Rachel's Roses

I spotted these beautiful roses last week outside of Madison Square Garden, and had to find out more about them.

I introduced myself to Rachel with my standard opening line, "Can I ask you about your tattoo?" Rachel admitted to me that the first impression she had was that I was going to try to sell her on a tattoo-removal product or service. She has not been the first person to think that. Perhaps I need a new intro.

Anyway, Rachel's trio of roses are remarkable, and she has 6 or 7 tattoos in all, many of which are roses as well, although she professed an admiration of Betty Boop, and has one of the comics icon as well.

But all I saw were these three roses, inked by Shannon O'Sullivan at a tattoo convention. Rachel's brother worked for a bit at Skin & Ink magazine, which helped introduce her to some folks in the tattoo community.


Rachel explained her rosy infatuation a bit further, noting she had worked for the designer Betsey Johnson, who used a lot of rose prints and rose-inspired design. She acknowledged that this led to her "obsession" with roses, and that beyond that, they do not have "a deep meaning".

Rachel is a designer whose website highlights her work.

Thanks to Rachel for sharing her beautiful tattoo with us here on Tattoosday!

About the author

Anyone who frequently takes the train or subway, can only wonder about the signs and mysterious paintings that cover it. This was my case, so I started taking pictures of those pieces and try to understand the letter styles ...



Not easy for someone who don't know the graffiti culture, in fact i was more attracted by the Flemish Primitives than the art of the 21st century !



Finally, the blog "Graffiti Art On Trains" is born, and i hope it will participate to the graffiti movement, which is a beautiful artistic expression.



A question, comment, suggestion or news tip to pass along to me ? Contact me at over.bbo@gmail.com



Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 2.0 Belgium. You are free to Share — to copy, distribute and transmit the work. Under the following conditions:

- Attribution — You must attribute the work in the manner specified by the author or licensor (but not in any way that suggests that they endorse you or your use of the work),- Noncommercial — You may not use this work for commercial purposes, - No Derivative Works — You may not alter, transform, or build upon this work.

Total respect, la génération Hip-Hop en Belgique de Alain Lapiower

Enquête sur le mouvement Hip Hop (en Belgique), tour à tour forme d'expression d'engagement social et politique, expression artistique très diversifiée, réseau souterrain de communication hors norme qui attire la foudre ... et la peur.



Lié souvent à l'adolescence, l'éclatement du lien social et familial, immigration, dérive urbaine, exclusion sociale et pauvreté, le Hip Hop s'implante souvent là où tout a échoué et son aspect provocateur masque la complexité, la richesse et le degré d'élaboration de ce phénomène culturel - touchant à la fois la musique (rap, break), la danse (break dance, de rue, contemporaine) et la peinture (tags sauvages, graffs monumentaux à l'aérosol, peintures en galerie).



Source : http://www.creativitemonumentale.be



Alain Lapiower est directeur de l'association Lézarts-urbains, seule structure francophone publique bruxelloise de promotion des cultures urbaines et hip hop en particulier.



Lapiower Alain, Total respect. La génération Hip-Hop en BelgiqueBruxelles, Ed. Fondation Jacques Gueux - Vie Ouvrière, 1997 - 288 pages



Infos : http://www.lezarts-urbains.be

Loi visant à réprimer le graffiti et la dégradation des propriétés immobilières et modifiant la nouvelle loi communale (Moniteur belge du 20/02/2007)

SERVICE PUBLIC FEDERAL JUSTICE



25 JANVIER 2007



Loi visant à réprimer le graffiti et la dégradation des propriétés immobilières et modifiant la nouvelle loi communale.



ALBERT II, Roi des Belges, A tous, présents et à venir, Salut. Les Chambres ont adopté et Nous sanctionnons ce qui suit :



Article 1er. La présente loi vise une matière visée à l'article 78 de la Constitution.

Art. 2. Il est inséré dans le livre II, titre IX, chapitre III du Code pénal une section IVbis, comprenant les articles 534bis et 534ter, rédigé comme suit : « Section IVbis. - Graffiti et dégradation des propriétés immobilières ».

