Emperor Tattoos

Thursday, June 2, 2011

Andrew's Traditional Sleeve by Horisei

Every once in a while, it's nice to appreciate a tattoo for its own sake. This is especially rewarding for me when I am familiar with the artist, and I know people who have been tattooed by him or her, which has allowed me to appreciate their craft over time.

Two of my friends have been fortunate enough to have been tattooed by the wonderful Horisei (their work appeared here and here). Horisei works out of Chelsea Tattoo Company, former location of Rising Dragon.

So, when I spotted Andrew, coming out of Penn Station last month, I was more than thrilled to take shots of his Horisei-crafted sleeve.

Andrew estimates that this took about twenty hours of work, over a two to three month period.

His traditional Japanese sleeve consists of a tiger, two koi, and peonies, in addition to the water background.

Thanks to Andrew for sharing his awesome sleeve with us here on Tattoosday!

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Andrew's Traditional Sleeve by Horisei

So, when I spotted Andrew, coming out of Penn Station last month, I was more than thrilled to take shots of his Horisei-crafted sleeve.

Andrew estimates that this took about twenty hours of work, over a two to three month period.

His traditional Japanese sleeve consists of a tiger, two koi, and peonies, in addition to the water background.

Thanks to Andrew for sharing his awesome sleeve with us here on Tattoosday!

Wednesday, June 1, 2011

A magic spell

Bigbys jacking hands

Some art

Orpheus descends into Hades seeking Euridice

Bathing youths

Timothy Shares a Luis Royo-Inspired Tattoo (and More!)

When I met Timothy in Penn Station last month, I approached him because I noticed a tattoo on the back of his calf. But when I introduced myself, and explained what Tattoosday was all about, he rolled up his right sleeve to reveal a much better tattoo:

Timothy explained that the woman "is from a piece of artwork I love by Luis Royo, who worked for Heavy Metal." His tattoo artist, Tim McCormick at Wild Rose Tattoo in upstate New York, added the headdress to the original image "to make it more unique." Royo, Timothy, explained, has been his favorite artist since he was 13, and he got the tattoo at 29. The detail is incredible:

But what about the tattoo I first spotted on Timothy that prompted me to approach him in the first place?

"I've always been a big pirate fan since I was four....I got it in Puerto Rico. I drank a half a bottle of rum and my last day there decided to get a tattoo," Timothy explained. Considering the locale and the liquid that inspired the inking, the final product seemed more than appropriate:

Thanks to Timothy for sharing his tattoos with us here on Tattoosday!

Timothy Shares a Luis Royo-Inspired Tattoo (and More!)

Thanks to Timothy for sharing his tattoos with us here on Tattoosday!

Tuesday, May 31, 2011

Mr. Kaves Shares a Mark Mahoney Portrait

A couple weeks back, I ran into Michael Kaves on 3rd Avenue, a couple blocks away from his shop, Brooklyn Made Tattoo. Kaves is also one of the founding members of The Lordz of Brooklyn. I know Kaves from around the neighborhood, and although I've never been tattooed by him, I have been under the needle in his shop and have had the pleasure of seeing him work first-hand and close-up on other clients.

He's familiar with Tattoosday and wanted to share a tattoo with us here on the site. Check it out:

Located on Kaves' upper right arm, this brilliant tattoo was inked by the legendary Mark Mahoney.

Kaves explained he had gone out to Los Angeles a couple months back and worked at Mahoney's renown shop, the Shamrock Social Club. They had a big launch for a limited edition tattoo pigment - "Mark Mahoney's Shamrock Green". He was there, working on St. Patrick's Day for the official launch.

Mahoney, known to many as the " founding father" of single-needle black and gray tattooing, tattooed this portrait for Kaves, which took about twelve hours from start to finish.

And who is the woman tattooed on his arm? "It's my grandmother, Marie," he explained, "from Bay Ridge, Brooklyn, right here on Third Avenue, 1945."

Kaves' own tattooing work first appeared on Tattoosday back in 2008 here. Most recently, his work has appeared here. This is, however, the first time we have been honored to share a tattoo by Mark Mahoney.

Thanks to Kaves for sharing this phenomenal tattoo by an American master, here with us on Tattoosday!