Tattoo Designs by Joseph Gilland

Another practice tattoo, this one on my right upper leg....

2011-07-04T22:13:00.000-07:00

I just completed the preliminary line work on this tattoo on my right leg. The image is from a drawing I did many months ago and posted here.

This is a detailed ornate skull design based on a drawing by Leonardo DaVinci, treated with a 'day-of-the-dead' sugar skull style of decorative line work. I completed the line work today in under three hours, and I am extremely pleased with the progress I have made with my tattoo lining work. I will be adding thicker lines to some areas, and then shading as well, and perhaps some colour at some point. Compare this to the skull I tattooed on my left leg some time ago:

Well, there really is no comparison. I hope this will give those of you seeking a tattoo an idea of how far my skill has come in the past few months. Although I am fully aware of how much I have to learn, I am feeling more and more confident, and look forward to doing more and more 'real' tattoos for clients in the coming months and years...

Thanks again and always to Sean Bergstrom of Vancouver Island Tattoos for his patient tutelage the last little while.

Here is the latest version with more shading.....

Latest 'Scorpio' tattoo design from 'Elemental Tattoos' !

2011-05-13T13:27:00.000-07:00

Just did this tattoo design for a friend of a friend. She asked for a SCORPIO design that would be a little more feminine than the norm, not some tough looking biker style thing. she also wanted a cross with the words "God's Never Later" which you can see on the second version....

Elemental Tattoos officially opened for business!

2011-03-24T11:57:00.000-07:00

Well, the time has finally come! I have been practicing for many months now, I recently graduated from grapefruits to human flesh, and I have completed a couple of very well executed tattoos, that you can look at here. I am now confident that I can do a very professional job for anyone wanting a tattoo, HOWEVER, I am going to be starting with much simpler designs, lettering, symbols, and smaller pieces. If you are looking for a very large or complex tattoo, please feel free to contact me with design ideas, and I will do top notch design work for you and keep you posted as my skill level increases and I eventually am ready for the larger more complex tattoos. This should be relatively soon at the rate I am learning and improving my skill as a tattooist. My promise to ALL my clients is that the work will be expertly executed, and with the utmost attention to sterile and healthy working techniques. I will not tackle anything that I do not feel 100% ready to do PERFECTLY. So if your tattoo idea is extremely ambitious, please be patient and I will get to it when my skill level and confidence is exactly where it needs to be.

My most recent work was the 'Damaged Goods' tattoo you see below, for my dear friend Wilson. The work flowed smoothly, and the precision and details are clean and as close to perfect as possible. This was the tattoo that made me realize I am ready to start working professionally. In the next few weeks I will be adding a great deal of equipment to my inventory, new tips, inks, needles, shaders, and autoclave etc. So the work will be getting more sophisticated very quickly. Drop me a line at directly if you want me to get to work on a tattoo design for you.

My pricing will be extremely fair, both for designs and final tattoo execution. I will price each individual job to suit the client, so you can expect to pay far less than you might at a typical tattoo shop. So let the creative fun begin! I look forward to hearing from you and working with you to create a tattoo that will live on you and in you, and be a great source of pride and inspiration for a lifetime!

Ram-Fish Tattoo design for Patricia......

2010-11-06T17:32:00.000-07:00

A good friend and extremely talented artist friend of mine, Patricia, asked me to come up with something for a tattoo design she's been working on for herself. Here is the design she sent me, a very stylized B & W hard edged design, and my first rough drawing as well as a more detailed, shaded version. I haven't even shown it to her yet, I have NO idea if she'll like it....

Elemental Tiger Tattoo design

2010-11-04T19:49:00.001-07:00

I just created this Tiger tattoo design. I went with the pure Japanese styling for the Tiger, but the water, fire and smoke is not in the Japanese style, but rather in my own 'special effects' style. This is something I hope to be able to do more and more as I actually become a professional tattooist...

