Halloween flash time coming up!

I LOVE HALLOWEEN as you all know. So I drew some things and set aside a day to do them, October 28th-

use this link to book time that day directly,

no need to email or call. just click through and scroll down to pick a time.

smog monster!

Thing Dog!

IT IS BATS

let me know which design number you want; each has an orange number next to it. if you’re not sure, add a lil description.
come in costume if you want, but you don’t have to- I just love halloween.

if you are far away and want to take these to a local artist to be done, please just drop me a few bucks via cashapp, paypal or venmo. 

(these flash designs are mine, but you can get another tattooer to tattoo them if you pay for the reproduction right)

The truth about fan art.

Now, I’ll admit  that I’m a fan of things. I enjoy things. I have problematic favorites just like anyone else. wanted to get that out of the way before I proceed.

case in point.

case in point.

 

now, about fan art. I’ll do it. I’ll do a caricature tattoo (more painterly- I don’t do photorealism) of any thing you like- especially if I like it too. however, I don’t want to copy a still frame of a film, a production photo or an exact image of a character someone else owns the rights to. it seems like bad karma somehow. those folks worked long and hard and they need to get paid for that, they own the character, the art, the film itself.

 

so my solution has always been to find a reference, a pertinent moment, and refine it into an idea that references the original without interfering in the ownership of the image. I’ve fallen down on this, all tattoo artists have. a tattoo is personal use, you see, so as long as I’m not using it to promote or create follow-up products, I’m on the ok side of things.

 

I prefer the subtle approach. for example, right now I’m obsessed with Westworld. I’ve got sketches of every damn character, based on extensive research into the actors, not based on any one moment in the series. they’re loose, painted. I’m ready to tattoo these. once. one person gets them. I may post them and tag we online (they are open to fan art) but I’m not interested in exact reproductions. I want to capture a moment or meaning, not a face.

 

all the things there were mechanical until the "upgrade" to cheaper materials like meat and bones. they were beautiful, now they're just like us. including the horses, the bison. so there it is.

all the things there were mechanical until the “upgrade” to cheaper materials like meat and bones. they were beautiful, now they’re just like us. including the horses, the bison. so there it is.

 

they can't ride that train anywhere. it's a goddamn loop around the park areas. it's headed nowhere. they can't escape. who laid those tracks? there it is.

they can’t ride that train anywhere. it’s a goddamn loop around the park areas. it’s headed nowhere. they can’t escape. who laid those tracks? there it is.

 

I’ve been obsessed with other things over the years, of course. mostly horror and sci Fi. I’d rather do something that contains the meaning of a scene, rough and raw and laid in strong, than copy and break a law or even piss someone off. there’s a lot of celebrity images in the public domain, I tend to rely heavily on mugshots, government images, and my paid Getty images access for these. I’ll use these and some of the character’s words or token totem items to make the piece. crossovers are fun, too, if I’m a fan of the actor.

 

looking at you, Walken.

looking at you, Walken.

 

looking directly at you, goldblum.

looking directly at you, goldblum.

 

 

I’ll do some things. I have dodgy soft spots. if I’m geeking on the same thing as you, I am a marshmallow and I’ll do it. I feel bad afterwards, but I love some things too much to say no outright. and I usually only do this if the creator has died.

 

Ernst Haeckel, public domain actually.

Ernst Haeckel, public domain actually.

 

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I really want to change the things to make then more my style, more to your fit, more important. I want to bring out the abstract qualities the original creator didn’t do- I want the meaning, the pith. if you’re a fan of a thing I’m a fan of, expect our consultation to be a geek fest about our fan theories and conceptual framework, finding symbols to use without infringing on copyright. that’s my goal every time.

 

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they never kiss.

from the literary description of It.

from the literary description of It.

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painting of a little sister.

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I wanted a real turtle.

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I’ll go abstract as fuck to capture the most powerful Disney villains.

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had to add sex appeal, sadness, and painterly feeling.

if, like me, you find important moments in media, like books, movies, shows… come talk to me. I like a lot of stuff, mostly horror/sci Fi and a little weird standard fiction. I’ve got a list of things I’d love to do, on standby. if our interests match, we’re going to end up with magic.