Art. 3. Un article 534bis est inséré dans la section IVbis, chapitre III, titre IX du livre II du même Code, rédigé comme suit :

« Art. 534bis. § 1er. Sera puni d'un emprisonnement d'un mois à six mois et d'une amende de vingt-six euros à deux cents euros ou d'une de ces peines seulement, quiconque réalise sans autorisation des graffitis sur des biens mobiliers ou immobiliers. § 2. Le maximum de l'emprisonnement est porté à un an d'emprisonnement en cas de récidive sur une infraction visée au paragraphe premier dans les cinq années à compter de la date d'un jugement antérieur portant condamnation et passé en force de chose jugée. »

Art. 4. Un article 534ter est inséré dans la même section, redigé comme suit : « Art. 534ter. Sera puni d'un emprisonnement d'un mois à six mois et d'une amende de vingt-six euros à deux cents euros ou d'une de ces peines seulement, quiconque aura volontairement dégradé les propriétés immobilières d'autrui. »

Art. 5. A l'article 119bis de la nouvelle loi communale, inséré par la loi du 13 mai 1999 et modifié par les lois des 26 juin 2000, 17 juin 2004 et 20 juillet 2005, sont apportées les modifications suivantes : 1° au § 2, alinéa 3, les mots « 534bis, 534ter, » sont insérés entre le mot « 526 » et le mot « 537 »; 2° au § 7, 1°, les mots « 534bis, 534ter, » sont insérés entre le mot « 526 » et le mot « 537 »; 3° au § 8, alinéa 2, les mots « 534bis, 534ter, » sont insérés entre le mot « 526 » et le mot « 537 »; 4° au § 8bis, les mots « 534bis, 534ter, » sont insérés entre le mot « 526 » et le mot « 537 ».

Promulguons la présente loi, ordonnons qu'elle soit revêtue du sceau de l'Etat et publiée par le Moniteur belge.

Donné à Bruxelles, le 25 janvier 2007.



ALBERT



Par le Roi :



La Ministre de la Justice,



Mme. L. ONKELINX

Scellé du sceau de l'Etat :

La Ministre de la Justice,

Mme. L. ONKELINX

_______



Notes

(1) Session 2005-2006.

Chambre des représentants :

Documents : 51-2654

N° 1 : Projet de loi.

(2) Session 2006-2007.

Chambre des représentants :

Documents : 51-2654

N° 2 : Rapport fait au nom de la commission.

N° 3 : Texte corrigé par la commission.

N° 4 : Texte adopté en séance plénière et transmis au Sénat.

Compte rendu intégral : 14 décembre 2006.

Sénat :

Documents : 3-1998.

N° 1 : Projet non évoqué par le Sénat.

Source : http://www.just.fgov.be/index_fr.htm

The Virgin Mary Will Be Saved

I ran into Michael last week outside of Madison Square Garden. He had numerous tattoos up and down his arms, but he told me that he regretted most of them. He had been in the military, based in the San Diego area, and he said he hoped, someday, to have all of his ink removed.

"All of it?" I asked. He had a lot.

He nodded, but then pointed to the one pictured above, inked on the underside his left forearm, and said he would probably keep this one, as it was a religious tattoo that has some meaning.

He said that he got this "homemade" piece in Tijuana for about $30, and that it took only a couple of hours to do. He definitely didn't need to take out any payday loans to afford that one!

A lot of people in Southern California make the trip across the border to Tijuana to take advantage of the nightlife there. Some even walk away with tattoos.

Thanks to Michael for sharing his tattoo with us here on Tattoosday!

Events

Kool Koor at Brussels Artbox gallery.



Graffiti exhibition Fondation Cartier Paris from July 7 to Nov. 29, 2009.



Wim Delvoye Mudam Luxembourg.



Show graffiti at Helenbeck and Gismondi galleries Manhattan.



Exposition "Metro Art Memory" à Bruxelles.



Michaël Matthys : La ville rouge.



Centre art Spacejunk – Board Culture Art Centers.



Paris Hip-Hop Festival



Exposition Keith Haring à Mons (Belgique) du 9 mai au 13 septembre 2009.



Le siècle de jazz, exposition au musée Branly à Paris jusqu'au 28 juin 2009.



No Guts No Glory new issue



Exposition de graffiti au musée gallo-romains de Perigueux jusqu'au 27 septembre 2009.



Expo stick me hard à Bruxelles du 14 au 28 mai 2009.



Crash and Daze at Adhoc Art (Brooklyn)



Une histoire du hip-hop par 4kg cru



Battle of the year 2009



Boty 2009 à Montpellier



HipHop Kongress 2009 an der Universität Bielefeld.



