Tattooing Under Martial Law

Our Australian contributing editor, Fareed Kaviani, is currently in Bangkok getting a back piece from Guy Le Tatooer. While over there he caught up with Six Fathoms Deep owner Nicholas Mudskipper to find out what it’s like tattooing under military rule.

On 22 May 2014, the military announced that it had taken control of the country in a coup implemented ostensibly to restore order and enact ‘necessary’ political reforms. Martial law continues to be imposed nationwide. Although the political arena is a complex entanglement of loyalties, royalties, and corruption, the situation can be simplified by reducing it to a civic battle between different coloured garments.

The yellow shirts wanted to suspend the constitution and depose the democratically elected government on the charge of corruption. Their desire was to appoint an interim administration to oversee political reform.

The red shirts were loyal to the ousted government.

Due to the civil unrest, most foreign governments have been advising their citizens to exercise a high degree of caution when travelling to Thailand.

I arrived on the 9th to get tattooed by Guy Le Tatooer while he’s guesting at Bangkok’s Six Fathoms Deep. Although Bangkok appeared to be business as usual, news reports of police harassment suggested otherwise.

Tourists and foreign nationals have become targets of what many claim to be systematic ‘racial profiling’. Accosted by police, people have been asked to present identification papers and visas, with some even forced to provide on the spot urine samples designed to detect hard drugs. As one report cautioned, an empty bladder is no excuse: ‘when he couldn’t produce, he says they forced him to drink four liters [sic] of water and pressed forcefully on his bladder to make him urinate and touched his penis.’

Using the threat of immediate arrest, they have been aggressively cajoling unsuspecting tourists into coughing up ad hoc ‘fines’ for failing to provide substantial documentation. Although Martial Law applies exclusively to the army and its soldiers, and Section 93 of the criminal code clearly states that searches conducted in public are prohibited without probable cause, it is believed that the police have had to improvise due to the Army obstructing their usual swindles.

Six Fathoms Deep’s Nicholas Mudskipper has experienced their intimidation first hand.

‘Yeah man, vultures on the streets shaking down people for payouts. I was headed back from a ju-jitsu session and I was told I’m a Russian selling coke around the red-light areas, [the officer] greedily stuck his hands into my gym bag to find a sweaty ju-jitsu gi! These guys’ other rackets are being squeezed by the military so they need to find other ways to buy Christmas goodies this time of year.’

‘So, are you red or yellow shirted?’ I asked in jest.

‘I make my own shirts bra! Black white and grey for days!’

Originally from Cape Town, South Africa, Nick came to Bangkok several years ago to set up shop with his business partner, Dillon Pienaar.

‘Bangkok is a beast that can swallow you up fast, a city full of interesting things, a sunny place for shady people!’

I asked Nick what it was like to run a tattoo studio, while under Martial law, inside the belly of that beast.

‘Bro, Six Fathoms Deep is like a bubble, once you’re inside, doesn’t feel like I’m in Bangkok anymore: no dramas, no politics, just tattooing and Masters of the Universe figures surrounding me. If all else fails I’m sure Skeletor will get my back. Our Tattoo shop is a friendly creative family for good-hearted tattooers far from home. We are all about doing good clean tattoos, good vibes, toy collecting and of course big BBQs!’

Speaking of toys, the interior of Six Fathoms Deep was peppered with an array of figurines.

‘I’m crazy about Masters of the universe and other 80s toys, Matt Adams is into Ninja turtles, Miss Ink is super into Russian and Kewpie dolls, David Chaston is into other strange stuff too, so yeah it’s just our man cave full of items that influence us and that we’re nostalgic about.’

And why Six Fathoms Deep?

‘I originally wanted to call the shop Six Feet Deep, but that was kind of taken, ha-ha. I grew up around the Atlantic Ocean and have always been curious of the mysterious depths and legends of giant creatures fathoms deep under the ocean, so I blended those together! Boom!’

Six Fathoms Deep’s resident artists are Nicholas Mudskipper, David Chaston, Miss Ink and Big Matt Adams.

Current guest artists are Guy Le Tatooer and Etienne Memon.