My Mexican Tattoo

2010-09-26T09:57:00.001-07:00

Back in May of 2009 when I was in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, I got this tattoo down at Baja Tattoo in Cabo. I'm not sure that I've ever posted it here, so here it is....The artist's name is Carlos, and he is the owner of Baja Tattoos. It is in the same mall as Sammy Hagar's Bar, Cabo Wabo. They stay opened late and I think they get a lot of business staggering in from the bar! They do some really fine work at Baja Tattoos. Although I've heard "Don't ever get a tattoo in Mexico!", I can vouch for Baja tattoos being extremely clean, talented and professional! A great bunch of artists work there.....I had this work done before the extensive sleeve work got started on my right arm...

The tattoo is an interpretation of a classicAztec sun God design

Carlos and his crew run a really tight ship down at Baja Tattoos

Burning Man tattoos

2010-09-24T08:06:00.000-07:00

This year's Burning Man was an incredible journey for me, and an amazing burn for all who attended. We experienced almost three full days without any dust storms, which has to be some kind of record for Burning Man. The weather was amazing, the art was amazing, the music was amazing, and the TATTOOS are always amazing.

First of all in the tattoo department, let me tell you the most wonderful story. On day two of the event, I wandered deep into the playa with my good friend Aaron Steiner. We were on our bicycles, looking at art installations way out in the deep playa. At one point I noticed what looked like an art installation that had fallen over or something. It was still quite far away, but I could see that something was up, and there was a pickup truck parked near it and some people milling about...I snapped a couple of pictures, and then headed towards the apparent wreckage of an art installation gone bad.

When I got close, a handsome fellow wearing a brown leather vest and a yellow skirt, came bounding up to me. "Hey man, our wall fell over, we need some help putting it back up!" he said. I immediately noticed that this guy had a beautiful Burning Man tattoo on his left upper arm. It was a gorgeous tattoo, and I asked him if I could take a photo of it. Sure he said, and as I readied my camera I asked him where he had it done. "Vancouver" he said, and as I asked him who did it, a strange wave of familiarity and certainty came over me. "A guy named Dave Nicholson at the Dutchman Tattoo shop" he said, and it hit me. Dave is the artist who did MY right arm sleeve, and he had been telling me about another guy he was doing a Burning Man tattoo for! As I started telling my new friend the story, he exploded in exclamation "Holy shit! You're the guy Dave's been telling me about, the guy who worked on the Heavy Metal movie?"

Well, it was an incredible meeting to say the least. Our mutual tattoo artist had been telling us about each other for the last year, and here we were, meeting in the middle of absolutely nowhere in the deep playa at Burning Man! At this point in my life, I don't really believe in coincidence. Think what you will, but this meeting was in my mind, a destined and very special occasion, orchestrated by mischievous elves from the 6th dimension!

Me and T-Bone posing with our Dave Nicholson tats

While I was at Burning Man, I took photos of tattoos that caught my eye, always asking the individual's if I could photograph them. People love showing off their tats. Here are some of my favorites.

My second self administered tattoo.....

2010-08-09T01:36:00.000-07:00

After I did my 'molecule' tattoo on my calf, I tried something a little bit more ambitious on my leg, above the knee. It's a 'Calavera' (Spanish for 'skull') in the Mexican 'Day of the Dead' style. I had an interesting time doing it, my stencil smudged and I ended up doing almost half of it by eye, so it turned out quite asymmetrical and wonky, but over all not TOO bad for an absolute beginner. I am going to continue working on it, and hopefully improve a great deal by the time it is done. Here is the initial tattoo and a couple of designs of where it might ultimately go...

My very first attempt at tattooing on real flesh (my own)

2010-07-21T01:31:00.000-07:00

This evening I set up and tattooed this molecule on my own leg. It is symbolic of the molecules released into our brains by our pineal gland when we dream.....The tattoo is a little bit shaky, it's hard for the very first time, and a little bit awkward tattooing your own leg, as you can not change the angle of your body relative to your leg to get a better drawing angle. But I am quite pleased with the results, I didn't make any big ugly mistakes and it's all uphill from here!