Mai de la Calligraphie au musée de Saint-Amand du 2 mai au 30 août 2009.



Le "museu efémero", musée du graffiti de Lisbonne.



Action painting, bringing art to the trains by Kristian Kutschera



International Graffiti Museum (IGM)



Mixture Urbaine 2009 à Jette.



Exposition graffiti à Paris : prolongation jusqu'au 3 mai.



Karine Lalieux s’attaque aux graffitis et aux dépôts clandestins.



Le Hainaut s'organise contre les tags



Loi visant à réprimer le graffiti et la dégradation des propriétés immobilières et modifiant la nouvelle loi communale (Moniteur belge du 20/02/2007)



Un musée du graffiti à Paris



Vingt-deux auteurs présumés de graffitis interpellés à Bruxelles en 2008.



Total respect, la génération Hip-Hop en Belgique de Alain Lapiower

Disclaimer

The only purpose of this blog is to promote graffiti artists.



I don't support or condone the vandalism or any illegal activity relating to such, whether it be to private, commercial, or public property, i simply display graffiti as an art form.



A question, comment, suggestion or news tip to pass along to me ? Contact me at over.bbo@gmail.com

Links

Lezarts-Urbains : Association centrée sur les cultures urbaines. Elle tente de valoriser des formes artistiques vivantes et originales ...









Asbl-Tarantino : ASBL ayant pour objectif la promotion de l’art urbain et plus particulièrement du graffiti.









Souterrain : Le label hip hop bruxellois.









c-monster.net : To cover the art industry and its many, many by-products.









Berlin Graffiti dokumentiert das Geschehen der deutschen – vorrangig natürlich der Berliner – Graffitiszene damals und heute.









GraffLondon : GraffLondon Writers Bench. People's Army @ HQ Brixton.









XplicitGrafX : XG PRESS home of the ever delightfull Xplicit Grafx ... Xg Press is the proud publisher of Xplicitgrafx, ...









IranGraffiti : Photos In IranGraffiti are sample showcase of Kolahstudio Street Art Archive Project.









400ml.org : Graffiti and graphic art resources : design, illustrations, painting, street art, graffiti magazine, graffiti shop.









EkoSystem : Worldwide graffiti and street art galleries and news. Includes forum.









Checkdis : Just another blog really, but we do other stuff too …









Streetfiles : Streetfiles.org is an independent Street Art & Graffiti photo community.









ILoveGraffiti : ilovegraffiti.de startete am 13.März 2008 den Blog auf Blogspot. Mittlerweile bloggen wir zu viert, ein Blog auf englisch ...









12ozProphet.com : Founded in 1993, 12ozProphet had the goal of raising the bar for the graffiti world and integrating its ...









WoosterCollective : Site dedicated to showcasing and celebrating ephemeral art placed on streets in cities around the world.









BananaRepublik : Pictures, sketches, movies, adresses of snitches and pictures of your sister.









FatCap : FatCap is a graffiti blog focused on famous artists, original street art, and dynamic graffiti places all over the world.









GOUW : Graphic Orgasm Ultimate Webportal :graphic design site link portal, links: more than 33000 links in stock.









Saatchi Gallery : London contemporary art gallery. The Saatchi Gallery presents The Triumph of Painting.









ArtBabble : ArtBabble is a new kind of video site dedicated to art and artists.









Art Crimes : Graffiti art and style writing around the world. The first and largest online aerosol art archive, est. 1994.









Tagbox : L'Annuaire de tag. Repertoire de sites avec recherche par thematiques et localisation géographiques basé sur un système de tag.





About Thumbnails

Vaj Shares His Interpretation of the Creative Process

The triptych above (ok, it's not technically a triptych, but I am calling it that as I divided it into three sections) belongs to Vaj (rhymes with Dodge), a filmmaker who I met across the street from Macy*s on 34th Street and 7th Avenue early last week.

This piece was inked about 16 years ago in California by Jeff Rassier, who currently works out of Black Heart Tattoo in San Francisco.

Vaj, who has been in the entertainment business for many years, based his tattoo on the interpretation of the creative process.

The center of the tattoo contains a jar with two brains:

moving up and out of the jar is a an arm, at the end of which is a hand holding paper:


Moving down out of the jar is an arm, at the end of which is a hand holding a pen, which is dripping ink:


The two hands, each with pen and paper, are acting out the creative process, stemming from the two sides of the brain.

