Charles - Art and Science, Together in Ink

Last month, on a journey to the Fairway market in Red Hook, Brooklyn, my daughter Jolee was begging me for a couple of Snapples. "Only if you find me a cool tattoo," I teased her. She dashed off and, within seconds, it seemed, she was back, beckoning me to the next aisle.

There, I met Charles, who shared this interesting tattoo on his left arm:

I find this piece fascinating. I asked Charles to describe what went into its creation. He said it represents

"that rare occurrence when art can meet science ... The dancers are the expressive artist part of it and then this is the anatomical heart at the bottom ... this kind of green foliage-looking stuff behind the dancers is a representation of a brain neuron. I'm not a scientist by trade, but I'm a scientist by heart."

This "intersection of when expression can meet science" was inked in two sessions of two to two and a half hours each by an artist named Guido Baldini. Guido's work has appeared on Tattoosday before, here and here. Guido is based out of Santa Fe, New Mexico, but also spends quite a bit of time in New York doing guest stints at local shops.

Thanks to Charles for sharing this fascinating tattoo with us here on Tattoosday!

(And yes, Jolee got her two Snapples).

This entry is ©2011 Tattoosday.

If you are reading this on another web site other than Tattoosday, without attribution, please note that it has been copied without the author's permission and is in violation of copyright laws. Please feel free to visit http://tattoosday.blogspot.com and read our original content. Please let me know if you saw this elsewhere so I contact the webmaster of the offending site and advise them of this violation in their Terms of Use Agreement.

The Tattooed Poets Project: Noemi Soto

Today's tattooed poet is Noemi Soto, who sent us this lovely, colorful photo of her tattoo:

Photo Courtesy of Noemi Soto

Noemi explains:

"I designed the tattoo for myself during a pretty rough period after a major breakup about 6 years ago. I wanted it to represent the heartbreak that I was feeling at the time but still hold hope for the future. The artist who tattooed me was Danielle Distefano while she was working out of Dare DevilTattoo on Ludlow Street in Manhattan."

Danielle is currently tattooing out of Only You Tattoo in Atlanta, Georgia.

Noemi offers up this poem:

The Beginning is the End is the Beginning

Back when I was younger
My mother tried to protect my heart
Always telling me to never bare my insides for a man
to never let him in fully so that he may devour what I hold dear
to not let a man do to me what had been done to her

Her backbone used to show signs of strength but now lacks the stamina to withstand the battle
She was once a woman so strong in her will
but with every man in her life taking pieces of her for themselves
she has now become a mere shell of herself
The stink of her childhood still lingering in her hair

I was witness to the tug of war my father and her used to play
saw the push and pull of their hearts
there was nothing unconditional about their love
not even when it came to me
there is nothing sentimental and heartfelt in the throwing of pots, pans and fists
“I love you” cannot be said through the gnashing of one’s teeth

So when it came time for my will to be tested
I acted on what I saw and not what I was told
What I was shown was that to be a woman meant having to bend your spine so far back to please your man that you broke yourself in two
To stretch those parts of yourself out so that you may give him the smoothest of surfaces in which he may stomp your hopes and dreams into
To ignore his faults and accept them as your own
How dare you even think otherwise?

I was taught that… to be a woman meant having to pick up the pieces that were left behind from his war path
making sure only your feet bled in the process to save his
Being a woman always meant never asking any questions
to let him roam and if he comes back … well… what more do you want?

I followed all of these lessons very carefully
made sure I folded the laundry just right
had dinner ready when he came home
and always made sure to give him his space
only to find myself face down on the floor, arms pinned behind me, with all of his weight pressing his right knee into my back
I waited until he left the room to get up

I stayed in silence
still willing to be the woman behind the man
Still willing to be the glass which he slammed his fist against
shattering any sense of self worth I had just for him
I began to wonder if this really was what it meant to be a woman or just the kind of woman who was so lost in herself that she was willing to let a man tell her what she should be
and if it did …. Then I had to learn to become my own woman
and I couldn’t do that by being underneath his thumb

