Tattoosday at the Cincinnati Airport: Patrick’s Ink

Happy New Years from us here at Tattoosday! We still have some old 2011 encounters to recall which, for one reason or another, got postponed until now.

Regular readers may recall that I went briefly to Covington, Kentucky at the end of April and I spotted a few tattoos in my travels.

On my way back to New York, I was navigating the maze that is the TSA security checkpoint when I spotted a guy with a lot of interesting ink. However, common sense dictated that a crowded airport checkpoint was likely not the best place to start taking pictures and interviewing people.

So I put on my shoes and headed off to the gate. I just missed the little shuttle that transports travelers 150 yards or so from one section of the airport to the gate section of the terminal, so I waited, and who should walk up and stand next to me, but the guy I saw at the security checkpoint.

Knowing I couldn’t possibly ignore a clear sign from the fates that this gentleman should be on Tattoosday, I started up a conversation about his ink and five minutes later we were at the airport bar, talking about his tattoos, as I snapped photos of his sleeve, between sips of a very tall frosty glass of Shocktop Ale.

Patrick was kind enough to not only answer all my questions, was also nice enough to buy my beer for me. He works as a bartender on a river barge in the Cincinnati area and has a full sleeve, along with a separate piece on his left biceps. The work was finished in 2004 and took about four to five years due to the fact that he took some breaks between ink sessions.

Patrick is a Christian, and many of his tattoos are reflective of his faith.

For example, this quote, that reads, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart/with all your soul/with all your mind/ And with all your strength”.

The text on the forearm says “that was/to the/Rose/make/tenfold”.
 

  
The roses reflect the rose of Sharon.

The kanji on Patrick's right biceps, he told me, symbolize “truth, love and happiness.” The bird inked nearby is a dove.

The triangle at the top of the arm represents Christianity’s Trinity. And obviously, the crosses are also representative of his faith.

The tattoo on Patrick’s left biceps is a design representing the eye of God.

He got that tattoo in 2003 from Kenny Smith at Karmic Tattoo in McDonough, Georgia. Kenny Smith and Kenny Thompson, also of Karmic, are the two artists responsible for all of Patrick’s ink. It should be noted, however, that both Kennys are not listed as staff on the current Karmic website

Thanks to Patrick, not only for sharing his work with us here on Tattoosday, but for buying me the beer, and helping me pass the time at the airport.

This entry is ©2012 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.

Ryan's Religious Verse

I met Ryan at the end of September outside of Madison Square Garden, approaching him to ask about this tattoo on his upper right arm:

 

He explained that Philippians 4:13 was his confirmation verse. He added, "I went with the hands and everything because I already have a cross on my back."

Philippians 4:13 reads "I can do all things in him that strengtheneth me." (American Standard Version)

The chain in the hands connects to this part of the tattoo on the bicep:

Ryan commented that "I put only God can judge me because I've been going through some legal difficulties." It's a reminder that, when all is said and done, the ultimate judge is, in the belief of many, above and beyond the world in which we live.

Ryan credits Joe Bawden from Skin Alternative in Hillside, New Jersey, with this tattoo.

Thanks to Ryan for sharing his ink with us here on Tattoosday!

Jay's Hands Express Faith and Doubt

I met Jay in Penn Station, stopping him because he had a whole lot of tattoos. He estimated that he is probably 60 to 70 percent covered. He offered up his most recent work (as of May 31, 2011), the following tattoos:

Jay explained that, as a Christian, and as a pastor at the Revolution Church in Williamsburg, Brooklyn, faith and doubt are two things that he deals with on a regular basis. Jay expounded on this for me:

"I got [these tattoos] because of this quote by Paul Tillich [a German-American theologian] that says doubt is not the opposite of faith, it's merely an element of it. And to me, being a believer, a Christian, having a church and a bar ... I deal a lot with crisis of faith, even in my own life ... So, I decided to embrace doubt, because I think embracing doubt allows you to embrace your faith much more. And it's not about belief then, you know, it is actually faith and everyone doubts ... I think there is this kind of idea that if you doubt, you're bad or something, so it kinda has to do with that."

Jay's hand tattoos were inked by Bailey Hunter Robinson, a freelance artists in Brooklyn.

You can learn more about the Revolution Church at Pete's Candy Store at http://www.revolutionnyc.com/.

Thanks to Jay for sharing his tattoos and thoughts of faith and doubt 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.

Mark's Tattoo is Bound by Faith

I met Mark in Penn Station on Friday, as I was passing through the New Jersey Transit waiting area. It was a rainy, unseasonably warm day, so I spotted his tattoos easily, as he sat in a short sleeve shirt waiting for his train.

Mark has six tattoos in all, and he shared this one on his left forearm:

There's a lot going on here, in this tattoo which was completed in two sittings.

In essence, this is a religious tattoo, which Mark considers an expression of his Christian faith.

The base of the tattoo may look familiar, as it resembles the caduceus, which is now a symbol of the medical profession.

However, Mark explained that this symbol was originally attributed to the cult of Mithraism that existed in Rome in the first to fourth centuries, before the city became the center of Christianity. The caduceus was originally attributed to the Roman god Mercury, and the symbol also important to the god Mithras. The Vatican in Rome is built over the remnants of Mithraism and Mark bears this symbol that represents that which Christianity replaced.

At the base of the tattoo are the letters "XIVI". This is the Roman numeral for "17". Again, there is more to this than meets the eye. Many may think that the number 17 in Roman numerals is written differently, as XVII. However, Mark explained that this reversal of letters is intentional. According to wikipedia, "In Italian culture, the number 17 is considered unlucky. When viewed as the Roman numeral, XVII, it is then changed anagramatically to VIXI, which in the Latin language it translates to "I have lived", the perfect implying "My life is over." (c.f. "Vixerunt", Cicero's famous announcement of an execution.)". It is this "I have lived" phrase that resonates most with Mark, who told me that the "XIVI" number is often seen on gravestones. 

And finally, the word "SINNER," which runs vertically down the caduceus, is the belief that "we are all sinners". Again, this ties in deeply to Mark's faith.

The piece was tattooed by Matt Pope at Another Tat2 Shop in South Amboy, New Jersey.

Thanks to Mark for sharing this cool tattoo with us here on Tattoosday!

Amanda's Irises (and a Quote)

This start-of-the-year post is courtesy of Amanda, who I met at the end of October in the Borders at Columbus Circle.

It was her sleeve of irises that first captured my attention:

These are inspired by the work of Vincent van Gogh, perhaps this one:

The tattoo was done by Dennis Halbritter when he was at Incognito Tattoo in Pasadena, California. He has since moved to High Voltage Tattoo, Kat Von D's shop on L.A. Ink.

Dennis also inked this on Amanda's inner right bicep:

This quote "IO FU QUELLO CHE VOI SIETE E QUEL CH'IO SON VOI SARETE" is taken from an Italian fresco credited to Masaccio. This is the artwork in question:

The Holy Trinity, with the Virgin and Saint John and donors, in Florence

If you look at the bottom of the fresco, right above the skeleton is the phrase Amanda has inscribed on her arm.

The phrase is translated as "I once was what you are and what I am you also will be".
These words remind her of her own mortality.

Thanks to Amanda for sharing these lovely tattoos with us here on Tattoosday!