Read more of Fareed’s work at www.the4thwall.net

Here’s to Life outside the Lines

Sailor Jerry has launched a new short film, ‘Here’s to Life outside the Lines’ – celebrating the spirit of rebellion through an unofficial lineage of road trips, choppers and wild times.

 

The film brings to life the philosophy of those who stand up for what they believe in and boldly live life on their own terms. It features a montage of new and archival footage of skaters, bikers, musicians and classic car enthusiasts, as well as original footage of the inspiration behind the brand, Norman ‘Sailor Jerry’ Collins himself – the personification of an independent spirit who lived life his own way.

Issue 9 cover reveal, with tattoo artists “stripped back”

Our favourite time in the Things&Ink calendar… the cover reveal!

And issue 9 is an iconic and very special issue of Things&Ink. We have created three beautiful covers, and you can choose which you’d like to add to your collection. Perhaps, more significantly, and for the first time ever, we have featured both sexes. With our recent change in brand identity (from Embracing Female Tattoo Culture to Independent, Tattoo, Lifestyle), we felt it was important to truly represent this, not just inside the pages of the magazine, but on the most important page, the one that first draws you in – the front cover.

The covers feature four different artists – one woman, one man and one couple – just as they are. Not staged or art directed, all natural – stripped back. Flo Nuttall, Brian Wilson, and Yann Brenyak and Delphine Noiztoy, were all a pleasure to photograph, and each of their personalities shines through in their covers. You can read their personal interviews, view their work and the rest of the photos from the shoots in the issue, which is available to purchase from our website, www.thingsandink.com/buy.

Let us know which is your favourite…

1/3 Flo Nuttall, photographed by Heather Shuker
Make-up Keely Reichardt 
Styling Olivia Snape
Covers designed by James Gilyead 

2/3 Brian Wilson, photographed by Céline Aieta
Beard styled by Ema Findley, using Bear Face Beard Oils

3/3 Yann Brenyak and Delphine Noiztoy, photographed by Mark Leaver.
Make-up Keely Reichardt
Styling Olivia Snape

 

Stripped back cover reveal

Hyper Japan Christmas Market

Here at Things&Ink we love everything kawaii and there is no better place to get your cute fix than at Hyper Japan!

Hyper Japan is the UK’s biggest celebration of Japanese culture, cuisine and cool. It brings sellers, performers, entertainers, traders and exhibitors all under one roof! A perfect place to buy all of your Christmas gifts and to immerse yourself in everything Japanese. You can get everything from a make-over to traditional Japanese crockery to exotic teas.

The Hyper Japan Christmas Market takes place on 14-16 November at the National Hall Kensington Olympia, London. 

General Entry Tickets are £12 each for Friday and the Saturday Sessions, and General
Entry tickets for the longer Sunday session are £15 each. Click here to purchase tickets.

Social Media and Break-ups

Breaking-up is painful and complicated at the best of times, but with new technology, social media and websites, it is even harder for people to cut all ties with their ex. A new survey has been released explaining that social media makes breaking up hard to do… (as if we didn’t know that already, yep we have all done the Facebook ‘stalk’.)

The research was independently carried out by OnePoll on 2000 women and commissioned by Pencourage – a female-dominated website, which is completely anonymous. The social network encourages its users to upload 200 words into a private diary each day along with music and videos.

The results are certainly interesting with over one in five women ‘stalking’ their exes online through fake profiles.

  • Just under a third (30%) of women have stayed ‘friends’ with or continued to ‘follow’ exes openly via social networks despite a breakup
  • Close to a quarter (22%) admit to having kept a ‘sneaky eye’ on their activity but only using someone else’s or a fake profile, or when they know the ex won’t be logged in
  • Just under half (48%) cut all ties and block them from social media
  • When asked if they had ever been in touch with exes via social media during a weak (or intoxicated) moment, a little over half (51%) said they would never do that – yet circa one in five (19%) did admit to making contact, and later regretting it
  • A similar proportion (18%) said they had wanted to contact their ex but had been ‘strong enough’ to resist the temptation

 

artwork from  @emily_rose_murray