Peter van der Helm, owner of Walls and Skin a tattoo and graffiti studio in Amsterdam, is offering to preserve tattoos after the owner has died.
The Foundation for Art and Science of Tattooing has had over fifty people already signed up for their preservation service, in which they remove the tattooed skin, pack it in formaldehyde and send it to a laboratory where the water and fat will be removed and replaced with silicone. The tattooed skin will belong to the foundation, it can be put on display or loaned to friends and family of the deceased.
Prices start from 300 euros for a tattoo roughly 10cm in size. You can also buy gift vouchers and cards for the service.
The foundation wishes to collect different styles of tattoos from different artists, thus preserving the stories behind the tattoos. The main reasons for tattoo preservation as stated on their website include:
the emotional values of the tattoos, the interest in contributing to the history of tattooing, the preservation of the art piece or the artist work and to leave behind a piece of yourself to friends and family father death.
We’ve put our heads together here at Things&Ink to bring you a post filled with tattoo advice for those who are yet to go under the needle…
Get quality not quantity!
Jen Adamson our Music Writer says: “Get quality not quantity!” Jen has learnt from her own mistakes of being covered with awful tattoos when she was younger! You get what you pay for! (she is also going through a painful removal process, read more here)
Know your body and its limits. Don’t over push them.
Writer Kimberly Baltzer-Jaray has a multitude of great advice to impart, she really knows her stuff: Do your research before getting one. Know everything about the process of getting a tattoo, understand the equipment, have an idea of the health and safety standards, etc. If you walk into a shop and you see anything wrong, leave immediately.
Always look at a portfolio of both fresh and healed work. Wet, fresh, swollen tattoos often look so great, but it’s after the peeling and healing that you see if the lines are straight, or if the colours took, or if the drawing is good.
Be sure you fully hydrate and eat a good meal before sitting down. Bring drinks with you and don’t be afraid to ask for a pause to sip. Also, sometimes if you are getting a back piece done or something on a painful area it helps to bring along a sweatshirt or something from home that you can put your face on or into when it gets a bit tough.
The tattoo shop comfort is as important as the artist. Be sure when you’re looking around that you actually go to these places, don’t just look online. Go in and check the place out, does it feel right for you? (e.g., are there private rooms or are you out in the open, does the artist allow people to hang around him or her while working, are there comfortable chairs or tables). Talk to the artist and the staff and make sure you are comfortable with them. After all the artist is going to be touching you, and you have to be able to tell him/her if you are struggling, or might faint etc., The shop needs to be a place where you aren’t afraid if the worst happens – it needs to be a place that if something happened like fainting or puking you’d feel confident that you’d be taken care of properly and be okay. Know your body and its limits. Don’t over push them.
You don’t need to be able to draw, a good artist will do this for you
Our editorial assistant Rosalie Woodward says: You don’t need to be able to draw, a good artist will do this for you, but it helps to go with an idea of size and what you would like. I always try to give the artist as much free rein as I can, I think you come away with a better tattoo. I have a lot of tattoos that have no meaning, I simply liked the artwork and this is fine! You don’t need a story behind every one! While it heals it will itch! So infuriating but don’t give in and scratch it and don’t pick at your healing tattoo, this will peel off the ink and ruin it!
Stick to your guns and be confident in choice of sizing and design!
Make-up artist and homewares writer Keely Reichardt has this pearl of wisdon: If you really are not sure whether you want to go bigger or not, then do not be bullied into getting a tattoo much bigger than you first thought. Stick to your guns and be confident in choice of sizing and design!
Look beyond photographs of other tattoos that belong to other people in your search for inspiration.
Editor Alice Snape has this advice: Look beyond photographs of other tattoos that belong to other people in your search for inspiration. Think about the artists you love – the pictures that hang on your walls – favourite books, characters from films and just look around your home at the things that surround you. Then pick a tattooist whose style you are drawn to – whether its their colour palette, or bold lines. If you go with them with an abstract idea and some references, they will be able to create something just for you a custom, unique piece. Just don’t let them persuade you too go too big, or have it somewhere you are not happy with.
Vagabond custom tattoo studio in Hackney London, is born from the collaboration of tattoo artist Paul Hill and graphic designer Rebecca Morris.
The studio’s aesthetic is heavily influenced by Rebecca’s design background, the modern and stripped back decor creates a crisp and clean space, perfect for showcasing the tattoo artists’ work.
Paul’s artwork stems from a background in custom car air-brushing and pin-striping, a creative and skilled art form which allowed him to naturally progress into tattooing. The shop houses a custom built motorbike, a throwback to Paul’s air-brushing days.
From working in busy walk-in studios, Paul has developed a clean and crisp tattoo technique visible in his graphic style. He revels in bolder, moody looking tattoos which re-imagine traditional flash.
The shop is also home to tattoo artists: Harry Harvey who excels in traditional and old-school tattooing and Andrew Hulbert who predominately works in an illustrative style with black line work.
The five-strong team welcome anyone to pop into the shop to discuss tattoo ideas or gallery exhibitions.
To celebrate our two year anniversary we are teaming up with Atomica Gallery to bring you Miniature Ink. An exhibition featuring miniature original artwork from over 100 tattoo artists across the globe. All of the pieces will be on sale for £60, with profits being donated to cancer charity Sarcoma UK.
The exhibition opens on Wednesday 24th September and the party starts at 6pm, all artwork will be sold on a first come, first served basis! So make sure you’re there on time to grab an original from your favourite artist…
Here’s a sneak peek from a few tattoo artists who have created art for ‘Miniature Ink’.
