Tattoo Design: Literary Tattoos

Showing posts with label Literary Tattoos. Show all posts

Lauren and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Tattoo

Today's tattoo is perfect for a Monday.<br />
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Last month in Penn Station, I met Lauren, who had a familiar-looking face on her upper right arm:<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJCcO8JCTNLUjClPEZs_n3tMGu0l0gIaarbDwQoElAk-i79Yxi1RhYzIgD194JJ7_HqJ7WDf35UOKvQ0styGRzsEesgEPRkcAOR8gofAv2vmxkdv30ByQO7Z1eoqmc7obIk2HxT7EB02Y/s1600/alexander.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgJCcO8JCTNLUjClPEZs_n3tMGu0l0gIaarbDwQoElAk-i79Yxi1RhYzIgD194JJ7_HqJ7WDf35UOKvQ0styGRzsEesgEPRkcAOR8gofAv2vmxkdv30ByQO7Z1eoqmc7obIk2HxT7EB02Y/s400/alexander.jpg" width="241" /></a></div><br />
I couldn't quite put my finger on why I recognized the art, until she clarified for me that it was based on an illustration from a wonderful children's book by Judith Viorst called<span style="font-size: small;"><span class="profileName fn fsxl fwb"> Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day.</span></span><br />
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Lauren and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Tattoo

Today's tattoo is perfect for a Monday. Last month in Penn Station, I met Lauren, who had a familiar-looking face on her upper right a...

7:20 AM

Mary's Call of the Wild

I met Mary outside of Penn Station on Seventh Avenue a couple weeks ago. She shared this tattoo on her right calf:<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEif0HWvb1lwq66cbYMG_nwIa01DtbB-IV5qK5PyZfH-fTh1p2helTCuE8nwqSNYWK9H-G1f9yjAFZu8tfi_uMAgpC2XpNeKYY5vN840bTi7wtWHpVN6RyBACh_byIuDZ0Eb1aBuAiFv9UQ/s1600/wolf.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEif0HWvb1lwq66cbYMG_nwIa01DtbB-IV5qK5PyZfH-fTh1p2helTCuE8nwqSNYWK9H-G1f9yjAFZu8tfi_uMAgpC2XpNeKYY5vN840bTi7wtWHpVN6RyBACh_byIuDZ0Eb1aBuAiFv9UQ/s400/wolf.jpg" width="258" /></a></div><br />
Mary explained:<br />
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<blockquote class="tr_bq">"I got my wolf tattoo at some place on St. Mark's Place, I don't remember, I was drunk, after I read [The] Call of the Wild. I had broken my foot and they let me leave work early, so I went to a bar with my best friend and started drinking. And then, I was like, 'We should get tattoos' and she was like 'I'm gonna go home' and then ... she was like 'I'm not gettin' tattooed'. So we went to some shady tattoo shop where they let me run around without shoes on and drink beer like a crazy girl. And all I remember is him asking me if I like lavender and I said, 'yeah, I like lavender' and that was that."</blockquote>Not your ideal tattoo story but, all things considered, this came out well.<br />
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Mary's Call of the Wild

I met Mary outside of Penn Station on Seventh Avenue a couple weeks ago. She shared this tattoo on her right calf: Mary explained: ...

