NavyDavy

Anyone know of a tattoo shop in Iwakuni/Horishima, Japan? Or a shop near there? If so, can I get an address or the easiest way anyone could find it. I have a friend stationed there and wants to get some work done. Please let me know.

If you enjoy this show, you should also check out Marcus Kuhn's The Gypsy Gentlemen. Pretty dope I think. Here's the website. Marcus Kuhn's - The Gypsy Gentleman - Home

So I've been painting designs now for over 3 years using Watercolor, FW Liquid Acrylic and Pelikan Ink on Arches (green cover) paper. Is it common or standard practice to spray them with a gloss cover to make them last longer or preserve them better? Or is it a "thing" to just give them "That SHINE!" All my artist friends I've asked don't do this, but I was looking at another friends artwork and its glossy. When I asked him if he used the spray gloss, he just said, "It's one of my secrets and I aint sharing." The work looks pretty cool with the gloss but I don’t know..... So, I know it's an individual thing, but does spraying them with the gloss make the design lose its Old School Feel or Street Credibility?

Bound by Ink is okay. The first issue was probably the best. The ones that followed were a little on the bland side. The featured artist interviews have been pretty dope, but the lifestyle section of that magazine has been a MISS with me. Inked hasn’t really done anything to me. It doesn’t motivate me to draw or anything. Thumbs down. Skin-N-Ink was making a pretty cool come back, but then the last 2 issues have been poo. Then again, every other month is a hit and miss with this magazine. Urban Ink is just garbage, they'll put any celebrity who has tattoos as the main article and its not even about tattoos half the time. Rebel Ink is the same company, so the above statement applies to this magazine. Lowrider Arte has recently added more tattoo artist to its ONLY article in the magazine. The quality of artwork in the magazine is horrible though. I wouldn't want an article of myself in a magazine that has drawings submitted by a 4 year old. (That's what actually happens). A magazine I recommend, that has nothing to do with tattoos, but is an excellent tattoo reference is Teen Angel Magazine. But... You have to go online (ebay) and buy the old, I mean... old versions. Back when the locked up Vatos were submitting for Pen pal requests. The prison art back in those days was the SHIT! If you buy the current Teen Angel magazines, it's pretty much like buying a Lowrider Arte magazine. Tattoo and Tattoo Flash are definitely the most consistent. Some issues are good, some issues are just plain crap. The Flash section is Shit! Not "The Shit" but plain "Shit!" Savage and the other mags Tattoo puts out are just plain obnoxious. To my taste Tattoo Life, Tattoo Energy and Total Tattoo are the go-to magazines. Most of the articles are usually well written and have great content. They cover all the worthy conventions and the tattoo pictures are by far the clean and crispiest!

Which Tattoo magazine would you say best represents the Tattoo Industry/Community? Let's see, you got INKED, INKED(GIRLS), TATTOO, TATTOO FLASH, TATTOO SAVAGE, TATTOO ENERGY, TATTOO LIFE, TOTAL TATTOO, BOUND BY INK, SKIN DEEP TATTOO, SKIN-N-INK MAGAZINE & TATTOO ARTISTS MAGAZINE? I'm sure there's more, but just to ask my question, I'll use these... So I go to Borders or Barnes & Noble and in the Special Interests section of the magazines, I come to the tattoo setion. I pull a few out, find a seat and start perusing them... In all the magazines, I see some pretty great work, but in others, just junk! Then there's a few that have a mixture of great work and horibble work next to eachother? I don't get it. Are magazine companies just hurrying up to make a deadline and send them to the printers? I know the editor is the ulitmate final decision of who makes the print and who doesn't... but doesn't he want the customer to fall in love with the product? Do editors think its a good idea to have great work next to shitty work? Does the price even justify the product? Some magazines I don't feel like paying $12.99. That's a CD! But NO! $12.99 for 60 pages some okay work, but mostly shitty, 10 pages of commercials, 3 weak articles on why Skulls, Ships, Dragons etc.... are cool???? I don't know man. What do you think?

Is there or could there be too many Tattoo Artists these days? Or could there never be enough?