Flash I will recreate

I have decided on the classic tattoo designs I will be recreating in photography. They are going to be in a modern manner drawing on influences from Jeff Wall and tableaux photography with a fashion/street photography view like Jeff Mermelstein, Martin Parr, Alec Soth and Stephen Shore. I will try and add a bit of humour into the photograph like Oscar Gustave Rejlander and make it so people of this generation will understand it and connect with the images. I have chosen these images because I think I will be able to create the best images for them, they are the most relevant to this day and age and they were also the most relevant to the past tattooists.

 End of the Trail, maybe something to do with coming home after a party or hard night out?

 Pharaohs horses, people pushing passed each other to get onto the bus or in a shop?

 Rock of Ages, child clinging onto mother?

 Sacred Heart, a rockstar or celebrity? homeless man or person selling newspapers?

And either an eagle or swallows, both have a long history in tattooing, whichever brings out the best image I will use. 

Drawings so far

So far I've been doing sketches and drawings to get a feel for the tattoo style and putting my own spin on them here are some pieces in progress -

Drawing my flash

This is my setup I've finalised on. I use Daler Rowney watercolour paper, Promarker pens with blender and Faber Castell indian ink pens. After trying watercolours like most tattooists I found I wasn't very confortable using them. I talked to a friend of mine in Churchyard Tattoo in Hitchin Hertfordshire and he suggested I try these pens, which work like a charm! I usually sketch out an idea roughly in my sketchbook, turn the page over and use my alptop as a lightbox to draw over it again with more detail. Then I'll use my 'lightbox' again to draw the design onto watercolour paper and go over it with pen. Finally I colour it all in! It made me realise how much work is put into just one drawing. I think though I might try different, darker colours next time though as these are a bit tooo 'cartooney'.

Inspirational Table/Mantlepiece

So I like collecting random things and a lot of the time these can be inspiration for me in drawings and photographs. What I've done is put all my favourites on the mantlepiece and keep rearranging them hoping to 'see' a picture in them. for instance theres a lion statue next to a rabbit figure, from that I could draw a rabbit in a suit and crown like the lion. Plus it makes the room look cosier. After watching the tattoo age series I noticed all the artists use all their passions and mix them all together to create the art they do. One of mine is to collect weird stuff and I can already see that I feel more enthusiastic for drawing on all of my hobbies to create photographs and drawings.

Thom DeVita

Thom DeVita bridges the gap between fine art and tattoo art. His designs were based on classic designs and changed to his style. He also experiments massively with his work, drawing, painting, wax and chalk rubbings and different materials like cardboard, black paper, and wooden pallets. He started tattooing in New York City's Lower East Side in the mid 60s—when tattooing was illegal in the city—and quickly began to forge his own style. Thom drew from a wide variety of influences for his tattoos, everything from Pueblo Indian designs to Lord & Taylor shopping bags. He also formed relationships with other American tattooers who were revolutionizing tattooing by bringing in influences that went far beyond the usual array of images found in most American tattoo parlors at the time. This is my favourite episode of the tattoo age series as DeVita shows how important it is to keep pushing the boundaries and stay creative.

Tattoo Age, Vice

http://www.vice.com/en_uk/tattoo-age
Tattoo Age is a series on Vice.com showcasing the best modern tattoo artists. From all over America and the UK, big figures in tattoo are interviewed, filmed working and asked about the tattoo world at the moment. Its a great source of information to see how tattooists work nowadays and where they got their influences from. I found it interesting to see how artistic modern day tattooists actually are, many paint constantly and work in other mediums as well, its a good reminder that all though you have to throw yourself into a medium to be successful at it you also need outside influences to stay creative.

Tattoo Flash

Flash is what tattoo artists call their designs. They are usually on pieces of A3, drawn in pen and ink or watercolours, can be black and white or colour and any genre of tattoo. Flash is displayed on tattoo shop walls and used to be the sole tattoos available in shop, if it wasn't on the wall you couldn't get it. More recently, late 70's, Ed Hardy arguably brought in the concept of custom tattoos among other artists. Instead of being limited to designs on the wall, nowadays customers will usually always have a custom tattoo drawn up or designed already. Flash therefore is now more of a way of showcasing an artists talents, portfolios, or decoration.

Neo Traditional

Neo Traditional tattoo is a movement that has evolved from traditional. Its hard to put down exactly what is different between the two but the main points are -

• Cleaner, more exact lines
• More figurative
• more realistic
• Gothic and dark influences

Traditional American

 

Traditional is the oldest form of modern American and European tattoo, originating from folk art to sailor tattoos to criminal gangs and bikers to a respected art form now. What I love most about traditional is because of its folk art routes anything can be done, you can draw a frog pulling out a gun and it will fit in perfectly.

Folk art

Folk art was a massive influence on tattoo culture in america and europe. Probably because the same things shown in folk art imagery was the same thing people wanted to get tattooed; visions of home, religion, love, stories and milestones in peoples lives.