So I bent back each one of his fingers till they snapped at the joints to show him how serious I was
It was the only way to break free
and while he screamed in pain and cursed me for having been born

I cleared a way for myself through the broken home which I was sure would last forever
letting him know that he no longer had a hold on me

~~~

Noemi Soto is a Brooklyn, New York native who was born and raised in Coney Island and is a recent transplant to Queens. Her poetry has been featured in a variety of publications such as The Acentos Review, The Literary Burlesque, LitUp Magazine & South Jersey Underground. She is a Pushcart Prize nominee and is currently working on her first book. You can read more of her work  at her website here.

Thanks to Noemi for her contribution to the Tattooed Poets Project!

This entry is ©2011 Tattoosday. The poem is reprinted here with the permission of the author.

If you are reading this on another web site other than Tattoosday, without attribution, please note that it has been copied without the author's permission and is in violation of copyright laws. Please feel free to visit http://tattoosday.blogspot.com and read our original content. Please let me know if you saw this elsewhere so I contact the webmaster of the offending site and advise them of this violation in their Terms of Use Agreement.

They Call Him Mr. Spades

I met Matt in Penn Station last month and he was happy to share a couple of his eight tattoos. The coolest one was this heart on his left arm:

A closer look shows just how intricate this design is:

Matt explained that the idea behind this tattoo is simply that there are two sides to everything. He collaborated on the design with the tattoo artist Sean Malone, who works out of Rose City Tattoos in Rahway, New Jersey.

Readers may notice that, in the top photo, there is a distinct outline of another tattoo on Matt's arm in the shape of a playing card spade. What started out as a random tattoo of another spade ended up giving Matt the nickname "Mr. Spades" and it stuck. Here's a shot of the coolest Spades tattoo, straddling both of Matt's inner forearms:

Thanks to Matt for sharing these great tattoos with us here on Tattoosday!

Mrs. Dirtbird's Wedding Tattoo

Yesterday we enjoyed seeing the neck tattoo of a Missouri-based artist nicknamed "Dirtbird," as well as a piece he had inked on his friend Shawn.

In addition to meeting both Shawn and Dirtbird across the street from where I work, I also met Katie, who half-jokingly referred to herself as "Mrs. Dirtbird". She shared this tattoo with us:

Katie explained that this is a wedding tattoo. The piece depicts a heart, comprised of a male and female bird, sewn together. Since she married Dirtbird, this seems like and appropriate expression of their matrimony.

The tattoo was inked by Becky "Pink Eye" Ashcraft, who works with Dirtbird at Punkteur Tattoo in Joplin, Missouri.

Thanks to Katie for sharing her cool tattoo with us here on Tattoosday!

One Last Friday the 13th Post, for Melanie

So one of my friends Jenise had contributed to the Great Friday the 13th Tattoo Experiment and her votes for my tattoo were not along the finalists.

She was also keenly aware that we collected $31 in donations for my tattoo, $11 more than needed. Ginger, another friend, had added a dollar to the kitty for my lovely Friday-the-13th born wife Melanie, so Jenise, in an effort to make the experiment a complete success, chipped in the funds to bring us to an even $40, and she, Ginger, and Melanie separately concurred that this design was the one for her:

Much to our surprise, when we went back at 6:00 pm, business was brisk but it was only a 30-minute wait.

Artist Joey Wilson tattooed the Zoe Sonenberg-designed flash piece right below Melanie's $14 Valentine's tattoo (that story here).

The end result is lovely:

Thanks again to all contributors and supporters of Tattoosday through this process, and for everyone's patience while I went "off-book" for the last couple of days.

We now return to our regularly scheduled programming.

The Lovely Tattoo of Legs Malone

I couldn't help notice the striking woman standing on the subway platform waiting for the R train. She was tall, had long shapely legs, a close-shaven head, and a small tattoo on the back of her left calf.

The R pulled in and, as luck would have it, we sat down next to one another on the train.

I had to introduce myself.

Turns out, I was sitting with a burlesque performer named with the stage name Legs Malone.

We didn't have a lot of time to talk, as she was exiting the train a stop or two earlier than me, but she obliged me for a photo by taking my camera and shooting the tattoo on the back of her leg:

