Interview with Tattoo Artist: Charlotte Ross

Tattoo artist Charlotte Ross is currently travelling around the UK guesting at different studios. We chatted to her about her tattoos that resemble paintings, her love for birds and her own tattoo collection…  

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How did you first start tattooing? When I was studying at university we had to do a work placement course. Having the opportunity to create our own placements, I managed to organise mine in a tattoo studio. I would help out, clean, ask questions, watch the tattooists work. By the end of it I didn’t want to leave! The owner of the studio asked to see my portfolio and then offered me an apprenticeship. I then began my apprenticeship in my final year of uni.

Do you have a background in art? What did you do before? I have six years studying art after leaving high school. Two years at college and then four years doing my BA Honours Degree in Fine art at university all before starting tattooing. I have now been tattooing over seven years.

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How would you describe your style? I find it hard to describe my own work. I get put in the ‘watercolour tattoo’ bracket, but my work isn’t quite as soft as most watercolour tattoos are. When painting I don’t just use paint. All my art is done with layers of watercolour paints and pencil. So I can build strength where it is needed which gives a nice contrast between strong and soft areas. I tend to just say I do ‘painterly’ tattoos.

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Have you always worked in a watercolour style? How did this develop?  I feel like I’m just at the beginning of it developing. I’m at the point where I love the subjects I am getting and I’m confident in my tattooing ability, but I can see my work evolving and I’m excited to see how it grows.
Even though my work isn’t traditional there are still fundamental rules in tattooing that I still apply, so that my customers get a nicely healed tattoo. I have spent a lot of years doing a bit of everything in tattooing, which I believe every tattooist should do. And this has taught me the importance of lines, using the skin tone and contrast between light and dark. It’s that understanding that has helped to translate my paintings into tattoos.

What inspires you? Nature inspires me. I grew up in the country with a gardening family. So I’ve always been surrounded by nice gardens filled with lovely flowers, fields and animals.

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You draw and tattoo a lot of animals, are these your main inspirations? Birds are my main love/inspiration. I love everything about them and have since I was young. If there is ever a moment where I don’t have something to draw up for a tattoo and I’m feeling uninspired, I’ll turn to researching birds to paint. I look at anything from  bird books, to watching bird documentaries, or I turn to my own birds! Having domestic birds that I can closely watch and photograph is the greatest thing to keep me productively painting. My two birds are the best!

Is there anything you would love to tattoo? More birds! I would love to have some budgie tattoos to do! But birds and flower tattoos and I’m happy!

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Can you tell us about the tattoos on your own body? I have quite a few pieces that I love and quite a few I’m not so bothered by! I wish I was a little more patient when I was younger, so I have a couple laser projects! Some of the ones I absolutely love are, my portrait of my dog Max, done by Marcus Maguire. My countryside rib piece including birds, rabbit and a wee mouse was done by Sarah Carter. I have a portrait of Marc Bolan on my thigh by Emma Kierzek and I love the side of my neck which is a rose with a locket in it by Steve Vinall.

Miniature Ink II – tattoo artist announcement

ATOMICA GALLERY AND THINGS&INK MAGAZINE PRESENT:
‘MINIATURE INK II’
OPENING NIGHT: WEDNESDAY 23rd SEPTEMBER 2015

Atomica Gallery and Things&Ink magazine are pleased to announce the exhibiting tattoo artists for Miniature Ink II, the second exhibition featuring miniature original artworks. See more information in previous blog posts.

By Sadee Glover
By Sadee Glover

 

