Gray Whale Connection
- Details
- Created: Saturday, 01 August 2015 08:00
I performed Natalie's first tattoo (a left flank/lower back piece) and am grateful that she came back to me for her second, an upper right arm tat. She is very articulate and knew just what she wanted--- a combination of a gray whale, a woman floating in a boat, reaching down to touch it and butterflies. There was some leeway as to design, but we settled on the connection between the woman and the whale and the way that the breath of the whale should turn into butterflies. I also thought it would be neat to have the whale's tail wrapping around her inner arm a little bit. She wanted the style to be illustration-like, rather than too realistic and we played around with the idea of color for awhile. After I did some color sketches, we both decided that the tat would be stronger as a gray work piece. Click on the Read More link to see the drawing, outline and final gray photos.
Molly came in with an old tattoo that she wanted covered up. She says,"I didn't dislike my dove tattoo, it just wasn't me and no longer resonated with me. I have had this affinity for Red Tail Hawks since I was very young. I was going through an amazingly transformative time in my life, with so much change, and I knew I wanted this tattoo to be really powerful. The hawk is a reminder to myself to be fearless and authentic. I have found that when we have the courage to live an authentic life, that's when things start to manifest really effortlessly and gracefully. This tattoo is honoring that and reminding myself to live that way." Click on the Read More link to see the drawing, before and outline photos.
A referral from another client of mine, Sarah came to me with a unique tattoo project. She says,"I wanted a dancing Sandhill crane because it represents my home town. Sandhill cranes migrate from the Northern US and Canada to Southern US and Mexico, stopping in Kearney Nebraska for about a month to recoup and mate. The position that my crane is in is called "The Dance" which is what they do to attract mates, but it is also a beautiful figure. They have been a part of my life since I was born and there has not been a year that I have not gotten to see them, until this year. I moved to Portland a year ago and in April suddenly got very homesick and I finally figured out why; the cranes usually land in mid March and early April. I knew that even though I'm not in Nebraska anymore, I will always be thankful for where I came from and remember it because of these magnificent birds." Click on the Read More link to see the drawing, outline, and final photos.
When she was 17, Haley had a small tattoo of some colored wings performed on her upper back. Now that she is older, she wanted to cover up the old tattoo with new imagery that better reflected where she is in her life at this time. She wanted to use Sak Yant tattoos (the "t" in Yant is silent.) They are sacred Yantra (prayer) tattoos originating in Cambodia and are practiced in that country, Thailand, Laos and Burma. Like all "tribal" tattoos that feature imagery that use only positive or negative space, they don't work very well for true cover ups. (See my FAQ page to read about successful cover up tattoos.) But with the addition of some gray shading, they can be customized to work better. She says,"At each life milestone I have gotten a tattoo. Each one has meant something to me; whether it's to remain strong, keep growing, keep learning, etc. The meaning behind this tattoo is pretty self explanatory for the person who knows what Sak Yant tattoos represent. They will remind me to live courageously, love fearlessly, and dream endlessly." Click on the Read More link to see the drawing, before, bare outline, and filled in outline photos.
Christina had gotten some tattoo work awhile ago and was thinking about getting some new ink. She says,"I began thinking about another tattoo recently after about 20 years since my first tattoo. I had a lot of questions and a design in mind, and wasn't quite sure how to find the right artist to make it happen. I looked at a lot of portfolios, and found Floating Lotus online during my search. I knew right away that I wanted Victoria to do my work and contacted her to begin my custom piece based on some designs I liked. I wanted a pink lily flower and also to incorporate the letter 'M' into the design to honor two ladies in my life who have passed. Victoria worked with me to include all of the things I wanted in the design, and incorporated the lettering in perfectly without making it glaringly obvious. Now I can see it every time I look in the mirror. I love my new tattoo and the work Victoria did, and enjoy that I can honor and remember my ladies every time I see it. Victoria is a true artist, and I'm already thinking about designing my next tattoo-- without waiting 20 years this time. Thank you, Victoria!" Click on the Read More link to see the drawing, outline, gray shading and final color photos.