Damaged Goods

2010-07-18T20:09:00.001-07:00

A wicked tattoo design for my dear friend Wilson......Apparently people are trying to talk her out of it, but I think it rocks. Damn, we could tattoo this on the entire human race! But it's Wilson's idea and she's earned the right to tattoo this on her flesh for sure!

Another look at my Buddha tattoo design

2010-07-17T23:00:00.000-07:00

I designed this as a tattoo for my chest. One thing I like to be able to do is use photoshop to get an idea of how a tattoo will look before it is even done. Of course, many tattoos take shape directly on the body, so this technique would not always work, but in some cases it works beautifully.

This photo has the photoshopped version of part of my right arm sleeve tattoo, and then the actual tattoo, and the actual tat doesn't look all that far off from the mock-up I created. I hope the chest tattoo works out, I think it looks wicked cool.....

Viking Water Compass Tattoo Design

2010-07-17T14:47:00.000-07:00

A friend who has some 'Norse' or 'Viking' roots, asked me recently to design a tattoo for her back. Something with some iconic Viking symbolism in it, but also some of my most flowing water work, to reflect her affinity with water and her Aquarian astrological sign. I should note here that although Aquarius is 'The Water Bearer' it is actually an 'Air Sign' oddly enough. Go figure.....anyhoo, this is what I came up with and she seems to like it so far. I would add alot of shading in the background, flowing shaded areas to fit it to her physique better.

Rose Tattoo Design

2010-07-17T14:38:00.001-07:00

I am starting to try and think in terms of "What if someone walked into my tattoo shop and asked me for a.......". So I thought of one of the most common requests, a rose. I am trying to draw from the various tattoo disciplines I see, in this case, I went with a traditional 'old school' approach, except that my lines are heavier and smoother than typical old school designs. And the drawing is also a little bit more realistic and less stylized than the old school look.

The Magic Mouth

2010-07-16T15:57:00.000-07:00

What started as an illustration for my second volume of my 'Elemental Magic' Book (and still is) turned out to be what I think is a pretty darned cool design for a tattoo! What do you think?

My Tattoo equipment has arrived!!

2010-07-13T15:31:00.001-07:00

My first shipment of quality tattoo equipment arrived today from Eikon Tattoo! So the dream is becoming a reality.....This is my very first machine, a 'Green Monster' made by Eikon, a relatively inexpensive yet really solid, robust little tattoo machine. This is a shader machine. I got another Green Monster 'liner' machine that has to be assembled, so I can learn more about them while building it and setting it up to run properly. I am immensely excited. My new friend Shawn of Vancouver Island Tattoo in Cumberland is helping me get set up and may even go so far as to do a formal 'apprenticeship'. We are working out the details as we go, but he has already been an incredible helpful resource....

Liquid Skull Tattoo Design

2010-07-12T19:15:00.001-07:00

A fresh design that I did today. Since my foray into painting with acrylics the other day, this design has been showing up in my imagination. It is definitely something I'd like to paint, and hopefully something I'll get a chance to tattoo on some lucky soul.

It is made up of three separate levels of artwork. Many tattoo artists work with tracing paper this way, but I use a light table, as it is something I've done for my animation for so long, and I always have my light table everywhere I go.

I like the second version best as a tattoo design, but for my painting I will probably go with all the details and little fishies like in the third design.

Some new tattoo designs, and NEWS!

2010-07-08T19:52:00.000-07:00

Well, it looks like it is finally happening. I am waiting for a shipment of tattoo equipment, machines and all the gizmos that go along with them. I will be starting to practice very soon, and hopefully before long I'll be able to get down to the business of tattooing my friends and more.....

Here are a few designs I've done recently.....

Flowing into Hyperspace and back.....

2010-05-02T19:09:00.000-07:00

Some day, when I learn how to work a tattoo machine with a degree of proficiency, I hope to reproduce art like this on the flesh of willing human canvases....

