Kerry Unveils Some Masterpieces
A couple weeks ago, I felt like I had won the Tattoosday lottery. In my own neighborhood, I ran into Kerry, who had a bit of a tattoo peeking out of her left sleeve. I stopped her and introduced myself, and she shared some simply phenomenal work. We'll get to that left sleeve in a second, but Kerry …
Nicole Takes Us to Candyland
At the beginning of the month, I had the pleasure of encountering a young lady named Nicole in Herald Square (34th Street and 6th Avenue, for you out-of-towners).Nicole is heavily inked, estimating that "about 45%" of her body is tattooed.So with so much work, where to begin? She offered up her lowe…
Musician Monday: Doug from The Sleeping and Gramp's House
This installment of Musician Monday features Doug Robinson, lead singer from the rock band The Sleeping. I ran into Doug last week in Penn Station and stopped him when I saw all of his tattoos.Doug has had some of his work featured in Tattoo Magazine and is in the current issue of Tattoo Flash, so I…
Jessica: A Sugar Skull and Scream and Scream Again
In yesterday's post, I talked about meeting Corey and Jessica in front of Penn Station, and we featured two of Corey's tattoos. Today it's Jessica's turn. She praised to no end the tattoo artist who did this sugar skull, her friend Chris Handford at Perkins Road Parlor in Baton Rouge, Louisiana."The…
Corey's Traditional Creatures
I met Corey and Jessica last month outside of Madison Square Garden on a bright, sunny afternoon. Between the two of them, they have dozens of tattoos, so I had a lovely time chatting with them. They're originally from Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and had been tattooed by a couple of artists who are frie…
Gang Tattoo Meanings and Pictures
Tattooing is a form of ritual. It is also used as a means to express who an individual is and what they stand for. Most tattoos are a very personal symbol for whoever wears them on his or her body.Ancient Romans were known to use their tattoos as a means in identifying their slaves. Ancient Japanese…
Kathy's Back, The Beginning
I spotted Kathy walking in front of Madison Square Garden, near the corner of Seventh Avenue and 33rd Street earlier this month and, although I couldn't see specifically what she had going with her tattoos, I was intrigued enough to ask.Some folks are often dismissive of me when I approach them, but…
Emily's Typewriter
Last week, on Eighth Avenue, I spotted an incredible tattoo on the back of a woman's calf and knew that I had to speak to her about it. Check it out:This vintage typewriter belongs to Emily, and was tattooed by one of my favorite artists in New York, Virginia Elwood at New York Adorned. You can clic…
Orlando the Brave
Last fall, I met Orlando near F.I.T. and posted some of his tattoos in December. I had wanted to get clearer photos, but I hadn't been able to contact him, so his work appeared here, in an end-of-the-year recap.Fast forward to a month ago, when I spotted Orlando again on the corner where I work, so …
Orphans: The Hungry Lion
So what do I do with a tattoo photo that has been abandoned and forgotten?Why post it here, of course.Back on May 10, I met a guy in Penn Station and took a picture of his tattoo, which he referred to as his "Hungry Lion":And then, before I could talk to him further, his girlfriend emerged from the …
Delphine Shares a Lucky Cat and a Sailor Jerry Design
I met Delphine last week and she shared two of her tattoos with me. First is this piece:For those of you who do not recognize this image, it is a common piece of ceramic sculpture popular in Japanese culture called the "Maneki Neko," or Lucky Cat. It is a good luck charm, and is often seen in Asian-…
Vaughn's Elemental Sleeve
I met Vaughn in the Borders in Penn Plaza and he shared this half-sleeve with us. It's one of four tattoos that he has. He wanted a sleeve representing the intermix of the elements fire and water, and John Clarke at Holeshot's Premium Tattoo & Body Piercing in Amherst, Massachusetts came up with the…
Jay's Hands Express Faith and Doubt
I met Jay in Penn Station, stopping him because he had a whole lot of tattoos. He estimated that he is probably 60 to 70 percent covered. He offered up his most recent work (as of May 31, 2011), the following tattoos:Jay explained that, as a Christian, and as a pastor at the Revolution Church in Wil…
Frog Tattoo Meaning and Pictures
Tattoos can probably lay claim to being around over 5000 years ago when a man was found in the Alps in 1992, perfectly preserved in the ice. There were 58 simple little lines and dots tattooed on his body.Tattoos were also found on Nubian and Egyptian mummies that were more than 4000 years old. The …
Tim's Sleeve Illustrates A Vision of Life on Earth
I met Tim back in April in Penn Station and took several pictures of his left arm, which is fully-sleeved. What follows is a presentation of the work, from top to bottom:There's a lot going on here, but Tim summed the theme of the sleeve as "Hell is the world we're living in, and we're all trying to…