 

I was more lax about copyright in the old times of my career. after all, I need the word of mouth, the internet brings me about half my clients, and known franchises and characters will consistently outpace original works. people like the familiar and you’ll see a crap copy of a screenshot from a movie with 19,900 likes and hearts and comments, while thoughtful original content gets ignored. it’s really difficult to deal with as a creator. I’ve chased that little bump before. Won’t do it again. anything related to a media franchise from now on is all OC based on the universe in which the characters are set, all characters drawn from copyright free sources.

 

I’m an artist and I know artists need to get paid. while I need the exposure copying and making fan art gives me, and I enjoy it with my particular interests, we’ve got to find ways to change things- to use elements that are meaningful in that universe, without simply tracing a damn thing.

 

currently I’m interested in Westworld, the Wire, better call Saul, Ursula k Leguin sf (not fantasy though), everything from Stephen King, Octavia Butler, any horror movie you can think of, and of course, any celebrity who’s a little off their rocker. I’d like to do an Idris Elba, Antony Hopkins, Charlize Theron, Gary Bussey, Grace Jones, any woman in a good strong character actually from any era. I’d like to paint character actors. I’d like to tattoo a lot more characters from fiction instead of movies. true crime! but then also, I’m a horror movie creep so I’d like that too. inglorious basterds! hey just try me. if I’m not a geek for it, I’ll know someone who is.

don hertzfeldt tattoo

OH GAWD HELP ME MY ANUS IS BLEEDIINNNN-

just no direct copies. I’m not made for photorealism, my work is rugged and strange and won’t work that way. you can contact me if you’re interested by email, or with the link here: resonanteye.net/gettattooed.

I’ve been focusing more on skin and less on paper, so these images start out loose, they get refined on the skin. it’s about your interest in a thing matching mine, and your trust in the process. but I’m gritting my teeth waiting for more of this in the schedule, so please, bring it my way.

 

please. my inner nerd is underfed.

 

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outline of center areas done elsewhere, repaired and added the rest. xox John Waters

ka is a wheel. piece still in progress.

ka is a wheel. piece still in progress.

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bring these to me. please. I’m in the mood.

making gigantic sheets of flash.

1959412_10152705788832712_1722891796360266568_nSince I’ll be working a convention in early March, I’ve been going through all my unused sketches, drawings, tattoo flash collection, and sketchpads and assembling some big sheets of flash to bring along. I want to make it possible for people to look around at a bunch of things and pick something; to let people be spontaneous, and to give them ideas. So I’ve been doing this rather than putting a ton of smaller drawings in books to flip through.

These big sheets are pretty common in tattooing. We call them porkchop sets or pick and sticks, flash wallpaper. When a tattoo artist wants to do a bunch of small-to-medium sized things in a short time, they’ll often be using a sheet like this for people to choose a design from. You can see them pretty often when shops do a friday the 13th sale, or events similar to that.

(if you like something you see, hit me up at the evergreen convention. I’ll have these with me and be ready to roll! or email me, too.)

No, it’s not a tattoo of Gary Busey.

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I spent most of my day working on this awesome owl, on this awesome guy! It’s a cover-up of an old tribal armband. His lady got this bird on a branch last year, and she is also awesome.

The owl took two big sessions to finish.

(more…)

No, it's not a tattoo of Gary Busey.

DSC_0264 DSC_0270 DSC_0274 DSC_0276

 

I spent most of my day working on this awesome owl, on this awesome guy! It’s a cover-up of an old tribal armband. His lady got this bird on a branch last year, and she is also awesome.

The owl took two big sessions to finish.

(more…)

What are your reasons for getting tattooed?

anji-marth-tattoos-and-art-70Tattoos do have a purpose, although to some it may seem they are merely frivolous decoration, or a ploy for attention.

In indigenous cultures, tattoos are used to mark rank or status. In the west in modern times, this still holds true for many people. Getting a child’s name or portrait marks the wearer’s status as a parent, for example. Some use tattoos to show their membership in a group such as a fraternity or gang, and others wear them as status symbols to express their positive personal qualities, such as wealth or the freedom to look as they please.

Tattoos in the west in previous decades carried a heavy stugma of social unacceptability, and this has contributed to the use of tattoos to mark “outsider” status in some groups. Bikers, gang members, and prisoners may get tattooed as a badge of pride in their outsider status.