A Free-form study

2010-04-27T10:32:00.001-07:00

This is an attempt at adopting somewhat of a Japanese style into my tattoo designs. Somewhat 'lame' so far. I find one of the most difficult things to do, is to draw in a style that is so uniquely 'iconified' as that of the Japanese tattoo style. In my book 'Elemental Magic' I emphasize the importance of NOT iconifying our elemental designs, but with the art of tattooing, the styles are made entirely of 'icons', that is, highly stylized interpretations of certain elements, with a long history of specific design principles behind them. This I see as one of my greatest challenges getting into tattooing. Although eventually I may be able to set off in my own direction, and create a unique tattoing style of my own, I realize that at the 'apprentice' stage of learning to tattoo, showing a reasonable proficiency in some of the classic tattoo styles, is expected and required. I am just starting, so I will give my self time and space to grow into this....

Skull Study

2010-04-02T23:55:00.000-07:00

I have been exploring the various possibilities of different skull designs. Tattoo designs are frequently populated with skulls, and I am really intrigued and impressed with some of the Mexican style 'Day of the Dead' skull tattoo designs that I see. I am trying to combine a more traditional 'biker' kind of a skull motif with some Day of the Dead motifs that I have seen here and there.

Day of the Dead Buddha design

2010-03-30T13:00:00.000-07:00

This is a work in progress for possible chest piece that I may actually go for one of these days. In keeping with the advice I got as far as what I should do if I want to get into tattooing...the answer? "Get lots of tattoos!"

I am definitely learning a lot this way. Spending time in a tattoo shop, watching other people getting tattoos, and watching carefully as mine get done, I am really learning a lot!

New work on my right arm sleeve tattoo for Brother John

2010-03-30T08:16:00.000-07:00

I just got back from another session with Dave at The Dutchman Tattoos in Vancouver. He did about 3.5 hours of intense deep shading on the already existing line work that he did last time. I expected him to get farther along, but he is really digging in to the shading, adding a LOT of amazing details, really working it.

The newer work really blends beautifully with the piece Dave did last year on the top of my forearm.

The area around the spinal cord has an amazing amount of detail, the black areas behind the boney bits have another whole level of subtle designs working in the black areas....

This session left my arm very, very red with inflammation. Interestingly, a lot of people have said they really like the red colour, and I am considering asking Dave to add some red after the black shading has healed.

2010-01-06T14:59:00.000-08:00

Later this month, on January 28th and 29th (my birthday) I will be sitting for two whole days of magnificent pain and tattooing ecstasy. I am returning to Dutchman Tattoos in New West, Vancouver, to have my favorite tattoo artist, Dave Nicholson, complete my right arm with a full sleeve, covering every square inch of flesh...and finishing my memorial tattoo for my dear departed brother John.

The new work starts out with the circle and triangle on the inside of my wrist. It moves up the arm in curling smoke and liquid fire, morphing into the anarchy symbol, and then into the skull of a salmon....

It curls around the inside of my arm where it morphs in to a bio mechanical spinal cord...

And it warps around the back side of my arm where there is a Burning Man symbol...

A tribute to my recovery

2009-06-20T12:44:00.000-07:00

This design will be going on my right arm, on the inside of the arm. The circle and triangle will be on the inside of my wrist, and the flames and smoke will undulate up my arm, and swirl around the elbow. It is designed to fit perfectly together with the tattoo I recently had done as a memorial for my Brother John. This is particularly poignant for me, as my Brother was killed by his hopeless addiction to alcohol and drugs, and this tattoo represents my freedom from addiction to alcohol and drugs.....there IS hope!

This is a very rough idea of what it might look like. I just did a quick comp in photoshop, the image is not properly wrapped around my arm.

A new tattoo design for my friend Phil...

2009-06-17T15:41:00.000-07:00

My dear friend Phil asked me to design a tattoo for his shoulder, of a beautiful Native American woman with a wolf. This is what I came up with. Damn, it is incredibly hard for me to draw women really well.To truly capture beauty in a drawing is extremely difficult, I can only imagine it is that much harder with a tattoo gun. Perhaps that is why so many female faces I see in tattoo work are often a little bit weird looking. Only the very finest tattoo work I have seen captures the true essence of female beauty that I am trying to portray with this tattoo design.....Hope you like it Phil, and make sure you get it done by the very best!

