I apologize in advance for what is about to be an extremely lengthy submission, but I have just finished reading all 155 pages of this blog over the past week or so. I absolutely love this blog and applaud you for so doing. Critique is such an important part of the industry and art in general, be it praise or criticism.

As backstory and full-disclosure, I am both an editor for the #tattoo “explore” section of Tumblr, and a tattoo artist of two and a half years. I have been working in shops (both street and custom, as an assistant and apprentice before I started tattooing) since 2008. I graduated from art school with a degree in illustration, and have been getting tattooed heavily for eight years. I have been lucky enough to live in Brooklyn throughout that entire time, and have worked with and been tattooed by some amazingly talented people in New York City and abroad.

That being said,  I have quite a few opinions to share. I’ll start with the “editor” discussion, and move onto the artist section—but they both overlap quite frequently, as I’m sure you can venture to guess.

I absolutely loathe these, and share in your disgust for the frequency and ubiquitous nature that such designs seem to have. I blame the “tumblr/pinterest vacuum” as I call it, and the anonymous image unaccountability that the internet seems to laud these days. Since I’m always on the lookout for tattoos to feature in the explore section, I’m constantly bombarded with these—and not just the “originals” either. I just can’t figure out why anyone would want the exact SAME piece permanently attached to their person…..

— side of the foot/finger tattoos (particularly text)

— silhouette feather with bird silhouettes flying off/out of it (ribs)

— dandelion poof blowing in the wind with bird silhouettes (shoulder)

— that horrible google sparrow with the stupid tail (and anything else on the first page of google image search).

— anyone who reposts a custom design and says “OMG I’M TOTALLY GETTING THIS TATTOOED ON ME NEXT WEEK!”

If you like a bird, get a bird. If you like flowers, get a flower. If you like feathers, get a feather with some beautiful detail and and delicate lines that will last and still look delicate years down the road. FIND AN ARTIST WHO WILL DRAW YOU A CUSTOM PIECE. This constantly baffles me, and I have done my best to educate clients as to the dated-ness of these designs and the frequency in which they will occur (as recently as this week, when I tattooed a cluster of black and grey peonies on a shoulder blade instead of the dandelion poof thing).

As an artist (who is still green around the ears, that much I am more than willing to admit openly, because I grew up respecting my elders both in the tattoo and the art community) I can say that I have a few ‘guiding phrases’ that I’ve adopted and adapted to help me within this industry. Cliché though they may be, I think that many aspiring tattoo artists seem to overlook these simple pieces of advice.

—  don’t bite off more than you can chew. seriously. be honest with yourself and your abilities (or lack thereof), especially when you are just starting out.

— just because you CAN doesn’t mean you SHOULD. this speaks to many smaller tattoos—tiny text and upside-down tattoos included.

— if you’re jealous of both the tattoo artist AND the wearer of the tattoo when looking at a piece, it’s probably a good tattoo. strive for that!

— don’t get your hands or your neck done before your arms, legs, chest, etc. are all finished. EARN IT. set an example. and while we’re at it, this bears repeating…. listen to your elders, accept constructive criticism.

— tattooing isn’t about “getting famous” — if you excel, you will receive the recognition you have earned. period. focus on learning your craft, forwards, backwards, inside out. learn the rules of design so that you can take risks and break them, while still applying tattoos properly technically. 

— be the sort of artist who your client would want to take out afterward—even if it doesn’t happen, and in most cases it probably won’t—but there’s no reason to be a jerk-off with a horrible bedside manner when people are investing their time, energy, and hard-earned cash into you as an artist and a professional.

— keep a wish-list of artists whom you’d like to have work on you. save some space. if you want to get tattooed at 18, 25, 35, 45…. you’ll need some room! (this is a hard one for me, but every time I take up some more huge real estate with a large piece I have to look at my list and remind myself that there are people who I really want to learn from and meet, and getting tattooed by them is a perfect opportunity for that to happen).

I think that’s about all. Please keep this blog going, as I know that I and others in the industry and tattooed people of all sorts appreciate it and seek to spread the messages that you are putting back out into the world.

If you’re ever in New York, please stop by our shop!

-JvS