We have a another freebie for ya, courtesy of Sullen Clothing:  a special edition tee from the Sullen Art Collective designed by legendary lettering and black & grey guru Boog. The shirt, which is part of their upcoming Spring 2012 line, hasn't dropped yet but the winner of the contest will be one of the first to sport Boog's signature artistic style.

To get a behind the scenes look at Boog works his lettering, check the video below where he, Big Sleeps and Ryan Smith have a drawing session at Sullen headquarters.

As usual, here's how we're gonna play this: one winner will be selected randomly from those who comment -- with their t-shirt size  -- on this post in our Needles & Sins Syndicate Group on Facebook or hitting up @NeedlesandSins on Twitter. In one week, on Feb. 2nd, we'll put all the names of the commenters into Randomized.com and the internet gods will offer up the chosen one. When the shirt is ready to launch, Sullen will mail your prize. Easy breezy.

If you want to grab some other Sullen goodness, you'll get a discount off of any purchase by putting in this code at checkout: NEEDLESANDSINS. The promotion runs until Feb. 29th

The fabulous Hope Blog posted this clip from Portlandia, which begs the all important question:  Is a bad tattoo on someone you like a relationship "deal breaker"?

In the case of an Eddie-Vedder-playing-tambourines tattoo ... yes, it is.

Tattoo by El Bara

A surge of independent videos featuring tattooists around the world have made their way across social media, and really, I think it's a good thing. The films offer a close-up look at the process of creation in addition to animated portfolios of the finished tattoos, and often we get a sense of the studio vibe as well. 

All this goodness can be found in Ronink Films' video on True Love Tattoo in Madrid, Spain. The 8-minute production may be long for some looking for quick sketch-to-ink action, but I enjoyed sitting back with my coffee and watching all the details that go into putting on a solid tattoo. The artists at True Love -- El Bara, Know & xGastx -- are particularly regarded for their traditional & neo-traditional work, and in the video, you can see them employing time-old tattoo tenets with skill. My favorite clips are of the neck tattoo, which you can see being worked midway in the film. And stay till the end for a fun way of rolling credits. 



See more of their work on Facebook.
 Tattoo by xgastx
 Tattoo by Know

As a follow up to our mention of tattoo anthropologist Dr. Lars Krutak in the earlier post, I wanted to let you know that Sacred Gallery in NYC is hosting the photographic exhibit Shamanic Skin: The Art of Magical Tattooing, which features thirty selected works from Lars' portfolio. The opening is Saturday, February 4th from 7 to 10PM and runs until February 29th.Here's more:

In 1777, the word 'tattoo' was defined as 'an indelible mark or figure fixed upon the body by insertion of pigment under the skin or by the production of scars.' For thousands of years before that date, however, indigenous peoples practiced various forms of tattooing and scarification not only to beautify themselves or mark significant life achievements, but also to please or seek protection from particular spirits which inhabited their world.

For the past fifteen years, Dr. Lars Krutak has traveled the globe to document the religious beliefs behind permanent forms of tribal body modification. His photographic exhibition focuses upon the deeply spiritual realm of tattoo through an examination of these fascinating rituals.

For a copy of the show catalog, email Kevin@SacredGalleryNYC.com. Lars' books "The Tattooing Arts of Tribal Women" (2007) and "Kalinga Tattoo: Ancient and Modern Expressions of the Tribal" (2010) will be available for signing at the opening as well.

Sacred Gallery is located at 424 Broadway 2nd Fl (between Canal and Howard) in NYC.

There's an interesting article in The Hindu called "Tweaking Traditions," which looks at how the ancient tribal art of tattooing among the women of the Gond and Kolam tribes is fading as the younger generations "adopt modernity" and follow clothing fashions rather than decorate themselves permanently.

Reporter and photographer S. Harpal Singh says, "Traditionally, Gond and Kolam women wore meagre clothes which left a good part of their body exposed to sun. Much of bare skin used to be covered with tattoos, or 'kohkana' in Gondi, which gave the individual a decent look." Singh then quotes expert Guruji Ravinder Sharma: "Tattooing on the back, waist, arms and face was done during infancy of the girl child. The practice continues to this day but the size of the tattoo is much smaller."

Tattooing was also practiced for curing illness according to the article; for example, severe headaches were treated with tattoos on the temples and forehead.

While the article is a quick and easy read, it inspired me to look into India's tattooing traditions, and naturally, I came upon a more in-depth discussion by our favorite tattoo anthropologist Lar Krutak on The Vanishing Tattoo.