Getting a tattoo for my Brother John

2009-06-11T08:44:00.001-07:00

When asking for advice as to how to get 'in' to the tattoo business, one of the first things they told me is to GET TATTOOS, with a tattoo artist whose work you admire. So I approached Dave Nicholson, an amazing tattoo artist who works for the world famous Dutchman Tattoos in Vancouver. (New WestMinster) I had come up with a preliminary design for a tattoo for my brother, that would cover my entire right forearm. I let Dave go with the flow and design it the way he wants. He is an amazing artist, and he draws and designs right on the skin, rather than just tracing a design he has done before hand. This is the tattoo so far....

This tattoo is a memorial for my dear brother John, who passed away in February at the young age of 53 years old. It bears the inscription 'Fly On Brother'....lyrics from a song I wrote for him many years ago.

Sitting and watching Dave work on my forearm, is a fantastic way to learn. He works much faster than anyone else I have watched, actually drawing with the tattoo gun, really stroking the lines with finesse. I ask lots of questions. Dave likes the idea of me getting into the business, and I am hopeful that an apprenticeship is in the offing somewhere down the line.....

2009-06-10T18:55:00.000-07:00

This is a drawing I did as a preliminary idea for another tattoo for Scott. He asked for a "Winged Unicorn with Zebra stripes, with a warrior woman with a sword (and she has tiger stripes on her body ) fighting a dragon!" Quite a tall order! Well, no stripes so far......but not too bad for a first stab at it.

Scott's Dragon Tattoo is now a reality!

2009-05-24T08:27:00.000-07:00

A few months back my friend Scott asked me to design a bio-mechanical dragon tattoo for his left arm and shoulder. I feature the artwork earlier on in this blog. Now the tattoo's black and white ink is finished, and it looks phenomenal! Scott had it done at Baja Tattoo down in Cabo San Lucas, by Carlos, the owner of Baja Tattoo. It was a marathon 12 hour session, since Scott wanted to get the whole thing done while he was down there, and only had one day to do it before he left to come back to Vancouver.

Carlos did an amazing job staying true to my artwork, which was very detailed and complex, with a great deal of intricate shading. Scott will be getting some colour added, mostly to the background, negative space around the tattoo. Apparently Carlos has something very specific in mind, and I can't wait to see the final tattoo!

'Emerging' Tattoo Design

2009-04-16T11:35:00.001-07:00

This is my most recent tattoo design. It is based on a song I wrote called 'Emerging' which is about the human soul emerging from a state of hopeless addiction, and darkness, into the light, and a sublime spiritual state of being. This would be a very large tattoo, most likely a back, chest or side body work......

This work is still in progress, and the versions you see here are relatively 'rough'

Psychotrio Tatto Design

2009-04-15T10:20:00.000-07:00

This artwork represents three aspects of 'self', in this case, myself. The centre character being the main 'me', the self image with which we generally identify. On the left is the dark, dangerous, ego driven male dominated side, and on the right is the warm, and yet potentially destructive (like fire) female aspect.

I love the idea of creating these types of alter ego designs for someone looking to get a unique tattoo that very much describes who they really are, deep down inside. Each individual has his or her unique vision of what makes them tick, after all....

This style of artwork draws heavily on ancient Mayan and Aztec designs, as well as Egyptian. A lot of the really fine tattoo art work I see in the world today, I feel is a modern day reflection of the ancient culture's 'spirit' art.....Something sadly missing in much of our so called 'culture' today. I feel as a culture, as a race, Western man has lost his roots, and tattooing is a profound and meaningful way of connecting with our ancient tribal roots.

Tattoo Frame Design

2009-04-14T20:59:00.001-07:00

I designed this frame of twisted branches, that could work well to frame whatever image someone might want to have tattooed. In the first example I've framed an illustration of a medieval castle scene, and the second is a female portrait.

The Goblin

2009-04-14T16:59:00.001-07:00

This is a design that I drew, a very long, long time ago. So long ago that I would rather not say. It could use a little finessing as a design, but there is something about it I like a lot, and I think it would make an excellent tattoo design.