List of exhibiting artists: Aaron Anthony / Adam Downing / Adam McDermott / Adam Ruff / Adam J Machin / Aimee Cornwell / Alex Bage/ Alex Binnie / Alex Edwards / Allan Graves / Alexandra Wilkey / Alix Ge / Amanda Toy / Amy Savage / Andrea Furci /Andrew Hulbert / Annie Frenzel / Anrijs Straume / Araceli 4ever / Ashley Luka / Antony Flemming  / Anthony Civarelli  / Big Sleeps /Bradley Tompkins / Brian Wilson / Cesar Mesquita /  Charissa Gregson  / Chiara Pina / Chris Crooks / Christos Serafeim / Christina Hock / Claudia Ottaviani / Clare Hampshire / Clare Lambert  / Dan Frye /  Daryl Watson / Dave Condon / Deno / Deryn Twelve / Dexter Kay / Diana Jay / Dominique Holmes / Drew Linden / EJ Miles / Elliot Guy / Elliott Wells / Ellis Arch / Elmo Teale / Emily Alice Johnston / Eszter / Flo Nuttall / Friday Jones / Grant Macdonald / Guy Le Tatooer / Hannah Pixie Sykes / Hannah Selina Maude Oliver / Hannah Westcott / Hanan Qattan / Harriet Heath / Harry Harvey / Hen Bo Henning / Henry Big / Heinz / Hollie West / Holly Ashby/ Holly Astral/ Holly Ellis / Iris Lys / James Lovegrove / Jason Corbett / Jesse Singleton / Jessi James / Jessica Mach / Jo Harrison / Joanne Baker / Jody Dawber / Jondix / Jon Peeler / John Fowler / Just Jen / Keely Rutherford / Kelly Violet / Lal Hardy / Lauren Hanson / Lauren Winzer / Lianne Moule / Liz Clements / Lou Hopper /  Luci Lou / Lucy Blue / Lucy Pryor / Marcos Fam /  Marie Folklore / Mark Jelliman / Matty D’Arienzo / Max Rathbone / Megan Fell / Michelle Maddison / Michelle Myles / Miles Monaghan / Miss Juliet / Mister Paterson / Miss Jo Black / Mymorg / Natalie Petal Gardiner / Nikole Lowe / Olive Smith / Paul Davies / Paula Castle / Paul Haines / Paul Hill / Peter Aurisch / Peter John Reynolds / Rachel Baldwin / Rafa Decraneo  / Rebecca Vincent / Rich Evans /  Ricky Williams / Rhianna Jones / Robert Ashby / Rose Hardy / Rose Whittaker / Ruby Wolfe / Sadee Glover / Sam Rulz / Sam Whitehead /  Sarah Carter / Sasha Unisex / Simon Erl / Stefano C / Stephen Doan / Steve Morante / Snappy Gomez / Susanna Widmann / Tanya De Souza-Meally / Tomas Tomas / Tracy D / Virginia Elwood /  Wendy Pham / Zoe Binnie

Plus more…

By Alex Binnie
By Alex Binnie

Join the Facebook event for more information about the opening night – Wednesday 23 September, from 6pm.

 

Coming Out: Arjun Kamath

Photographer Arjun Kamath has created a haunting photographic series portraying a tragic story that celebrates love and explores destructive homophobia in India. No matter how accepting some parts of the world are, the Coming Out collection demonstrates the persecution and violence that gay and lesbian people still face in India.

The two women start their journey by bravely stepping out the closet, inspired by their love for one another and a courage to defy the culture and stigma surrounding them. But their laughter echoes through the forest and reaches the Rakshasas (a word for evil in Hindu mythology), they believe that the only love should be between a man and a woman…

Production-Design – Nishitha Karumbaiah
Make-up – Sonia Keer Dhawan
Costume-Design and Styling – Amritha Rajavelu
Creative-coordinator – Arvind
Maitreyi – Sarah Harish
Alpana – Shraddha Srinath
Parivala – Arvind
Story, Photography and Creative-Direction – Arjun Kamath

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It’s a free world.

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The twigs cracked under Alpana’s feet as she stumbled out of the closet; Maitreyi’s calm presence gave her the hope that the forest was a safe place. As the two girls trudged ahead, the winds of the forest roared, blowing an eerie chill past the endless line of dying trees…

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As Maitreyi and Alpana grew comfortable in each others arms, the glowing sun started to reveal itself through the perilous clouds

india4The women begin to relax and play in the forest.

imndiaaThe Rakshasas of the forest had heard Maitreyi and Alpana’s laughter…

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Maitreyi and Alpana would pay for their sins…

ijjMaitreyi and Alpana were shoved back into the closet…

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Flavia Carvalho: Transforming Scars

Brazilian tattooist Flavia Carvalho has been tattooing women who have encountered domestic violence or have had mastectomies. The marks caused by abuse and cancer are there for life, even though the scars will fade, the memories will always be visible.

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Flavia is transforming these scars into beautiful tattoos, for free, so that women can reclaim their bodies, find closure and love themselves again. Flavia’s project has been running for over two years , and is named “A Pele da Flor” which translates as The Skin of the Flower, taken from the Portuguese expression “A flor da pele” meaning deeper than skin. Flavia explains that “women are like flowers and deserve to have our skin protected and embellished.”

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Speaking to the Huffington Post Flavia explains how the project started:

It all started about two years ago, when I worked with a client who wanted to cover a large scar on her abdomen. She told me that she was at a nightclub, and when she turned down a man who approached her, he stabbed her with an switchblade. When she saw the finished tattoo, she was extremely moved, and that deeply touched me. I was suddenly struck by the idea of providing free tattoos to women who were left with scars following domestic violence or mastectomies. Each tattoo would act as an instrument for empowerment and a self-esteem booster.

