Rosalie Hurr, Author at Things&Ink

April 11, 2016April 11, 2016

The backpiece Conundrum

Our blog content manager Rosie shares her thoughts on tattoo placement and explores the niggling voice in the back of her head, asking the question- why didn’t I put that tattoo somewhere else?

When I first started getting tattooed I never thought I would ever be covered in tattoos, or have as many as I do now (still not enough!). At the time I had only really seen people with a few pieces dotted around their bodies, my auntie had a Winnie the Pooh tattoo, and I hadn’t met anyone who collected different work from numerous artists.

This post isn’t about tattoo regret or any kind of unhappiness connected to a tattoo. It is just a post to share a thought that I’m sure many readers have- why didn’t I get that design tattooed on another part of my body?!

While I was a uni I started to get tattooed, I had always liked them and with my new found freedom I began to decorate my body. Like many tattoo virgins, I never thought they would suit me – how wrong I was!

I absolutely love the watercolour style magpies, that I have on my left shoulder, done by the lovely Jessi James, while she worked in Plymouth. I love the colours, the fact that there are two for joy and the delicate blossoms. I also love them because now that she has specialised in dot work/ black work, and rarely does colour tattoos, they are almost like a limited edition piece of art. Even more beautiful and special to me.

I wouldn’t change them in any way, but I would change where they are. They take up a good part of my back, stretching towards my spine. I only wish that I had chosen to put them somewhere else. That I had left my back empty. I have a niggling feeling that Jessi may have talked to me about the placement and even said all that I am saying now! The back is such a prime piece of tattoo real estate, a huge expanse of skin open to an all encompassing design.

I think they were my third or fourth tattoo. At that time I had no plans for my body and no ideas for future tattoos. I didn’t have Instagram so didn’t follow the some 600 tattooists that I do now from all over the world. I didn’t have a tattoo artist wish list and I didn’t spend all my time thinking of subjects and things that I want to get tattooed.

However I have seen lots of people with many smaller pieces on their backs and an artists even created a version of the design I am thinking about around an existing tattoo. I don’t want to cover up my birds, I just wish there was a way of moving them to free up my back for a bigger design.

Have you had the same placement doubts as Rosie? Do you wish you could move your tattoos around?

April 10, 2016April 10, 2016

Differently Abled Women Taking Back the Beach

Online women’s lifestyle website Refinery29 created a beautiful and inspiring photographic series titled ‘9 Stunning Photos Of Differently Abled Women Taking Back The Beach‘. The series showcases four stunning women who all have disabilities enjoying their bodies and holidays as well as the stories behind their bodies…

Despite often facing additional logistical challenges, women who are differently abled “take back the beach” in their own way, whether that means making their way through the sand in a wheelchair, overcoming insecurities around removing prosthetic limbs in public, or simply asking for help when they need it.

And since we don’t see enough of these women in ads or on the pages of magazines, we decided to spend a day at the beach and the pool with four differently abled women and find out what their experiences are really like. Of course, these four stories don’t represent every single differently abled woman out there, but they’re definitely a start.

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Danielle Perez Age: 31 Location: Los Angeles, CA Job: Comedian

beach

Kristen Parisi Age: 31 Location: New York Job: Public relations executive

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Lacey Henderson Age: 26 Location: Phoenix, AZ Job: Professional long jumper for the U.S. Paralympics

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Caxmee Age: 26 Location: Brooklyn, NY (originally from Haiti) Job: Fellowship/program manager at the office of the mayor of New York City

April 9, 2016

Apprentice Love: Kathryn Kirk

We spotted the work of apprentice Kathryn Kirk, 27 on Instagram and instantly loved her dark art and black tattoos. We chatted to Kathryn to find out more about her life as an apprentice at Addiction Tattoo & Piercing Bangor, Northern Ireland where she works…

Inspired by Things&Ink Kathryn created this feathery babe just for us…

How long have you been tattooing? I have been tattooing just under a year now.

How did you start? What did you do before? Before tattooing I had just graduated from Queens university Belfast, working for a music venue and in retail part time. I was drawing and painting but it took until I was 25 to work up the courage to put together a portfolio and publicly seek an apprenticeship. I was very lucky to have spent time working reception and apprentice duties in one of Belfast’s most reputable studios. Since then I have been keeping my head down, learning my craft and working very hard.

Do you have a background in art? From a very young age I was always making or painting something. After leaving school I studied performing arts and drama for six years with a focus on design work – costume, sets, installation pieces, film, etc. I enjoy the process of planning, making and completing something with a hands-on approach.

What drew you to the tattoo world? I grew up listening to punk and metal music with a lot of tattooed musicians so it always felt hand in hand to me. As far as I can remember, Uncle Allan was the first tattooist I paid attention to because he was mentioned in a band interview I read in a magazine. I was such a big Brody Dalle fan so seeing a woman in a punk band being a badass with tattoos was just everything to a 14 year old me! I had older friends that had tattoos and that along with reading music and tattoo magazines and seeing the array of artists and styles made me want to get into the industry. The more I saw and learned about the tattoo world the more I wanted to be a part of it.

Describe your style, how has it changed? I wouldn’t say I have a style, being so early in my career I’m trying my hand at everything. At present I’m flirting with traditional and geometric tattooing, but ask me in a few years!