Thanks to Vaj for sharing this interpretation in his tattoo with us here on Tattoosday!

Josh Slices Up a Sturgeon on His Culinary Sleeve

At the beginning of the week, I ran into Josh, a chef at an upscale restaurant in Tribeca. He was actually showing his tattoos to a couple of people standing with him, so I felt in apropos to join in the conversation.

Josh is hard at work on a culinary sleeve on his left arm, which includes a langoustine, a Red Junglefowl, and the tattoo above, a sturgeon, complete with slicing knife and roe.

The tattoo, as well as his other work, was done by Mark Harada at East Side Ink in Manhattan.

Thanks to Josh for sharing his sturgeon with us here on Tattoosday. Here's hoping he'll return to show us more. The Red Junglefowl was not completed, otherwise I would have asked to feature that piece here. It's a sweet piece (you can see a fragment of claw above the sturgeon).

Dylan's Tattoo Dances on Her Ankle

Earlier this week, I met Dylan as she was crossing 34th Street by Macy*s Herald Square. She had the tattoo above her right ankle.

She had been a competitive dancer as a teenager, and had this inked when she was eighteen in Santa Cruz, California.

It was merely an expression of her love for the art of dance.

Thanks to Dylan for sharing her tattoo here with us on Tattoosday!

News Link: Tattoos Gain Even More Visibility

Tattoos Gain Even More Visibility

By GUY TREBAY

Published: September 24, 2008

WHO in the world gets a neck tattoo? A couple of years back you could have narrowed the answer to gang members, prison inmates, members of the Russian mob and the rapper Lil Wayne. Then something occurred.

Continued from the New York Times here

Christopher's Ink Bridges Generations

Last Friday I met Christopher on Penn Plaza. He estimated that he had tattoos numbering in the mid-fifties.

Again, I am sometimes intimidated by folks with a lot of ink, and will usually not trouble them, but not this time.

And, of all those tattoos, Christopher lifted up his shirt to reveal one of his most meaningful pieces:


The cross with angel wings behind it is graced by a banner that reads "In Loving Memory ... Grandpa Al".


This tribute tattoo was inked at Good Times Tattoo Studio in East Islip, New York by Bill. Christopher is a tattoo artist there as well.

Grandpa Al was a tattoo artist himself, at Ace Tattoo in San Diego, one of the oldest shops in the city (founded around 1947). I acknolwedged that Al must have been busy working in San Diego, with several military bases nearby.

Christopher always knew he wanted to be an artist, and has been tattooing about 14 years.

"What about your Dad," I asked him, "is he an artist?"

Christopher shook his head and said he wasn't. "And he doesn't have a single tattoo. Not one!"

"Really?" I asked.

He shook his head and laughed "I just don't understand it."

So the ink-lination to tattoo skipped a generation in his family, but you could tell he was proud of his grandfather's legacy, and he bore it like a badge of honor.

Thanks so much to Christopher for sharing his tribute to Grandpa Al here on Tattoosday!

Sweet Puddin'

This is a crossover post from another blog, Batman Tattoos, where this Gabe Tucker tattoo is also posted. I think Harley qualifies for pinup status too, no?

Graffiti art on trains

TREZ

Buddy's Advice about Neck Tattoos

Last Friday was a banner day for inkspotting. By day's end, I had four great Tattoosday stories to tell. This is the third of the four, although it was the first encounter of the day. It certainly set the tone.

I was walking east on 34th Street when I spotted a well-inked guy walking in my direction. I am sometimes less-inclined to talk to people with a TON of tattoos, but I stopped him anyway and asked about his work.

Buddy seemed eager to share, and quickly raised his right pant leg to reveal, in red ink, the words "Boston Sucks". Right below it was a depiction of an anatomical part that would fit the epithet. I hesitated.

"It's kind of a family blog," I joked, "my daughter reads it." He seemed disappointed, but was understanding. "How about the neck tattoo?" I suggested. He was game. I snapped the photo above.

It was inked in Austin, Texas at, according to Buddy, a shop called Red River Tattoos, circa 2003. He has approximately 32 tattoos in all. Any story behind it? "I was drunk when I got it," he said. Knowing that, and the absence of any reference to a shop called Red River Tattoos in Austin, I am more inclined to believe it might have been True Blue Tattoo, which is located on Red River Street. Work from True Blue has appeared on Tattoosday previously here.

