The center doesn't look reasonably flat. Almost like a tiny crater, which would be similar on an infection if it was red/swollen.
It can still look normal, later on. It often takes 4-6 weeks before you know what you're ending up with.
Yeah, it doesn't look 100% normal, but it also doesn't look red/hot either. If it does get red and hot then it's infected and you should see a doctor immediately. Otherwise all you can do is wait 4-6 weeks to see how it comes out.
I had to look him up - but you're right, his work is amazing. Super fine detail, mostly in small scale. Are you looking for portraiture or small/detail stuff?
Yeah - it could be a red ink reaction, and you'll find at least a couple of historical threads that dive into that subject. Nevertheless if it's painful even 2 weeks after it's applied I'd be having a doctor make sure there's no infection.
I can honestly say I've never seen that before.
I've also probably never seen that much white being used, either - but I've never heard about anyone having a reaction to white ink.
Sorry, but there's no way for any of us to proceed without seeing what is there now. Aside from that we'd need to know what style of tattoo you'd be interested in wearing.
Yep. Elbows are not easy to do, so actually in one sense your current artist is doing you a favor by not attempting to do something he/she isn't comfortable with.
Any pattern or flower would sit nicely behind that knife handle (?) and ribbon.
Ultimately whatever image you see and use can represent or remind you of whatever it does. The translation doesn't need to be literal, as long as having that image isn't about translating to casual strangers.