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Images and quotes Huffington Post

House of Butterflies

Justin Taylor and Charlie Lane  are the creators of House of Butterflies, a small online business that sells framed butterflies, moth and beetles. The couple set all of the specimens themselves from their home in Maidstone, Kent. We chatted to Justin and Charlie to find out more about their arty adventures… 

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How did you start House of Butterflies? What do you create?  The House Of Butterflies started from an idea we had at a craft fair, where Charlie was selling prints and original artwork. We thought it would be fun to do something together, we both share a common interest in taxidermy and art so thought why not combine the two. The framed butterflies idea came from Justin’s grandparents house as they have a small collection of framed butterflies hanging in their hall way. We both thought how great they look and wondered if we could make something along the same lines. We sat and researched the idea for a month or so before finally taking the plunge and having a go.

What inspires you? The inspiration for our boxes comes from the idea of preserving something beautiful. They are inspired a lot by the seasons, nature and by things we really like.  We find when we sit and talk about ideas we tend to inspire each other. We try to choose the butterflies or moths first and then try to match the background to them rather than the other way around. The art in general is inspired by the outdoors; gardens, plants and animals.

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Do you have a background in art? 
Charlie: Yes, I studied at Maidstone UCA and have a degree in print making. I learnt a lot about etching and I helped with adult courses in a print making studio. I have done a lot of commission work for small businesses, band logos and for special occasions. I spent a couple of years in the tattoo industry working in a couple of small studios.

Where do you source your items from? We source all of our specimens from a entomologist based in the UK. He sources all of his specimens from butterfly farms abroad, people hear “butterfly farm” and usually think how terrible. When actually they are the most ethical way to source specimens, they bring employment to poor areas and stop the practice of wild collecting which has had a devastating affect on some species. Finding an ethical source and supplier was a big thing for us, a lot of time and effort went in to finding the right supplier with the legitimate source.

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How do you create them? What is the process? The process is a fairly long one and takes time and patience, we had a few disasters at the beginning. We are completely self taught when it comes to the setting of the butterflies and it was a total case of trial and error. Internet videos make it look easier than it actually is.

The process starts by having to relax the butterfly, moth or beetle as they arrived to us in a dry/closed state. The specimens go into a relaxing tub which has a mild chemical solution in it. The chemical solution breaks down the enzymes in the specimens body making it pliable again. The specimens stay in the relaxing box until the reach this state, once there you can remove them and start the setting process. Opening the specimens is always the most fun part as you get see the true glory of what your setting. We pin the specimen to a setting board, which is a board with a small channel down the centre to hold the specimens body in place when you spread the wings. Then we very carefully pull the wings into the position we want using tweezers and then with strips of wax paper pin the wings so they are secure. We then leave them to dry out again for a number of days, depending on size. Then we unpin the specimen and then you have a set specimen, which is always very rewarding.

The vintage frames we stain ourselves to give them that old look, then we add the vintage artwork and add specimens we think work well with the artwork.

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Where can people buy pieces? Do you do commissions? We have a small Etsy shop where people can buy from us, we update regularly with new items as we like to keep a good variety of pieces on there. We can be found on Instagramwhere with have a direct link to our store.

We take on commission work and our always up for a challenge, whether it be artwork or a specific butterfly or a combination of the two, we will always try our best to accommodate.

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What are your plans for the future? We are hoping to keep going and maybe expand more, we do a lot of craft stalls, especially in the winter months leading up to Christmas. The big plan is to have a small high street shop where people can come in and browse.

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How did you meet? How long have you been together? We met through a mutual friend who Charlie was tattooing, she thought we would get on well, turns out she was right. We had a few dates, realised we shared a lot of common interests and thats about it, and people say romance is dead! We have been together now for two years.

Can you tell us about your tattoos?
Charlie:
My tattoos are a mix of things that remind me of all the places I have lived across the world as a kid, and pattern work that I’m really into. I like the geometric and dot work tattoo styles as it is how I myself draw. I like the work of Vana Chanelle, who has tattooed me a few times, along with Dan Frye who done a stunning traditional style Indian bride on my arm. I have tattooed myself a lot.

Justin: I’m a big fan of traditional style tattoos and love fat lined pieces. I have a lot of skateboard related tattoos as it used to be my favourite past time. I have a bit of a mix of black and grey, traditional colour and pattern work. I have my good friend Ben Griffiths to thank for a lot of my work, also Dan Frye and his partner EJ Miles.

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