She told me that this small tattoo (the only one visible on her frame) was inspired by a heart-shaped bruise that she wanted to replicate on her skin, but in a more aesthetically-pleasing way. The flowers around the heart are cherry blossoms.

The tattoo was inked at Fly Rite Studio by Charlie Foos, who is now at Read Street Tattoo Parlour in Baltimore. Charlie's work most recently appeared on Tattoosday here.

Thanks to Legs Malone for sharing her tattoo with us here on Tattoosday!

Two for Tattoosday: Vanessa's Ink (Two Hearts Beat as One)

I met Vanessa last week and she generously shared two of her wonderful tattoos.

This piece on her inner right forearm was her first tattoo:



This design is based on the album cover of Poison the Well's You Come Before You.


Vanessa explained that this was the album she listened to when she was visiting her mother in the hospital. Her mom recovered, and she associates the record with this time of her life. The tattoo celebrates those moments.

The second piece she shared was inspired by her father:


Unlike with her mom, Vanessa does not have a relationship with her dad. The optimistic banner "may we meet again" is a glance forward, toward the possibility of someday reconnecting with him.

This large tattoo, on her right biceps, took eight hours, all in one sitting. The detail of the anatomically-correct heart is amazing. Vanessa pointed out how the artist added flowers to the design, as well as the rays of light in the upper right corner to create the shape of a figurative heart, as well.

Both pieces were created by Anthony Mealie at Tattoo Lou's in Selden, New York.

Work from that shop has appeared previously here.

Thanks again to Vanessa for sharing her wonderful tattoos with us here on Tattoosday!

Tattoos I Love: Sweethearts for My Sweetheart

So what does an inkblogger get his sweetheart on Valentine's Day?

Why, a love-themed tattoo, of course.

Lucky me, the good folks over at Thicker than Water Tattoo had a Cupid special, $14 tattoos on February 14.


A lot like the Dare Devil Tattoo Friday the 13th Special (one of which is documented here), the lucky tattoo recipient can choose from an assortment of day-themed flash.


Here's what my lovely bride Melanie had to choose from:


When we got to the shop, Melanie signed in #53, and they were averaging a dozen or so per hour, so we knew we had a little bit of a wait.

I specifically selected Shon Lindauer, since he did such an awesome job with my tiger tattoo.

It was nice that Melanie got to meet Shon and the piece she selected was one that he had drawn up.

He tattooed her in the middle of the back and took just about fifteen minutes:


She was very happy with the end result:


When we left around 3:45, the waiting list was over a hundred, so they looked like they had a long night ahead of them.

Thanks to Shon and the staff at Thicker Than Water for another great tattoo experience!

Tattoos I Know: Erika's Ink (Part 2)

This is part 2 of Erika's ink (part 1 here). Erika has a lot of tattoos, so I had to split the post, since she generously offered them all up for Tattoosday.

Tattoo #7 is actually #7 and #13, as one element was added eight years later. We'll focus on #7 now, which is the flower on the inside of Erika's left wrist.


Erika, in her own words, went through what she calls "an experimental phase" in her life, during which she began dating women. To show her "true colors" at the time, Erika and her cousin, who was also dating women, got the same tattoo...a rainbow-petaled flower above a doubled female sign, to proudly display her alternate lifestyle.

The flower was inked at a shop called Murda Ink Tattoos, in Jamaica, New York.

Flashing forward to the Summer of 2006, Erika was having a cover-up done (see #8 and #12 below) and asked, as an afterthought, if the artist could cover the interlocking female insignia, as well. Erika's fiancee (now husband) didn't like the "advertisement" of the prior lifestyle. The leaves were added under the flower at Triple X Tattoo, now known as Red Rocket Tattoo on 46 West 36th Street in Manhattan.

Tattoo #8 was a boyfriend's name, inked along the front of her waistline, by Joe at Between the Lines. This name was covered up (see below) in 2007.

Tattoo #9 is a Chinese dragon on the middle of Erika's back. Her dress at the company holiday party afforded me a great opportunity to photograph it without her having to remove any clothing.


Joe at Between the Lines did this piece as well. Erika recalls just hanging out at Joe's shop and talking about how she wanted a big piece for her back. Joe was happy to oblige, and drew up the dragon free-hand.