7:17 AM

Derek Shares Three Tattoos Inspired by Alice's Adventures Under Ground

Looking back to the summer, I ran into Derek one evening while waiting to board the R train at 36th Street in Brooklyn.<br />
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I first noticed this piece on the outside of his right leg:<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjq6zANe2D4p4U3hka1KR13dsszsiQB21IXAsI-egswhifd_Sp2RzJoFPV8J9uVkdZMuPQ3Dm3ij6l0B7PjkbB1eXBVTuvajRIgumzY4xPzKrJB4DIOASp1Kjo42Kx509BwEy61IH0d_Xw/s1600/alice+1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjq6zANe2D4p4U3hka1KR13dsszsiQB21IXAsI-egswhifd_Sp2RzJoFPV8J9uVkdZMuPQ3Dm3ij6l0B7PjkbB1eXBVTuvajRIgumzY4xPzKrJB4DIOASp1Kjo42Kx509BwEy61IH0d_Xw/s400/alice+1.jpg" width="203" /></a></div><br />
Derek explained that he had this illustration by John Tenniel from Alice's Adventures Under Ground by Lewis Carroll because Alice's passion and curiosity appeal to him. The book is a classic of children's literature and was later published as <u>Alice's Adventures in Wonderland</u>.<br />
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This piece depicts Alice being stretched tall, and Derek added this tattoo to his chest:<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeXle9gqqILZFYAMlU8KjWcRTHug3WVliWufywsv5H7zKC0QVsxZpuv2sRCyM_64Cq0Q6aXaheqGcGZflQDlDT87y3KjkU8J616bIKfAN5RD-eTFfgeTZ_kB4w5lX-n7xHrjxCJD6S0lQ/s1600/alice+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="278" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgeXle9gqqILZFYAMlU8KjWcRTHug3WVliWufywsv5H7zKC0QVsxZpuv2sRCyM_64Cq0Q6aXaheqGcGZflQDlDT87y3KjkU8J616bIKfAN5RD-eTFfgeTZ_kB4w5lX-n7xHrjxCJD6S0lQ/s400/alice+2.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />
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That one (above) is just incredibly well-done.<br />
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Just last week, Derek sent me his latest <i>Alice</i>-inspired piece to me via e-mail :<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbl1DgHkA53hFZvzXJNQ99o1q7I80_1K2JGorvafiXCmE19f7Afd8ebStplbc66UWVp3YsuXcpUfn_CYhGDmNVL5qBdtI5tK3_LBTwgim1eWCQTAgS1zq61El97Xv7bRrneBn1DtyTjrU/s1600/alice+3+alt.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbl1DgHkA53hFZvzXJNQ99o1q7I80_1K2JGorvafiXCmE19f7Afd8ebStplbc66UWVp3YsuXcpUfn_CYhGDmNVL5qBdtI5tK3_LBTwgim1eWCQTAgS1zq61El97Xv7bRrneBn1DtyTjrU/s400/alice+3+alt.jpg" width="261" /></a></div><br />
Inked on his right forearm, this is another Tenniel illustration from the book featuring the scene in which Alice observes three playing cards painting white roses red, on orders from the Queen of Hearts. Derek noted that "this particular image is a reminder not to blindly follow orders without  considering the consequences of my actions."<br />
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Derek credited all three of these tattoos to Craig Rodriguez at Hand of Glory Tattoo in Brooklyn. Craig is an amazing artist whose work first appeared on Tattoosday here. I'm a big fan of the shop, as evidenced by these posts. I plan on visiting them again in January for their regular Friday the 13th extravaganza.

Derek Shares Three Tattoos Inspired by Alice's Adventures Under Ground

Looking back to the summer, I ran into Derek one evening while waiting to board the R train at 36th Street in Brooklyn. I first noticed th...

7:06 AM

Marisa Shares Some Vonnegut

I love a good literary tattoo, especially when I recognize the text and the author.<br /><br />I met Marisa after I spotted these six familiar words below her neck:<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjR8YvtPfOyDrENLFgBIZswwRXhYv436TP3DpshTKxtbOoqdXOKdHQl-cW7eWq-YAfmIM2ffYlux89woh7dHaztsA__-AFSYhh-PpRHN-898x-w_8HUTeNQtNz3raUfjThZW3snok9rMHM/s1600/vonnegut.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjR8YvtPfOyDrENLFgBIZswwRXhYv436TP3DpshTKxtbOoqdXOKdHQl-cW7eWq-YAfmIM2ffYlux89woh7dHaztsA__-AFSYhh-PpRHN-898x-w_8HUTeNQtNz3raUfjThZW3snok9rMHM/s400/vonnegut.jpg" width="365" /></a></div><br /> The quote "Everything was beautiful, and nothing hurt" refers to an epitaph inscribed on a tombstone in Vonnegut's classic novel, <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Slaughterhouse-Five">Slaughterhouse-Five</a>.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhn87V9n5zz9bQX8hMIDGEB1gS9LqjsNfuQqHVxMNcNr1ogZ56HAZHZdDnheh-gLgPtmavSoJWVEiK_tlVPblyYrNRx_EFhY8-gUUrpP_OdFcXlKvrNSkO_1b7qbi8IjB_bJ1BwwalTDx8/s1600/TombSlaughterhouse5.gif" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhn87V9n5zz9bQX8hMIDGEB1gS9LqjsNfuQqHVxMNcNr1ogZ56HAZHZdDnheh-gLgPtmavSoJWVEiK_tlVPblyYrNRx_EFhY8-gUUrpP_OdFcXlKvrNSkO_1b7qbi8IjB_bJ1BwwalTDx8/s1600/TombSlaughterhouse5.gif" /></a></div>This is Marisa's one and only tattoo and she explained why she chose this particular quote:<br /><blockquote>"I was going through a hard time and it helped me out a lot - it's just one of those quotes, so meaningful ... that I just needed to have it on me."</blockquote>Marisa and I share a mutual appreciation of Vonnegut's work and, despite the greatness of <u>Slaughterhouse-Five</u>, we both liked <u>Cat's Cradle</u> better.<br /><br />The word were inked at <a href="http://www.highrollertattoony.com/">High Roller Tattoo</a> in Hicksville, New York.<br /><br />Thanks to Marisa for sharing this classic literary tattoo with us here on Tattoosday!<br /><br />And remember, you can see more literary tattoos at <a href="http://www.contrariwise.org/">Contrariwise</a> and <a href="http://tattoolit.com/">The Word Made Flesh</a>.<br /><br /><iframe align="left" frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=widgetsamazon-20&o=1&p=8&l=bpl&asins=B0027DOSZG&fc1=000000&IS2=1&lt1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifr" style="align: left; height: 245px; padding-right: 10px; padding-top: 5px; width: 131px;"></iframe><br /><br /><br /><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: x-small;">This entry is ©2011 Tattoosday. </span></div><span style="font-size: x-small;">  </span> <div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><span style="font-size: x-small;">  </span> <div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: x-small;">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 <a href="http://tattoosday.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">http://tattoosday.blogspot.com</a> 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.</span></div><br /><iframe align="left" frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=widgetsamazon-20&o=1&p=8&l=bpl&asins=B000JVH78S&fc1=000000&IS2=1&lt1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifr" style="align: left; height: 245px; padding-right: 10px; padding-top: 5px; width: 131px;"></iframe>

