currently I have a 3/4 Japanese peacock sleeve on my right arm and a great big eagle on my upper left arm. I have an appointment at the London tattoo convention with Steve Byrne, and I was originally going to get him to do my eagle but I just couldn't resist snapping up a Valerie Vargas cancellation (I love her eagles!). I was thinking of getting Steve to do a clipper ship on the inside of my right arm, I love his clean, bold take on traditional subjects and i'm sure he'd do an unbelievable job. The only problem is that i'm a sucker for symmetry and i'm worried that it will look a little lopsided with a 3/4 sleeve on one arm and just two large tattoos on the other. I'm also not totally comfortable with moving down to the wrist, I know i've gone half way down the forearm but it still feels like a big step somehow. So i'm thinking I could get Steve to do something on the inside of my bicep (a panther or a girl head maybe?) and then get little filler pieces dotted around my upper arm so its kinda a 3/4 traditional American sleeve. Do you guys think that would work or would it just draw the attention away from the eagle? Sorry to be so long winded! heres a couple of pics to give you an idea of what i'm working with. Thanks very much for your help.

I gotta say Mick, reading that last post got me a little choked. Especially the stuff about your dad, i had the exact same conversation but in reverse i supposed. I remember sitting in a coffee shop with my dad, looking at him a year sober and saying to him 'how the fuck are you still alive you old bastard!' and we both stood up and hugged. It was almost as if in that moment all the anger and resentment about his behavior over the years fell away, and i was just happy to have him there, this old red faced bastard - my dad. heavy stuff for the internet! Still its good to talk, and even better to listen. Thanks for that @Mick Weder

I just wanted to chip in to the conversation about 12 step program's. My dad has been in the AA program for about 6 years now and it has given him and his family something I never thought possible. It's not just about stopping the using (although of course that's the primary focus) but it's like Mick said, the drugs or the booze become so internal over years and years that suddenly relating it the outside world sober can see really difficult. There's an expression for that in the rooms which is a 'dry drunk' and I've seen it with my uncle who hasn't touched a drink in 20 years and hasn't smiled or laughed once in that time either. Anyway I just wanted to voice my support @MadeIndelible, you've started down a road that really can transform your life - and it's a fucking brave thing. 'It works if you work it, so work it!'

absolutely exquisite @mmikaoj, quite literally took my breath away.Stunning, brutal, delicate...the world is a more beautiful place for that tattoo existing! Which day are you getting it worked on in London? Would love to see it in the flesh and congratulate you in person.

Three absolutely great tattoos so far! will add this into the mix just for fun. My 3/4 peacock sleeve by Mie at Nine Tails Tattoo in East London. Its a cover up of an old black and grey piece that I had 6 laser sessions on over a couple of years. Final touch up finished last week.