Tattoo Twists

Tattoo Twists is a series of short films produced for Channel 4. The films follow a collection of people and tattoo artists on their tattoo cover-up journeys, discussing the reasons behind why they want to change their existing tattoos.

This series is a refreshing and positive take on tattoos by Channel 4, gone are the judgemental narratives and in their place are real tattoo enthusiasts.

The human stories behind tattoos that get covered up or changed, for all kinds of reasons, from wiping memories of an ex to creating a ‘new you’

Cover-up by Lal Hardy 

Images and quote from Channel 4

Meet Jay Freestyle

Jay Freestyle is a 29-year-old tattoo artist and painter working at Dermadonna Custom Tattoos in Amsterdam. Originally born in South Africa and raised in a conservative Chinese family, Jay Freestyle was forced to immigrate to Europe, over ten years ago, due to the lack of any real creative scene in Johannesburg. His style is one-of-a-kind, incredibly unique and mind-blowing…

We caught up with Jay to find out more.

How did you get into tattooing? I started off as a piercer and my mentor was the one to actually push me to learn tattooing. I started practising on artificial skin for a couple of months and once I felt confident I moved onto friends and co-workers. I had a lot of work done on myself by professionals and that was one of the main ways I learnt and got into the trade.

How would you describe your style? Sometimes when people try to explain or describe my style they, for a lack of better words call it “Jay Style”, which I kind of like. It’s Jaystyle, it’s whatever I want it to be.

How do you like to work with your clients? I like it when they have a basic idea of what they want in terms of subject matter and they just let me run with it. It is a fine line between giving enough input to get a feel of their personality and what they want and not so much as to ruin the creative process.

What kind of ideas do they come to you with? It varies, the most common requests I get are for flowers and animals/birds. A lot of ideas that people come up with are mostly to do with some sort of “happy” feeling. I rarely get to do morbid stuff unfortunately.

Jay Freestyle is your name, does that sum up your style of tattooing? Yes it does.

Are your customers often surprised by what you come up with for them? Yes and no. Those that are fans of my work and understand what I do aren’t that surprised because they know what they’re getting into and already have a certain expectation. Collectors that I have to convince into sharing my vision are the ones that come out surprised.

Do you just tattoo straight onto the body? No stencils or anything pre-drawn? I draw directly onto the body, the basic composition and whatever I feel I need to have as reference. I, of course, also use stencils, not everything can be hand drawn. I don’t however have anything pre-drawn, so the entire design process is done spontaneously (free-styled).

 

What do you enjoy most about tattooing? Everything. The art of it, travelling, the lifestyle. One of the most valued things I’ve gained from tattooing are the friends I’ve made over the years. I would have never met these people that changed my life if I wasn’t a tattoo artist.

Home Sweet Home – an exhibition at Atomica Gallery

Atomica Gallery presents: ‘Home Sweet Home’ Joint solo exhibitions from Nicholas Stevenson and Angela Dalinger
14th August 2014 – 11th September 2014

 

 ‘Home Sweet Home’ is a joint exhibition of new paintings from Nicholas Stevenson (UK) and Angela Dalinger (Germany).

The exhibition explores domestic voyeurism as both a whimsical and worrying matter through a series of imaginary homes.

‘Home Sweet Home’ offers a snatched glimpse into a series of imaginary homes. In the exhibition both artists indulge in depicting domestic voyeurism which treads a thin line between the whimsical and the worrying. As we trespass through these residences, we are likely to encounter anything from illegal pets to resident ghosts, wizard’s gardens to troubling personal collections and questionable tastes in decor.

All work is available for sale. The exhibition ends on 11 September, so you still have a week to go see it at Atomica Gallery in Covent Garden, London.

 

A Vegan Art Collection

The Sheppard collection of vegan art both curated and collected by Robert Sheppard hopes to highlight and question our treatment of animals in  society, as well as celebrate the beauty of animals and nature.
We’ve picked a few of our favourites to share with you. To see even more animal art visit the full collection.

Buddha Dog- Karen Fiorito

 

Paula 5- Roland Straller

Kitten Nugget- Dana Ellyn