Jack came in to see me last year for his first tattoo, which was a leg piece. This winter, we've been working on his second: an upper arm piece that features the famous Hokusai Wave. He says,"I came to Victoria with some fairly disconnected ideas for this tattoo. First, I wanted a wave; a big wave. To me, waves are symbols of power both destructive and regenerative. I like a lot of Japanese art and wanted something in the style of a classic wood block print. There should be a lotus flower that would remind me of my wife's tattoo. The outline should imply an Enso or circle shape. This reinforces the notion of regenerative power that I associate with waves. It should be big and bold and colorful, taking up all of my shoulder. I showed Victoria some pictures that I liked from the Internet and we talked. Before long, she worked out a design based on Hokusai's Great Wave with the boats, people, and mountain removed. A couple of back and forth emails later, I had my design." Click on the Read More link to see the drawings, outline, gray shading and final color photos.
Last year Aaron and I completed his left sleeve-- see "Leaping Water" on my blog for that story. This year, we're working on his right sleeve- a feather project. He says,"Animal totems have always resounded with me and I've been drawn to large birds since childhood. This tattoo project began with three feathers that hold symbolic connection to people in my life; then I opted to bookend those with two others of private symbolic significance. They are: Great Horned Owl- atop the design, it symbolizes silent wisdom through observation; something I've needed and strived for in recent years. Bald Eagle (juvenile)- along with a reference to my father, Eagle is a symbol of balanced power; juvenile because I will be seeking this value for a long time to come. Red Tail Hawk- a personal totem for me, harkening back to my early childhood; the first bird of prey I related to, and symbolic reminder to release oneself to the spirit-guided vision of the wind. Blue Heron- my daughter and I were gifted by a perfect Blue Heron feather that floated right into my hand while kayaking this past summer; Heron symbolizes the stable self reliance from confidently walking one's own unique path in this life; my wish for her. And lastly, Raven - nearest my hand, a symbol of creative, mystic transformation; a theme that has taken hold for me in the past year, and the result of seeking truths in this existence." Click on the Read More link to see the outline and gray shading photos.
Jason had some tattoo work on his forearm that he had done by a friend of his who was a tattoo apprentice. Before they could finish the piece, she died and he was unable to retrieve the drawings she had made for it. When he came to see me, the work was about four years old but still looked pretty decent. He wondered if I could complete his forearm and maybe even create a full sleeve for him. He has an older piece that he'd like covered up on his upper outer arm."Of course--- let's give you a total Steampunk sleeve and continue the Traditional American/Old School style she has going on here. Let's put a broken watch and some pistons and more gears in here--- it'll be cool! We can then easily connect the imagery to whatever we decide to put over your old tat up top," I said. Click on the Read More link to see the before photo and shots of the outline.
Last year Sara came to me with the idea for a back piece celebrating her family, but especially her father, who had recently died--- for details see "Faith and Family Back Piece" on my blog. This year she wanted to add her children into the mix and thought it would be lovely to have each child represented by flowers, growing out of her back tattoo, up and over her shoulders to her arms. She says, "The thought was from John 15:1-8 "I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in me and I in him, bears much fruit.'" Each child chose the particular flower that they wanted, working with Sara to decide which one really represented themselves: their personalities, their likes and dislikes, etc. Click on the Read more link to see the drawings and photos of her right arm (gray) which still needs the color session and her left arm (color) which is finished.
For his first tattoo Will was thinking that he wanted to use a design from sacred geometry. He sent me some images of the Flower of Life symbol and when he came in to get inked we worked up a design together. It was simpler, and featured the Seed of Life, which the Flower is based on. He wasn't sure if he wanted color or not, so we came up with two versions--- one with color and the other without. Adding color really emphasized the central flower element, which was not prominent in the non-color version. He says, "For me, the meaning of the tattoo design evolved. The center point represents origins and non-duality and the singularity (the point pre-Big Bang). The color symbolizes our spiritual evolution and the galaxies and the atoms in our universe." Click on the Read more link to see the drawings and photo of the finished piece.