Results tagged “Lea Vendetta”
11:32 AM
 The iPad can be a fantastic tool for tattoo artists, from sketching ideas and creating tattoo designs, to using it as a slim and portable portfolio showcase. And the gadget itself can be customized to be more artful as well.
Offering more options than Apple's standard wallpapers is 2048px.com, a site that allows you to download higher resolution retina artwork by top designers for free. I was excited to see some of my favorite paintings there from tattooist Lea Vendetta, including "Big Kahuna" above and "La Clef De Mon Coeur." While Lea is garnering attention lately for her Ink Masters performance and fashion spreads in magazines like Maxim and Inked, she's also a highly accomplished painter whose work weaves tattoo culture with Parisian underground imagery (among other subjects). Check more of her paintings here and her tattoo work here.  |
Tattoo TAGS: 2048px fine art Ink Masters iPad Lea Vendetta wallpaper |
04:01 PM
 I know. I know. You're upset. The magic and mystery that tattooing once held has faded into the ether leaving us with, well, Dave Navarro. The heavily tattooed, perfectly manscaped rocker with the smokey eyeshadow is now the arbiter of body art, holding the fate of ten tattooists in his hand as he decides who will be ... "INK MASTER." [!!!] If only someone who really feels the tattoo passion could command such fate, someone like Kimberly Caldwell ... wait who? Oh, she was the seventh place finalist on the second season of American Idol, who is hosting Oxygen's own tattoo competition, "Best Ink." But we'll get to that. "Ink Master" is Spike TV's version of Project Runway produced by Original Media, the ones you have to thank for Miami, LA & NY Ink as well as The Rachel Zoe Project and BBQ Pitmasters. Like these shows, "tension and stakes are high" as tattooists battle it out for $100,000 and a feature in Inked Magazine. Here's more from their PR peeps: "Ink Master" contestants will compete in various tattoo challenges that not only test the artists' technical skills, but also their on-the-spot creativity, where they must create and execute an original tattoo on command. Challenges focus on different tattooing techniques, such as shading, line and proportion, and styles including photorealism, Tribal, American traditional, and pin-up.Ok, that doesn't sound too bad. Essentially, it's a Hollywood version of the first and most wonderful tattoo competition series, "Tattoo Wars," which was never picked up because people with tattoos actually liked it. In addition to Navarro, Chris Nunez ("Miami Ink") and Oliver Peck (Elm Street Tattoo) make up the show panel with guest judges, like tattooers Scott Campbell and Jack Rudy, weighing in on certain episodes. Other guest judges are Inked creative director Todd Weinberger, "Auction Hunters" Ton Jones and NBA player Chris Andersen [because reality stars and basketball players are the taste makers in fine art tattooing.] Considering the roster of artists competing, which include many well respected tattooers -- some who are friends of ours -- we have hopes for Ink Master, or at least we don't think we'll be getting as drunk as we do with our NY Ink Drinking Game. That said, we'll just pretend this show trailer ever happened. And let's forget the tag line "You don't get to be a master without drawing some blood." Instead, click the videos with our girl, Lea Vendetta and Brooklyn's own Al Fliction. Here's the full artist list:
Ink Master premiers January 17th. We'll make a drinking game for this one just in case. Oh, and yeah, that competition show for the Oxygen network. Well, it's pretty much the exact same thing -- ten artists compete for $100,000 and a spread in a magazine, but in addition to the American Idol non-winner, the awesome Joe Capobianco and Sabina Kelly hold court. Oxygen's PR machine is a bit behind on Spike's, but when [more] photos and videos are out, we'll be posting them, especially if they come with kicky taglines. Best Ink premiers January 30th. UPDATE: Tattoo magazine has a cover feature on Best Ink. For more, check the Hope Gallery Blog. UPDATE 2: Best Ink site has a few pics on their site with more content to come. |
|
03:35 PM
|