She said that it took about ten weeks and three sittings to complete. The reason for the multiple sittings? The pain. To quote Erika, "I'll never forget how much that shit hurt."

The other elements of the tattoo are the kanji. When I asked Erika what they meant, she said, "Well, one of them is supposed to mean "to love life":

and the other is supposed to acknowledge that former lifestyle and say "to love women":

Erika, when she told me this, seemed to have her doubts, and was receptive to the idea of me looking into their actual meanings.

I went to my resident Chinese language expert, who quickly debunked their meanings. They do not mean what she thinks they do, he said. Because they don't make much sense. The best translation he could give was "good girl" for the top and "born/appear" for the bottom.

If you look at the kanji for "love,"


you'll notice it's not similar to any of the kanji in the tattoo.

Tattoo #10 may look familiar, as it is the first one I noticed on Erika which started out this whole business. Despite "never being crazy about tattoos on arms," Erika inked this in the Summer of 2003, while on a date. She doesn't recall the name of the shop, just that it was somewhere in the East Village. Of course, the East Village is likely one of the few places in the U.S. where tattoo/piercing shops outnumber Starbucks.

So, Erika still had a soft spot for little girl things, unicorns and fairies and such, so she designed this fairy, using several different drawings to create a composite she liked.


She designed the wings and changed the outfit color to red. Why red? As a tribute to her younger brother, who was in the Bloods, a gang whose colors are red. I, for one, appreciate the irony of a pixie sporting gang colors. This is definitely a tough, New York fairy, not some wimpy woodland nymph!

Tattoo #11 also has a pretty interesting story. Erika got married in the Spring of 2007, but she met Lance, her husband-to-be in February 2004.

They dated for a couple of weeks, but she knew he was still dating another woman. Erika thought that this other woman, who had been seeing the guy first, was going to be a problem and that, as long as she was still in the picture, their relationship wouldn't go anywhere.

Erika made a conscious decision to "steal him away" once and for all. Because he had kids from a previous relationship, she plotted to surprise him on Father's Day with a surprise trip to Florida. He had never been to South Beach in Miami and she wanted him to experience it. And so she did.

The day before they were set to return to New York, they were walking around South Beach and they stumbled upon a tattoo shop. Lance already had one small tattoo with some kanji, so Erika suggested that he go in and get a new one. The subject of tattoos had come up before (how could it not when you already had 10 pieces?), so they went in and he got a new piece on his
arm, a huge lion with a crown, representing his last name in Hindi.

It's incredibly hard to be an inked person and watch someone get a tattoo and not want one for oneself. Therefore, Erika found a piece on the wall that she liked and had it done on her back, below the bluebird, above the dragon.


Sorry, the name of the shop and the artist are not recalled.

Tattoo #12 came in the early Summer of 2006, around late June/early July. She and Lance were engaged, and she wanted to cover up the name of an ex-boyfriend tattooed across her lower abdomen.

A co-worker recommended Red Rocket Tattoo, and it was there that she had this lotus inked on her waistline:


Yep, no name anymore!

Now, for some disclosure. Erika is the first Inked Person to let me photograph her stomach for Tattoosday. I did have a mutual friend present, Sephora, who was the first person who hosted a tattoo here.

Erika wanted the lotus for two reasons. In addition to wanting something pretty to cover up an old name, she had heard that the lotus was a symbol of fertility, and she hopes to have kids some day. She hopes the lotus will be lend good luck for future procreative purposes.


There are over one hundred various types of lotus, so I can't pinpoint the exact one this is modeled after.

Once this cover-up was done, Erika asked for the leaves on the flower mentioned above to cover up the double female insignia.

Well. a hearty thanks to Erika for her participation here! She definitely holds the record for most tattoos offered up to the Tattoosday masses. Her ink is closing out the year for Tattoosday. Here's hoping that her lotus will spawn a healthy blossoming of tattoo posts here in 2008!