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What medium do you use for your illustrations? I use fine liner pens and technical pencils for drawing and tattoo ink to shade- mostly black. I like to use my illustrations to create hand printed candles and various homewares, which I think are a nice change to flat tattoo prints.

What inspires you? Inspiration comes from anything, I to follow so many amazing artists through social media and I’m exposed to so many different styles of work, textiles, old photographs, movies and music, books, the list goes on! My family and my boyfriend are a massive inspiration to me. They give me the motivation, inspiration and confidence to tackle every challenge. My father has owned his business for 26 years and to this day still works on developing his skills and progressing with fresh ideas. He works incredibly hard with little recognition but he always makes sure the standard and quality of his work speaks for itself. That’s something I aspire to and his work ethic inspires me to keep going. Hopefully I haven’t embarrassed him – sorry dad!

What would you love to tattoo? There’s so much I would love to tattoo, and that’s what I work towards everyday. I can’t wait to be creating pieces that make people go ‘wow, how did you do that?’

What is a typical day like for you? Because I tattoo part time and have a job on the side, every day is different but I guess a typical tattoo day for me is up early, in for cleaning, any drawing and prep for the tattoo, station set up and making sure I have snacks and a good playlist. I spend a lot of time drawing and researching, my main objective at this early stage is putting the best work out there that I can and constantly improving. I have a high expectation of myself and what I want to achieve so that’s what I work towards.

Do you have any guest spots or conventions planned? Not at this point but I definitely want to meet more artists and studios so would love any opportunities as soon as I’d feel confident enough. Through selling my work online I have been very lucky in being able to send my art all over the world, and I hope someday I’ll be in the position to tattoo in these places too, but all in good time.

Can you tell us about your own tattoos? I like collecting pieces from different artists so I’ve picked up some lovely work from both local and travelling artists, or when I have been away somewhere. My right arm is all traditional but my favourite pieces are a reaper from Joseph Deegan (Shamrock Classic Ink Dublin) and a switch blade my boyfriend and I both got by Tanya De Souza-Meally in AKA Berlin. I have a Tibetan half sleeve on my left leg by Chris Crooks (White Dragon Tattoo) which was done about seven years ago. My most recent is a rose on my right hand by Danielle Rose.
I’ve been mindful of the scale of work I want to get over the next few years so I have left a lot of big areas blank. I’d love work from Laura Yahna, Guy Le Tattooer, Scott Move, Gakkin, Jondix and Rafel Delalande… so lots and lots of black work!

April 7, 2016April 7, 2016

Morg Armeni Solo Art Show

Our Italian contributor Ilaria Pauletti attended the opening night of artist and tattooist Morg Armeni’s first solo art show in Rome. Ilaria chatted to Morg about the art she has showcased and the process behind it…

Morg’s gallery of artwork title ‘Morgasmatron_redemption through delight’ has been curated by Marta Bandini and Elettra Bottazzi, at Parione9 in Rome. The exhibition displays some of her most recent works and some of her deepest emotions.
In fact, Morg portrays her journey through life, love and suffering, while giving the feminine figure a new role.
The skills in detailed paintings and the refined technique allowed the artist to play with different materials: oils on canvas but also on wood and thin paper.I think every person could relate to one piece more than to one other, but they were all connected to me, from the least to the most recent.

How do you feel when you start a new painting? And when you finish it?
When I start painting I feel like I’m in a round room with many doors that I can open, behind each of them is a world of meanings and symbols for me to use. It’s the feeling of having infinite possibilities.When it comes to the end I feel like a mother taking care of her child. If everything I have created is in its right place, I feel at peace but I am also inspired to create my next piece.

What piece of work, that you have shown in the gallery, best represents you?Probably the work that represents me and how I am now is The Creator. Undoubtedly because it is the last oil work I’ve painted and also because it touches the issue that I want to always keep in mind. We are the creators of our present, and we can go beyond our difficulties or the feelings of fear of sadness that limit us. We can become again our sacred temple of love, for ourselves and for life, creating our present and, consequently, the future in the most natural and harmonious way.

Do you find painting therapeutic? I find that facing your own ideas and convictions, represented in a figurative way, through painting, often puts me in front of sides of myself that I would not otherwise see. The hours I spend in solitude painting, often means I realise that I have some unresolved issues that I need to work on. This is very therapeutic for me. Often, looking retrospectively at my paintings makes me see more clearly the emotional situations that I’m going through and my growth, or at least the direction that I’m pursuing.

How important is to be yourself and get literally naked for art?
I think it’s everything, but I also believe that it is a time consuming process. Initially, when your painting technique is immature, you need to take inspiration from the great masters and sometimes imitation can distort your own style and nature. With time we can break away from this and this is how we find our true selves. I believe this is the most real art expression.

Morg’s solo show is at Parione 9 until 17th April

Photos by Diana Bandini

April 3, 2016

The Art of Oleg Dou

Oleg Dou a Russian artist who uses photography as a medium for his work, creates sad yet beautiful pieces of art. Oleg concentrates on old classical facial shapes mixing them with real world objects to create multi-textured works which often shock and produce fearful responses in his audiences.

Sketch for the “Sometimes it is sad”

Sketch for the Butterfly

Unicorn

Sketch for The Bird

Pet

Paper 2