Tattoos can also mark a momentous occasion for the wearer. The birth of a child, the beginning or end of a relationship, or the attainment of some goal are all personal milestones that some choose to remember with a tattoo.

full-3Some use a tattoo to express their political or religious feelings. Many young Christians get crosses and fish tattooed on them as reminders of their moral beliefs, and many people get symbols of their personal opinions tattooed on them.

Others use the tattoo to commemorate the life of a loved one who has died. These are currently popular due to some television shows’ use of similar stories.

Yet other people will get tattooed for superstitious reasons. Sailors even today will get a pig tattooed on one foot, and a chicken on the other, to prevent drowning. Many also get tattoos of talismans or personal symbols of good luck. Horseshoes are always popular.

2a62883f6a5facde8cd4ba3b8f98258b-d4d2ojnBy far the most common reason to get tattooed is to express a hidden aspect of the wearer’s personality. The majority of people I’ve tattooed over the last ten years have stated that this was the reason they decided to get tattooed. For some this is as simple as getting a single word in english, or in another language, such as “truth” or “love”. For others, it can involve a large and extensive custom drawing that contains many personal symbols or images that express the personality of the wearer.

Another purpose of tattooing is simple decoration. Some people love the way tattoos look, and get abstract designs intended to emphasize or beautify various body parts. Some use a decorative tattoo to hide flaws such as scars, stretch marks, or older, less-attractive tattoos.

In the ten years I have been tattooing people, out of thousands of clients, I have only ever encountered two or three that claimed to get tattooed because they liked the sensation. Usually the pain is a sacrifice people are willing to make in order to accomplish the purpose of the tattoo.

 

tattoo dates!

I’ll be in Seattle from April 24-30, tattooing at laughing buddha. contact me by email to make a date!

I’ll be in Salem Oregon from may 3-7, I only have one or two slots open still, so reach me fast of you want to get tattooed while I am there!

resonanteye @ gmail . com

image

rats win races, sloths succeed.

556740_10151360701822712_101340810_n559917_10151362094257712_740607251_nDSC_1159a reminder tattoo for a tattoo artist friend of mine. he wanted to remember to slow down, and do more focused work, instead of hurrying up and rushing himself. He is the kind of artist who feels a lot of pressure from his clients, he tends to feel so glad to be tattooing that he forgets that his work is valuable, that his BEST work is worthwhile…that people who want really good tattoos are willing to pay for them, and that he is capable of doing great tattoos, and therefore shouldn’t undervalue his time…

If you undercharge people, you start to feel rushed. it’s inevitable- you end up booked solid for months but barely making ends meet. hurrying up to get that tattoo done in time, in the small amount of time you quoted them for. it’s far better to quote high, to take your time, take that extra hour to do your VERY BEST work on people.

any rate- I love fucking sloths. And this one is particularly classy, too.

also,

 

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cack.

fighting cock tattooI worked on a good friend today. I like spontaneous tattoos a lot.

There’s something to be said for the energy that builds up when you talk over an idea, do the art together, find reference, and then tattoo- all in one day. It’s my favorite way to work, really- with the client right there, hanging out the whole time.

This is Chicken’s cack.

Chicken is an old friend. He’s covered in no-nos, tattoos that are funny or offensive. He came in to get tattooed with no idea what we ought to work on (he is, like me, running out of space!) so we sat down and started throwing ideas around. He doesn’t have a cock tattoo, so noticing that the front of his leg below the knee was empty it was the first thing that popped into my mind – both as something that’d suit him, and something I’d really enjoy drawing. He asked me to make sure it was damn serious and kinda pissed, so I did.

We looked up a ton of photographs of the actual animal, so that I could get a good feel for the body structure and feather patterns on these guys. Our piercer, Tigger, showed me some photos of Aurmarca(spelling?) roosters, too- very simple and direct colors on these guys. Red, brownish-yellow, and a greeny-black iridescence.

All in all, a fun start for a big giddy tattoo.

I’ll be at the shop tomorrow too- it’s the tail end of the slow season here. Next month I will likely be busy tattooing, but for right now I have the time to work on some close friends and colleagues, which is a nice segue back to regular working hours from camping season!

 

(note, this cack is about halfway done. we still have to do the tail, wing, and background.)

dick fez.

today I had fun.

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