Nuclear Burn

2009-04-14T14:26:00.001-07:00

I designed this monstrosity quite a long time ago. Surely there is someone out there twisted enough to get this as a tattoo! A big part of my artwork back then was concerned with the dangers of nuclear proliferation. I still think we are playing with fire, regardless of all the talk of 'safe' nuclear energy! Nuclear Burn anyone?

Elemental Magic

2009-04-13T19:26:00.000-07:00

Over four years ago I started working on my book 'Elemental Magic'. One of the first things I designed for the book, was the cover artwork. I was sure that my publisher, Focal Press, would ask for changes to the cover, as it is very organic and clean, in sharp contrast to most of their book covers, which are far more 'textbook' in style. But they LOVED the design and stuck with it. I think it would make a bitching tattoo, and I am considering getting it done, large on my back between the shoulder blades...

Scott's Biomechanical Dragon Tattoo

2009-04-13T17:09:00.000-07:00

My good friend Scott asked me to design, a 'Biomechanical Dragon' tattoo design for his left shoulder. Initially I designed a dragon that was not 'biomechanical' but distinctly not a traditional Chinese dragon either. I did a rough colour version of it, before I moved on to redesigning the dragon as the fully biomechanical version seen in black and white above. Scott loves it, and is probably getting it done right about now, down in Cabo San Lucas at Baja Tattoos, where I recently had a beautifully stylized Aztec Sun God tat done on my inside left forearm. Carlos and his tattoo artists at Baja Tattoos are fantastic, and I know that carlos will do a beautiful job on Scott's dragon.....

Smoking Skull Tattoo Design

2009-04-13T10:28:00.000-07:00

While on a short vacation recently to Cabo San Lucas, Mexico, I drew this macabre smoking, flaming skull while sitting at my friends Michael and Collen's dining room table, in their beautiful desert castle. While they played cards, I sketched away with my blue Colerase pencil, and came up with this. Back in Vancouver, I cleaned it up in black graphite, and added the red flames in photoshop. Not sure which way I like it best, but it would definitely make a killer tattoo for someone who is into the skull thing.....

Val's Rose and Koi Pond Tattoo

2009-04-13T10:20:00.001-07:00

Recently I was asked to design a tattoo for a good friend of mine, Val. All she told me was that she wanted a large white rose, and a Koi pond, with two or three fish in it. She also wanted to see some blue or purple Iris flowers in the design. The tattoo is intended to go across Val's back, spanning her shoulders and hooking up nicely with the colourful tattoos that she already has on both shoulders.

24 hours later I had come up with this design, and Val is delighted with it. Of course there is still room for the tattoo artist to embellish the colours and design. I hope Val finds an excellent artist to complete this tattoo. I would love to ink it myself, but I think I will need at least a couple of months to master the tattoo gun.....

Here is Val's tattoo, with the line work completely finished!

Spirit Head and Yin Yang

2009-04-13T10:14:00.001-07:00

Just like my Yin Yang design further down the page, I drew this one in my journal, sitting on the beach in Guadeloupe, one of the French Caribbean Islands that I visited during my 6 week long travels through the Caribbean in 2002. Although the way it is drawn, with a kind of wood engraving look, would need to be changed to be more shaded rather than cross-hatched, I think the over all design would make a stunning tattoo.

Celtic Cross Tattoo

2009-04-13T10:01:00.000-07:00

I designed this Celtic Cross for my own right shoulder, in early 2008. I had the tattoo done by Michee, a Japanese woman who does beautiful tattoo work at Sacred Heart Tattoos in Vancouver.

The design incorporates several elements important in my life. Earth, Wind, Fire and Water, Elemental Magic, are portrayed. The center circle and triangle design represents my recovery from addiction. Above that there is also a Yin Yang design, which is central to my life's philosophy.

Yin Yang

2009-04-13T09:57:00.000-07:00

I drew this Yin Yang design in my journal, sitting on a beach on the Caribbean Island of Guadeloupe, about 6 years ago. I think it would make an outstanding tattoo design.......

