fellow georgia people

[softball]

Originally Posted by 12ClicksMichele

So basically you had no question you just felt the need to shove your opinion down my throat. I got my first tattoo at 17 and I am 35 now. All of my work still looks as good as the day I got it. I don't give a rats ass about "dating myself" which actually shows your absolute ignorance about the true tattoo culture or the history of the practice. I got my work FOR ME not for anyone else. And as someone that is involved in an industry that is often judged and vilified by a large part of society I find your judgmental attitude a little surprising though I probably shouldn't.
There are plenty of people out there that go to shitty artists or get shitty designs. Then again there are people that do shitty jobs and or make shitty decisions in all situations.
You don't like tattoos then fine don't like them. I'm not going to try and change your mind. But I also wouldn't make broad statements about something I obviously know nothing about.
Oh and seeing peoples tattoos and not liking them does not mean you know what the true tattoo culture is about. Spend sometime with some true artists, go to tattoo conventions and talk to people that have been involved in that industry for years and you might find you have something in common with them.

So basically you had no question you just felt the need to shove your opinion down my throat

You still did not answer the question. You danced alll around it, but you didn't answer it. I have filmed whole documentaries on body modification, scarification, implants...like devil's horns...have travelled through Papua New Guinea and seen the locals tattooed from head to foot and I am sure they have never been to a tattoo convention. I have watched drunken lager louts from England get huge tatoos all over themselves in Thailand where you know they are using bogus ink and it WILL run and turn into a mess. Tattoos on models are an affront to their business skills because they force their shit on me to photo shop and in videos it is even more difficult. But like I said, I may take this opportunity to rant a little, but you take this opportunity to dodge the question again. How the fuck can tattooing be anything but a fashion statement unless you are a primitive and it means something religious or you walk around mostly naked and it is your distingquishing statement of past and/or family. Walking around NYC with a spider web across your face is just plain threatening....gangland tatts are threatening....but most are a dispirate collection of unimitiaged mistakes. OK, so you tell me the deeper meaning of your tatts and the vibe of a convention of like minded walking canvases.

[12ClicksMichele]

Originally Posted by rhetorical

You still did not answer the question. You danced alll around it, but you didn't answer it. I have filmed whole documentaries on body modification, scarification, implants...like devil's horns...have travelled through Papua New Guinea and seen the locals tattooed from head to foot and I am sure they have never been to a tattoo convention. I have watched drunken lager louts from England get huge tatoos all over themselves in Thailand where you know they are using bogus ink and it WILL run and turn into a mess. Tattoos on models are an affront to their business skills because they force their shit on me to photo shop and in videos it is even more difficult. But like I said, I may take this opportunity to rant a little, but you take this opportunity to dodge the question again. How the fuck can tattooing be anything but a fashion statement unless you are a primitive and it means something religious or you walk around mostly naked and it is your distingquishing statement of past and/or family. Walking around NYC with a spider web across your face is just plain threatening....gangland tatts are threatening....but most are a dispirate collection of unimitiaged mistakes. OK, so you tell me the deeper meaning of your tatts and the vibe of a convention of like minded walking canvases.

To get a tattoo because you see a celebrity with a tattoo or all your friends get a certain tattoo is following a trend or what the current trend. My point is there are plenty of people that get tattoos because it holds a much deeper meaning for them. When I started getting tattooed it was no where near as popular with females as it is today. All of my tattoos have a very deep meaning for me as they are for most of the people I know who are into tattooing. For example on my left arm I have flowers, doves and a stained glass window with a purple ribbon for pancreatic cancer and my mothers name in her handwriting. I got this tattoo in the last year of my mothers life. The flowers are some of her favorite and the doves also represent my mothers spirit. I chose to get the tattoo while my mother was still alive because it was in celebration of her life and how bravely she faced fighting pancreatic cancer and how until her last days she lived her life to the fullest. It was also very therapeutic experience for me to help me deal with my anger and grief over the situation. All of my tattoos have great meaning for me. My work also has the added meaning that my best friend is my tattoo artist, she is amazingly talented and I am honored to have her work on my body. Some of my work is easily visible and some of it isn't. Bottom line I got my work because it means something to me. I am very proud of the artwork I have on my body but I also don't feel the need to show it to everyone.