Matt's Golden Silence
I met Matt one afternoon as he stood among the masses at the southwest corner of Madison Square Garden, waiting for a bus out of town.This is his tattoo which he shared with us, covering his upper right arm:The message is simple: silence is golden. I love how the side skulls spill off of the front s…
Tattoo from a Francophile
Earlier this summer, I posted a couple of tattoos from Joe, seen here.Needless to say, Joe became a fan, and updated me with a new tattoo, below: Joe explains:"The picture is fresh from the artist finishing it. It is "C077X" and is a nod to James Franco and General Hospital. He is my fav actor and I…
Rachel's Bird Helped Her Let Go
The same night I met Brian, I met Rachel, who has eight tattoos.She shared this one with me:This piece on her left biceps is based on the work of artist Kurt Halsey. This little bird appears in multiple works by the artist, but Rachel imagined it for her own personal situation. She got it after a br…
Brian's Ink Speaks About Art
I met Brian in Barnes & Noble, Union Square, back in August and he shared two tattoos with us. Put your thinking caps on, folks, because Brian, who is a video artist (website here), has very cerebral ink.First up is this tattoo, on Brian's left biceps: This tattoo is based on an illustration entitle…
Danny's Koi Struggles Upstream
I met Danny in Penn Station early in August just as he was about to board a train.Before he headed to his platform, however, he allowed me to take this photo of his tattoo-in-progress on his upper right arm:He explained that the koi swimming upward on his bicep represented that he was still moving u…
Steve's Sleeve of Leaves Ushers in the Fall Season
Earlier this month, I met Steve on the D train, as we headed home to Brooklyn.He had a veritable panorama of fall foliage on his left arm and he happily shared his autumnal tattoos with us here at Tattoosday.It only seemed fitting that, as summer has ended, we celebrate the new season with some fall…
Sara's Psalm Speaks to the Desires of Her Heart
I met Sara on the 36th Street subway platform in Brooklyn last month during the late afternoon rush hour commute.What can I say? I'm a sucker for words and this tattoo looked poetic:Sara filled me in. She has three tattoos and this passage "spoke to her". She wanted something religious for her 30th …
Khalil's Organic Biomechanical Arm
One thing regular readers may notice is that I tend to prefer singular tattoos, as opposed to larger "concept" pieces. This preference is what you see illustrated here on Tattoosday.However, once in a while, I see work that, although atypical of our content, is irresistible.Just check out Khalil's …
Christina's Owl and Lighthouse
I met Christina one day after work while walking outside of Madison Square Garden.She had this incredible tattoo, which she gladly shared with us here on Tattoosday:This tattoo that covers her upper left arm was actually done in two segments by artist Orrin Hurley, who currently tattoos at Dare Devi…
Stacy's Amigo Tugs Her Back to Milwaukee
At the end of July, I ran into Stacy waiting for the F train at West 4th Street in Manhattan.She had a panther peeking out from under her shirt on her back, but we couldn't get the whole tattoo in a shot, so she offered up this piece on her right arm:Stacy is a poet and the Artistic Director of The …
Liz Flexes Her Tyrannosaurus Rex
I met Liz last month on the West 4th Street platform as we were waiting for the D train.She has six tattoos, including a really cool Brooklyn Bridge tattoo that she designed and, she proudly told me, Exene Cervenka once complimented her on.The tattoo she shared with us, however, is this design of a …
Tyler's Bald Eagle
I spotted Tyler outside of my office building on Seventh Avenue last month.Actually, the first thing I noticed was Tyler's eagle:One of three tattoos he has, Tyler explained that he really likes traditional designs, and that eagles, in his opinion, are among the coolest animals.He also likes the way…
Nick's AK-47
I met Nick outside of Penn Station and, of his "six or seven" tattoos, he offered up this one:Nick had this AK-47 inked on his stomach to pay homage to his Russian heritage. He told me that this tattoo was done by Fernando Alvarez out in Los Angeles.Thanks to Nick for sharing his ink with us here at…
Simona's Scripted Ink
I met Simona in Park Slope, Brooklyn, back at the end of July. At the corner of Prospect Avenue and Prospect Park West, just outside of the Holy Name Church.Simona had an unusual script around her right bicep:This is written in Tengwar, a script created by J.R.R. Tolkien to represent the Elvish tong…
Chloe's Patriotism
When I met Chloe back in July, I didn't think that the tattoo she offered would be saved for an anniversary, or a special occasion, but that is how it played out.In fact, when I approached her in the Union Square Barnes & Noble, I was more interested in a design on her thigh. However, she dismissed …
The Tattoosday Book Review: Driven to Ink, A Tattoo Shop Mystery
Earlier this week, author Karen E. Olson released the third installment of her Tattoo Shop Mystery series, Driven To Ink.For those readers who may not be familiar with Ms. Olson's series, you can check out my reviews of the first two books, here (The Missing Ink) and here (Pretty in Ink).The series …
Orphans: Heather's Cowgirl
Here's another orphan post. I took the picture, got the name, a shred of info, and passed a flier. And even though I saw Heather, the host of the tattoo, a week later, walking by me one day in a hurry, I never got to the bottom of this tattoo. So it goes....Heather credited this to an artist named "…
Orphans: A Native-American Sleeve on Seventh Avenue
A few weeks ago, I was walking up Seventh Avenue between 33rd and 34th Streets, when I spotted this peeking out of a guy's shirt sleeve: I stopped to ask him about the tattoo. Or rather, asked him if I could take a picture, when he revealed that it was much larger than it appeared poking out of the …
Gina Shares Two Works of Art by Mark Ryden
I wanted to start off the new week after the holiday by showing off some amazing tattoos that I was fortunate enough to encounter last week.I met Gina in Penn Station and she offered up these beauties, which are tattooed in her ditches (inside of her elbows), in what many consider to be one of the m…
Sarah's Chrysanthemum
I spotted this lovely flower on Sarah while she was waiting for her train in Penn Station:This chrysanthemum is her first tattoo and sits on her upper left arm. Sarah is a big fan of Eastern art and understands that chrysanthemums are symbols of joy (except in Germany, she noted). She feels that Rus…
Hawai'i and Germany Meet Halfway in Manhattan
Last Sunday, I found myself unexpectedly in my weekday stomping grounds, outside of Penn Station. I saw a couple sitting on the steps in Penn Plaza and noticed the gentleman had a remarkable tattoo on his outer left calf.We had a slight language barrier, as they were tourists from Europe. But Rico a…