But then he added, "If you don't get a neck tattoo before you're successful, then you shouldn't get one".

"So," I asked, "are you successful?"

"I'm in a band," he acknowledged, "I'm the singer."

This is not new to me, I have come across several musicians on Tattoosday before (here and here, for example).

"What's the name of the band?" I asked.

"Senses Fail" he replied.

"Cool," I said, "I'll link the band's page to the blog." In the back of my mind, I thought the name sounded familiar.


I thanked Buddy and we parted ways. It was only later that I realized that Buddy Nielsen wasn't just a singer from a band in New Jersey. Senses Fail is a significant act in the music scene. They're not platinum artists, yet. Their last record, Still Searching, sold 900,000 copies in the U.S. alone.

They've toured widely since they formed in 2003. I even have one of their songs in my iPod. The song, "Can't Be Saved" even refers to the tattoo on his chest (the video is below). So, Buddy's tattoo, the one that is up above (according to wikipedia has a second word "lady" below it), is the most famous tattoo I have photographed thus far for Tattoosday.

Thanks to Buddy for sharing his ink with us here!

The "Can't Be Saved" video:

First Day of Autumn Tattoo Blues

To celebrate the end of summer (farewell, tattoos aplenty!) and welcome the beginning of fall (come out, come out, wherever you are!), I am posting this appropriate tattoo celebrating the new season.

I was fortunate enough to meet Brian on Friday, right in front of Borders on Penn Plaza.

As the last weekend of summer was upon us, it seemed bittersweet to find his tattoo above. Brian told me that it is a depiction of Sahmin, who is the god of Autumn in Irish mythology. When I went to research this further, I could not find a reference to such a deity, but I do believe that Brian was referring to Samhain, a traditional Celtic celebration after the end of summer.

As for the actual deity in question, let's just say it is perfect for the season, the arboreal face bestrewn with leaves. Perhaps my friend over at NeoPagan Ink can shed some light on this.

This piece was inked by Joe Ferzola (click for nice bio at About.com) at Inklinations in Copiague, New York. The link to Inklinations takes you to the Devil's Den in Copiague, run by a long-time associate of Joe's, Tony Lafemina.

Thanks to Brian for sharing his autumnal tattoo with us here at Tattoosday!

Vine Tattoo Leg

The ever increasing trend now, seems to be catching on. Without a doubt, limits are pushed to move this "styled" tattoo in bigger scales than what it was, originally.

Due to the increasing popularity of this tattoo, I will control the number of people getting it done, so as to, it will not become too common in time to come. Therefore, I will push the limits even further by doing various variations in accordance to this style !!

I guess I owe the "Lovely Ms.Kim" a kiss, for the inspiration tothe many out there!! Woo hoo !!

Sal Shares His Illusion-ary Tattoo

On Tuesday I was in Brooklyn Heights, walking toward Cadman Plaza on Clark Street. As I passed a local video store, Mr. Video III, I spotted some ink on one of the employees and decided to head in and introduce myself.

Sal has seven tattoos, but he chose to share the one above, from his left bicep.

This is, of course, recognizable to anyone who is a rock fan, as the artwork gracing the cover of the 1991 Guns N' Roses album Use Your Illusion I. A G n' R tattoo appeared on Tattoosday previously here.

Sal had this inked because the album was released at a point in his life, when he was a senior in high school, when most people are most impressionable and affected by massive displays of musical force. The album, and by extension, the tattoo, was something he could cling to, a great avenue by which he could "express his rage".

With G n' R classics like "Right Next Door to Hell," "Don't Cry," "Back Off Bitch," and the Wings cover "Live and Let Die," the album is a tour de force of hard rock angst.

Sal also acknowledges that he, like many others who were fans of the band, developed a greater appreciation of classical art, as the image form the record (and its companion, Use Your Illusion II) are based on a detail in the Italian Renaissance painter Raphael's , The School of Athens:


Or, the detail used:


Sal says that this piece was inked around 1994 by an artist named Jason, who worked with the studio of the late great Huggy-Bear Ferris in Park Slope. Work from Huggy-Bear has appeared here previously on Tattoosday.

Thanks to Sal for sharing his tattoo here on Tattoosday. As I will be passing by Mr. Video III on a more regular basis in the future, I hope that Sal would share more of his tattoos with us in the future!