In last week's post on Erin Chance's Kat Von D portrait tattoo, I linked the online casting calls for the next season of LA Ink and a new show, NY Ink. I had also sent a tongue-in-cheek email around to tattoo artist friends here in NYC asking if they'll be trying out to be the new tattoo TV sensations. Turns out, well, a bunch of them are. We've all heard the arguments against the shows. In almost every interview I've done with artists for Inked and Skin & Ink recently, there's a general lament that no reality exists in the way tattooing is portrayed in mainstream media. No great story need be behind your desire to get tattooed. No sleeve is completed within 48 minutes. And skate ramps in tattoo studios are generally frowned upon. It's rare to hear of any desire to be a part of the shows, particularly from long-time tattooers, so I was surprised when my friend Michelle Myles of DareDevil and Fun City tattoo studios -- who's profiled in the video above -- sent me a text telling me to read her latest post on Devil City Press. Turns out that Michelle along with co-owner Brad "You Kids Get Off My Lawn" Fink, resident artist Big Steve, and pretty shop boy Reid Waters have put themselves in the running for NY Ink's casting. Here's what Michelle has to say: Anyone who's been involved with tattooing pre-Miami Ink didn't get tattooed to be a part of a trend. I started getting tattooed because it was anything but trendy or even acceptable. Tattooing was a fringe subculture we worked our way into, and it certainly wasn't seen as a valid career choice. It breaks my heart to see tattooing get sold out to the media and popular culture. TV producers aren't on our side. The tattoo industry doesn't have a say in the way it's portrayed in the media. Overall it depresses me to see our industry be represented by such vapid host. We can only hope for the best with what gets spewed out.Yes, I would love my DareDevil friends repping me. [They are also freakin funny and would make for good TV aside from their strong portfolios.] Where my concern lies is whether one can really control how "you portray yourself" in the quick edits, scenes taken out of context and the faux drama that will be created. Will legal contracts bind the artists into doing something they wouldn't? Will we see Brad Fink in a kicky little pin-up outfit? Despite my concern, I'm rooting for them because I don't want my NYC tattoo world turned over to scratchers and "professional tattoo models" for the masses to mock. If there will be any mocking, hopefully, it will come from me teasing my friends over the long stories we'll endure waiting to see how their tattoos turn out. Have your say in who will be on the show by voting on RealityWanted.com. Here are the Daredevil profiles: Michelle Myles, Brad Fink, Big Steve Pedone, and Reid Waters. I also voted for another dear friend and fabulous artist Lea Vendetta. |
|
12:01 PM
 Today's gift guide post is inspired by an upcoming art show so I figured I'd meld the two to present the fabulousness of ...
... Lea Vendetta, tattoo artist, painter, model and -- little known fact -- accordion player. Next Friday, December 11th from 6-10PM, is the opening of Lea's solo show, Sous Le Soleil Exactement (Exactly Under the Sun) at PreviewMod in Fort Lauderdale, FL. In this exhibition, she will present new works and old favorites of her Art Deco depictions of underworld women, from burlesque performers to painted ladies, as well as sultry couples cavorting on dance floors. A large body of her work pays tribute to her native France, particularly Paris (where Lea once walked the fashion runways), with a Moulin Rouge feel.  If you can't make it to the art show, you can purchase prints and cards of some of the works from her new online store. Ok, here's where the gift guide part comes in with a smooth transition.The coolest thing about Lea's store is that you are given a number options on how you'd like her work printed with a few clicks. For example, you can order a $7 card, a $40 poster, a $50 matted print, or canvas, mounted and framed prints of various sizes ranging from $80 to $270. Delivery takes 10-15 business days. If you're interested in Lea's wearable art, check her tattoo gallery. She's currently taking appointments at Altered State Tattoo in Lake Worth, Fl. but also does numerous guest spots across the country throughout the year. |
Shopping TAGS: Altered State Tattoo Art Deco art prints gallery show Lea Vendetta |
1
