Sunday, February 25, 2007

Here is the latest batch of pictures. The background now runs completely around my right forearm. I have an appointment later today, and I'm guessing we will continue working up my arm.
I finally picked up a copy of Poysden and Bratt's "A History of Japanese Bodysuit Tattooing". It's a great book. It goes into a lot of detail regarding the history of tattoos in Japan and also the history of Japanese yakuza (mafia) organizations. The book also showcases Horikazu and his work, which is incredible.

Saturday, February 10, 2007

Here are some pics of the last session's work, sorry for the delay getting them up. It wasn't fully healed when I took these pictures, but you get the idea.
As you can see, we started on the background on my right forearm and finished the shading of a large splash of water. The forearm is an easy enough place to get tattooed, it doesn't hurt too much at all.

One reason why getting tattooed on the front of my body and arms has been interesting is that I can actually see Horizakura work, carefully placing each spot of color with a deft movement of his hand. It seems he hits my skin at a certain angle, and once punctured, pushes the ink downward with flick of his wrist. Amazingly, he's able to do this quite quickly while maintaining the required precision.

Tebori aside, if you haven't already you should check out Troy Denning at his shop Invisible NYC. He's been doing great work here in NYC for years, and he's also been very friendly the few times we spoke. I understand he has a small gallery at the shop where they showcase various artists, all the more reason to stop by.