Anthony and Evolver, Interpreting the Anatomy of Time

I spotted this unusual tattoo on the back of Anthony's arm in a Borders and just had to ask about it:

He explained that this image, called "Evolver," is his interpretation of the "anatomy of time". The design is from an album that Anthony's band, Dsciphire, recently released. Dsciphire is hard rock, infused with elements of funk, metal, and electro.

He credited a freelance tattoo artist named Oak Newbury out of Ft. Myers, Florida.

Thanks to Anthony for sharing this cool tattoo with us here on Tattoosday!

This entry is ©2011 Tattoosday.

If you are reading this on another web site other than Tattoosday, without attribution, please note that it has been copied without the author's permission and is in violation of copyright laws. Please feel free to visit http://tattoosday.blogspot.com and read our original content. Please let me know if you saw this elsewhere so I contact the webmaster of the offending site and advise them of this violation in their Terms of Use Agreement.

Eric's Tattoo: Zero the Fool and an Obsession with Time

I met Eric on Seventh Avenue between 23rd and 24th Streets earlier this month.

This tarot card on his left forearm jumped out at me:

Eric is a mixed media artist whose website can be seen here. He is an illustrator and is currently in school studying toy design. The tattoo he has is primarily based on a linoleum block he had created that recalls the Tarot card "The Fool". Because it is an unnumbered card in the deck, it is often referred to as "Zero" or 0.

The Fool often represents the beginning of a journey, oftentimes a "foolish adventure". He had this tattooed to commemorate his decision to move from Boston to New York City. While the decision may not have been foolish, it did mark a new journey in Eric's life.

The card was tattooed by Hannah at Regeneration Tattoo in Boston.

One may have noticed that there is work around the tarot card, as well, so it's only fair to show the piece as a whole:

And the tattoo extends up the arm a bit from the pocket watch on the right:

The additional elements in the tattoo speak to Eric's obsession with the passage of the time. Snowflakes are only temporary as they fall from the sky and melt, or become mixed with other flakes and lose their singularity.

The flowers are imagined creations representing growth. Eric's floral images are inspired by the artwork of Henry Darger.

He also notes that the time piece is cracked and broken:

This, he says, represents the fight against the obsession and paranoia over the passage of time.

The work around the tarot card was all tattooed by Kelly Krantz at the now-defunct Hold Fast Tattoo in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. From what I can tell, Krantz is not currently affiliated with any one tattoo shop.

Thanks to Eric for sharing his thought-provoking tattoo with us here on Tattoosday!

Xavier's Pocket Watch Flies Through Time

I knew my birthday was going to be a good one when I not only spotted ink first thing in the morning, but I talked tattoo and got a story before 7:00 A.M. on the R train at 95th Street.

Xavier has a dozen or so tattoos which he wears with pride. All are inked by Joe Maggs at Brooklyn Ink. Just by virtue of my close proximity to the shop, Brooklyn Ink's work has appeared on the blog more than any other shop. Click here to see all the posts.

The tattoo that Xavier offered up is on his left hand:


This clock is frozen in time at 3:35, the moment when Xavier was born.

It's worth noting that Joe Maggs' use of negative space on this piece lends to the illusion that the pocket watch is floating over Xavier's skin. It's a nice effect.

Xavier designs streetwear and some of his work can be seen on his MySpace page here.

Thanks to Xavier for sharing his tattoo with us here on Tattoosday!

Time Flies When You're Living and Dying

"No," I explained to Heather, "I don't troll the post office for tattoos." She was asking why, of all places, I stopped her in line at the Fort Hamilton Post Office in Brooklyn.

Really, it was a series of coincidences. My younger daughter was sick today, so I stayed home. Otherwise, I would have been at the main post office in Manhattan. But there I was, after an eternal wait in line, when I looked back and saw Heather talking to someone before getting into the endless line. I gasped. Heather has a lot of ink. She has sleeves (I think one was 3/4 and one was 1/2, I could be wrong) and a back piece that looks to be of significant volume, with other tattoos scattered across her self from neck to toe.

When I asked her about her tattoo count, she gave me an answer that you generally don't hear, except from the heavily-tattooed. "I estimate I'm about 40% covered." Wow. A lot of ink, indeed.

Heather gets tattooed by two main guys, and the piece she offered for Tattoosday was done by Lou Andrew at Third Eye Tattoos in Park Slope. You may be familiar with Lou's work, from Fabiana, whose ink has been appearing recently on Tattoosday.

Heather explained the piece, saying that the girl in the artwork has been "zombfied" to represent death

and the hourglass, with the wings, is symbolic of the fleeting nature of time ("time flies"), and ultimately, life. The detail is vivid and very well done:

I love the grains of sand falling in the hourglass and the red cobwebs.

Heather explained that this tattoo, on the back of her left calf, will have a companion piece on the back of the right, but not until fall. She acknowledged that her practice is not to get tattooed in the summer, when fresh ink is most susceptible to sun damage and fading.

Much thanks to Heather for sharing her tattoo here on Tattoosday! I hope she will make a return appearance in the future, perhaps later in the year when she has the other piece inked.