Aisha's Stunning Back Piece

This incredible back piece belongs to Aisha, a former New Yorker who now resides in Florida.

I met her last month at the corner of 36th Street and Broadway in Manhattan.

The tattoo is an interpretation of the old adage, "See No Evil, Hear No Evil, Speak No Evil".

Inked over eleven years ago and representing about twenty hours of work, this huge piece was her second of eight tattoos.

She remembers only that the artist's name is Rodrigo, so it may have been Rodrigo Melo who currently owns and works at North Star Tattoo, but I am still working to confirm he was the tattooer behind this.

"I told him what I wanted," Aisha explained. "He just drew it on my back and I loved it and that was it."

The face is female, her eyes are closed and she has a mouth bit that represents her silence.

Despite the face's eyes being closed, she indicated that the "third eye" in the middle of the forehead is open. The third eye can be interpreted many ways, but often refers to looking inward and a greater consciousness.

Thanks to Aisha for sharing this amazing tattoo with us here on Tattoosday!

This entry is ©2011 Tattoosday.

If you are reading this on another web site other than Tattoosday, without attribution, please note that it has been copied without the author's permission and is in violation of copyright laws. Please feel free to visit http://tattoosday.blogspot.com and read our original content. Please let me know if you saw this elsewhere so I contact the webmaster of the offending site and advise them of this violation in their Terms of Use Agreement.

Kathy's Back, The Beginning

I spotted Kathy walking in front of Madison Square Garden, near the corner of Seventh Avenue and 33rd Street earlier this month and, although I couldn't see specifically what she had going with her tattoos, I was intrigued enough to ask.

Some folks are often dismissive of me when I approach them, but Kathy was the total opposite. She was joyful and excited to share her ink and, when she removed her outer layer and adjusted her tank top, it was abundantly clear why. She had recently embarked on a full back piece and was proud of the foundation for what is ultimately going to be a phenomenal work of art:

Kathy had enlisted Derek Noble of Lucky Devil Tattoo Parlor in Seattle to create this tattoo. She explained, "he's really into horror, traditional, and all that kind of stuff, so I went to him back in January."

Kathy is an interior designer with twelve tattoos and agreed to share the back piece in its early stage (approximately three and a half hours in). She has tentatively agreed to keep us posted when she heads back to Seattle at the end of the summer so that we can see the work develop.

She explained further:

"I broke my back about two years ago, so I figured I'd make something nice out of a bad thing. There's little vertebrae holding candles and I love zombies ... I gave [Derek Noble] the time period, I said I wanted something Jack the Ripper era, and he went full out for it. I saw [the design] the day of, and I never even thought I wouldn't like it."

Well we here at Tattoosday can't wait to see how this turns out. With just the outlines, the piece looks incredible and, well, it's Derek Noble, after all, so we know it's going to turn out magnificently.

Thanks to Kathy for sharing the early stage of her new back piece with us here on Tattoosday! I know we can't wait to see more!

This entry is ©2011 Tattoosday.

If you are reading this on another web site other than Tattoosday, without attribution, please note that it has been copied without the author's permission and is in violation of copyright laws. Please feel free to visit http://tattoosday.blogspot.com and read our original content. Please let me know if you saw this elsewhere so I contact the webmaster of the offending site and advise them of this violation in their Terms of Use Agreement.

NYC Tattoo Convention Spotlight: Jessica's Stunning Tibetan Back Piece

The last few years that I've attended the New York City Tattoo Convention, there's always been at least on person with a full back piece that captures my attention and, much to my enjoyment, agrees to share their work with us here at Tattoosday. The biggest and brightest tattoo this year for me, was this stunning work of art on Jessica:

This beautiful piece was inked by Echo at Now or Never Tattoos & Body Works in Staten Island, New York.

Jessica estimates that this piece took 11 hours to complete and added that there may, in the future, be more coming. "We have to fill it in the bottom and the top with a whole bunch of more flower work," she told me, but for the most part, this is complete.

When I asked what the origin of the piece was, she told me " I had a lotus flower on my lower back, so he [Echo] expanded it to a Tibetan princess."

As for the inspiration for the piece, Jessica explained, "I had a friend of mine pass away who was Tibetan, so that's kind of where the whole meaning came from."

As you would imagine, this piece was garnering a lot of attention from photographers and other convention attendees. I was thrilled to speak to Jessica about the tattoo and thank her profusely for taking the time to speak with me and share her Tibetan princess with us here on Tattoosday.

This entry is ©2011 Tattoosday.

If you are reading this on another web site other than Tattoosday, without attribution, please note that it has been copied without the author's permission and is in violation of copyright laws. Please feel free to visit http://tattoosday.blogspot.com and read our original content. Please let me know if you saw this elsewhere so I contact the webmaster of the offending site and advise them of this violation in their Terms of Use Agreement.