Read Lars' "India: Land of Eternal Ink" for a history lesson along with images of some beautiful tribal art.

The Gypsy Gentleman - Episode 02: Austin, Texas from Marcus Kuhn on Vimeo.

Taking us on a tattoo tour through different cities and experiencing them through renowned tattooists, The Gypsy Gentleman video magazine by Marcus Kuhn has just released its second episode. In this 30 minute production, Marcus hits Austin, Texas to explore the "birth of tattooing in America in the mid-twentieth century" along with Steve Byrne and Tony Hundahl of Rock of Ages Tattoo.

The three artists visit The National Museum of the Pacific War, filled with WW II memorabilia and imagery that largely inform traditional Americana tattooing. They then each create tattoos based upon what inspired them in the museum. Really interesting work. There's also discussion on the essence of what traditional tattooing is, beyond subject matter.

Also throughout the video, you'll hear Marcus offer some fun facts on Austin and visit other sites like the Cathedral of Junk and the studio of master sign painter Gary Martin.

A fun trip the whole ride through.

Check our first post on The Gypsy Gentleman here.

Portrait by Remis Tattoo

On this day celebrating Martin Luther King Jr., I will try to refrain from my usual groaning over the search to find tattoos honoring the civil rights leader and coming up with more odes to rapper Old Dirty Bastard. [Do a Google image search on each to see what I mean.] 

Then I think of Dr. King's "I Have A Dream Speech" and I'm reminded to judge people by the "content of their character," not color of their skin -- whatever colors and characters people chose to mark their bodies with.

One of the greatest things about tattoos is that they inspire communication. People are naturally curious over what others painstakingly and permanently put in their own skins. We hunger for a good story ... and many of us hunger to tell one. A mother may want you to know that the name above her heart is her beloved daughter. The veteran with the memorial tattoo on his arm lets you know about the courage of his lost friend. My own tattoos are largely decorative but the patterns come from my Greek ancestry and places I've traveled. Buy me a drink and I have tons to talk about. This communicative value also allows for teaching moments. A Dr. King tribute speaks not only about the how the activist inspired the tattoo collector but may also educate another who does not know of King's life and legacy. 

It's powerful, what tattoos can do. And it's why I appreciate it when I do find tributes to inspiring figures, as they can be daily reminders to be better to each other and ourselves.

Tattoos (above left to right) by Joshua Carlton, Mike DeMasi, and Logan Aguilar.


Tattoo above by Jason Grace.

I love New York but sometimes I feel New York doesn't love me back. The rents continue to soar, with a middle finger up at the recession. What were once my favorite dive bars now have velvet ropes and lists to get in. Our rock & roll institutions are vanishing: CBGB's is a high-end boutique, punk mecca Coney Island High on St. Marks now is a noodle joint, and then there's the heartbreak of the Chelsea Hotel.
 
The landmark hotel was once home to musicians, artists, writers, and all forms of beautiful freaks like Patti Smith, Iggy Pop, Charles Bukowski, Sid & Nancy ... and it was the home of Darren Rosa's Rising Dragon Chelsea Tattoo Company. That is, until this past Halloween when the tattoo studio had to move because the new management decided it didn't fit the "lifestyle" they wanted the property to embody. [The NY Times did a great story on how the developers squeezed Darren out and also some residents.]

Darren operated the shop at the Chelsea since 1997, when tattooing became legal in NYC. In 2007, when his lease was not fully renewed (only month to month), he had the foresight to open a second Rising Dragon, which is located at West 14th, just off of Sixth Avenue -- a busy Manhattan location. To house all of his artists, from the original shop to the new, Darren then negotiated a space at the top floor of the West 14th building. And now the studio expansion is ready to get blood and green soap all over it.

Naturally, this is cause for a party! This Sunday, January 15th, Rising Dragon will be celebrating with live music and drinks in its new warm and cozy studio, from 6:30PM to midnight. See photos of the new space here. More info on their Facebook page. 

When the music is over and the bottles are empty, the Rising Dragon artists will be back at work hustling -- including those coming over from the old Chelsea shop like Carlos Gonzales as well as Horisei of Yokohama, who is a regular guest artist doing machine tattooing and traditional tebori.

And so Rising Dragon Tattoo continues to grow, ascending beyond adversity. It's a New York story and a reason to keep my love affair with the city.