Portait Tattoo Design

2009-04-13T09:52:00.001-07:00

This portrait was originally done in Montreal, way back in the early eighties. It was my girlfriend at the time, Manon. Almost thirty years later, Manon and I got in touch on Facebook, and she sent me a hi-res scan of the original drawing, that was very worn out and dirty, but still a beautiful drawing. (I had given it to her at the time) I cleaned it up and retouched it heavily in Photoshop, and this is the final result. I would love to design and create portrait tattoos. Many portrait tattoos that I see, seem to lack a real artistic flair, and I think I could provide that extra special touch.

Sea Turtle Tattoo

2009-04-13T09:46:00.000-07:00

I designed this sea turtle tattoo, while sitting at the dining room table with my friends Michael and Colleen Johnson, at their beautiful home in Cabo San Lucas this April. It was a reflection of where I was at the time. Although I did not see any sea turtles during my visit, they are a common symbol seen around the Cabo area.....I suspect a good number of female tourists would love to get a sea turtle tattoo done while they are vacationing in Cabo San Lucas!

(OOOPS! I left out his tail!!)

Mary Anne's Hummingbird Tattoo

2009-04-13T09:33:00.001-07:00

When my dear friend Mary Anne Shelton, passed away last year, her girlfriends and I decided to get a tattoo to remember her by. This humming bird design was found by someone, but I changed it substantially, smoothing out the lines and flow of the design, and adding the sphere, intended to portray an eclipsing sun, or moon, as Mary Anne's life was eclipsed. The lettering, "Memento Vivere" is latin for "A remembrance of life" and that was added to my tattoo, for another biker lady friend, Josie, who has been battling cancer for many years now. Over a dozen of her friends have tattooed these words on themselves in her honour. I have not heard form her in several months now, and I fear she is passed as well......

I had the tattoo done on my left shoulder, but decided to leave out the colour and just add black and grey shading instead. It looks beautiful. I am planning to add a subtle blue shading to the center of the circle, and leave the bird in black and white. The tattoo was done by Sean Cox at Millenium Tattoo in North Vancouver.

(this photo illustrates well, the long term damage that was done to my left shoulder in a motorcycle accident over 6 years ago. My tricep's nerves were badly damaged, and the muscle has never been able to grow back!)

An Animated Tattoo?

2008-05-29T17:18:00.000-07:00

I get the creeps watching this thing crawl up her back....I can feel it. What would a tattoo feel like crawling through your skin any ways? It would be wonderful to be able to animate a tattoo, but I think I will have to wait until people are outfitted with bio-mechanical flesh surfaces, that could be imprinted electronically in layers, like those old fashioned 3D pictures that animate as you move past them.....

I created the animating designs in Adobe AfterEffects, using a popular plugin called Trapcode Particular. I simulated the writhing particle strands first and then mirrored them to create the symmetrical design crawling up the woman's back.

Luminous Feathered Palm Queen of the Sassafrass Islands

2008-05-29T15:42:00.001-07:00

These inkblot tattoo designs were created in Adobe Photoshop, drawing freehand on a Cintiq tablet.

Although these 'inkblot' designs would be difficult to replicate exactly using a tattoo machine, I am thinking that with some practice, I could get to a point where I would be able to tattoo these designs onto someone's body pretty accurately. I think they would look fantastic as decorative tattoos. I originally created these designs for a film director and producer team, who are creating a movie that features a woman whose tattoos come to life. These were the preliminary designs that I came up with....

Orchid Head Deep Sea Peacock

2008-05-29T15:40:00.000-07:00

The Gutter Trash Crack Angel of West Hastings

2008-05-29T15:37:00.000-07:00

TrinidadianTribal Goat God

2008-05-29T15:34:00.000-07:00

Humanoid Life Forms from the Outer Rings of Scapuliatra

2008-05-29T15:28:00.000-07:00

The Pineapple Queen of the Sassafrass Islands

2008-05-29T15:25:00.000-07:00