When Art Goes Bad

It takes a lot of guts to do tattoos. Unlike canvas, any mistake is permanent. There are no "do overs". It seems these days artists are either going into tattoos or anime. Unfortunately, there's no standard apprenticeship program for tattooing, which means anyone can purchase the equipment and setup shop, regardless of skill or knowledge.

I found the following bad tattoos at Bad Tattoos.com. Some of the bad artwork is partially the customers fault. What looks good in your head, doesn't alway translate into art. Also, what you think is funny - becomes very tedious after ten years. A good artist should be able to guide a customer in creating a tattoo that will last years and bring meaning to the artwork.

Another thing a good tattoo artist must consider is layout. How will this piece integrate into existing and future work. People who don't plan, end up with a mess of color and images.

If you want a special or unique tattoo, you should research the artist. Sometimes you have to fly to the studio. I had a friend who flew to Europe to get the exact tattoo he was looking for. Faces and animals are particularly hard to master. If you're looking to do something that's not in the standard catalog, be very careful.

Hygiene is another important element. The studio should be clean and all the equipment sterile. The artist should wear latex gloves and use a new needle set. Do not trust studios that use an autoclave to sterilize needles.

By the way, I am not a tattoo artist. I just don't have the guts. I'll stick to my canvas and board, thank you very much.


Kmuzu