Do you have any tattoos?

I got my first tattoo in 2017, at a point where I was feeling a bit stuck, creatively. Katie had heard of a few of the artists in this small tattoo shop situated behind a hair salon in Echo Park, so we went. I checked out the flash and interests on Roger Seliner’s wall and ultimately picked something at random to get. If you’re unfamiliar with “flash”, it is essentially pre-drawn sample work that tattoo artists sell, or use to promote their practice. While I love the art, what really draws me in is the fact that this somewhat permanent image that I now own on my arm, can simultaneously hold absolutely no meaning, and all of the meaning in the world.

People collect tattoos for different reasons. Some collect to memorialize a loved one; to explore their identity; to express themselves. For me, collecting tattoos is not about meaning-making, in the traditional sense.

I see the act of collecting tattoos (at random) as a means to subvert the profound assumptions and beliefs we hold to be true around the meaning of meaning. In other words, my tattoos remind me that nothing really matters unless we invent it to be so.

Here’s my current collection. I essentially book an appointment with the intention of letting the artist select from a number of ideas in my head, or coming prepared to select something random on the spot. The process takes anywhere from 3-4 hours. So far, I’ve found that the outer arms are very manageable, while the chest, stomach, and inner arm/armpit area is more painful. For some collectors, experiencing pain is a critical part of the process, but I’m not to keen on that.

In total, I have ~20 tattoos. I say “~”, because the exact number really depends on how you group certain items, and if you count “filler” pieces between the larger ink as tattoos as well.

Almost all of my tattoos are on my upper arms, with two exceptions: the spooky pizza slice is on my right chest area, and “LASAGNA” is at the top of my stomach. In total, I have worked with 6 artists, including Roger Seliner, Johnny Vampotna, Amelia Rose, Shawn Triple 6, and Julie Bolene. Each of these artists have such incredible talent, and are a joy to sit with for a few hours.

This piece is the only tattoo I have that had any kind of pre-appointment plan to it. Shawn Triple 6 did an incredible job bringing to life an idea I had: a 20-sided die, but with the numbers “12”, “13”, and “14” (the date of my wedding anniversary), visible in the angle, I’m so impressed by Shawn’s ability to let the details thrive. When we were initially talking about the idea, I knew that getting the numbers right (especially when they can be at quite weird perspectives depending on the angle) would be the most technical aspect of the project. When it comes to “technical”, there are few better than Shawn Triple 6.

When people ask me what my favorite tattoo is, I often point to this one, by Amelia Rose. Amelia started our session with a tarot reading, which led to a conversation around the need to explore ways to detach myself from certain aspects of my past, or other people’s expectations of me. At the time, I was feeling less fulfilled in my work and life, so I was particularly inspired by this idea of regrowth that is inherent in the lizard’s initial loss of its tail.

My most recent tattoo is a tribute to the random idea that got me into collecting tattoos in the first place. Before I had ever considered getting inked, a friend of mine asked me, at a bar: “If you could get any tattoo, what would it be?” Without any hesitation, I blurted out the first thing that came to my mind: “The word ‘LASAGNA’, in super intense type, on my stomach”. I then went on to try and turn a comment that had no meaning whatsoever into something that sounded somewhat logical: “The two most beautiful words in the world, if you really think about it, are “lasagna”, and “diarrhea”, but I just don’t see myself walking around with “diarrhea” on my stomach. I came to Johnny Vampotna with a couple of ideas, and we landed on this. He drew the type on the spot! Funny story, getting a tattoo on your stomach hurts. Even worse, the entire session, the tenant next door was literally drilling into the concrete. If that isn’t metal, I don’t know what is.

I got this tattoo as a walk-in. I think it was in Silver Lake, and unfortunately I can’t remember the artist’s name. If you know my work, you know I love dice. This tattoo was generated by rolling a die a bunch of times to generate different elements to incorporate. I rolled the die 5 times, and landed on: “skull”, “snake”, “butterfly”, “cobweb”, and “heart”. This is the resulting piece.

As I continue to acquire new pieces, I’ll share them here. If you have any questions about tattoos, I’m happy to answer them!