Marisa Shares Some Vonnegut

I love a good literary tattoo, especially when I recognize the text and the author. I met Marisa after I spotted these six familiar words be...

2:58 AM

Jaimie's Emersonian Ink

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjr8cBWqGHxt_28QE8Hb4b7uY-Vdlln2PbCR6khjbUJefy-n4gSCBidx-aBHKbmmCZUB5fm9CDDpVCDQqA2P97r32WfNqXQIG-DvqiIppA7JSPR836IEZsneyrbRuJellMDTUE3glmnckY/s1600/PEACE.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="193" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjr8cBWqGHxt_28QE8Hb4b7uY-Vdlln2PbCR6khjbUJefy-n4gSCBidx-aBHKbmmCZUB5fm9CDDpVCDQqA2P97r32WfNqXQIG-DvqiIppA7JSPR836IEZsneyrbRuJellMDTUE3glmnckY/s400/PEACE.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: x-small;"> <span style="font-size: small;">"Nothing can bring you peace but yourself" are the words inked across Jaimie's back. I spotted her down the street from my home in Bay Ridge.</span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: x-small;"><span style="font-size: small;">I asked Jaimie to explain why she got these words from poet <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ralph_Waldo_Emerson">Ralph Waldo Emerson's</a> essay "<a href="http://www.emersoncentral.com/selfreliance.htm">Self-Reliance</a>" on her back:</span></span><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: small;">"This has been my favorite quote for years," she told me. "I studied American literature in college, so I studied a lot of Emerson." She also noted that the quote is "very true".</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: small;">She had this tattooed in Manhattan on St. Mark's.</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: small;">Thanks to Jaimie for sharing this great tattoo with us here on Tattoosday!</span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: x-small;">This entry is ©2011 Tattoosday. </span></div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: x-small;">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 <a href="http://tattoosday.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">http://tattoosday.blogspot.com</a> 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.</span></div>

Jaimie's Emersonian Ink

"Nothing can bring you peace but yourself" are the words inked across Jaimie's back. I spotted her down the street from my h...

4:34 PM

The Tattooed Poets Project: Lizzie Wann

Here, on the penultimate day of the Tattooed Poets Project, our contributor is Lizzie Wann:<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQTE8u3sUNCtp5P2OSXVclOXVnUcJd8jHiFYSXGtmDHjsHLvmfS0dbkuskY8B58wDZa-Jt6DSeha5r-4RZCq_WIIATkp5Xt_x8YMvWtOibHluTU1mfoPzKjCWvqQFr-9a1MisPng8x62M/s1600/wann1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQTE8u3sUNCtp5P2OSXVclOXVnUcJd8jHiFYSXGtmDHjsHLvmfS0dbkuskY8B58wDZa-Jt6DSeha5r-4RZCq_WIIATkp5Xt_x8YMvWtOibHluTU1mfoPzKjCWvqQFr-9a1MisPng8x62M/s400/wann1.jpg" width="258" /></a></div><br />Lizzie explains:<br /><blockquote><div class="MsoNormal">As I came into my poetic self in college, I knew I  wanted a tattoo to symbolize that. My friend, Kevin, designed it for me  and I carried it with me for a while. For spring  break in 1993 or 1994, I went to Seattle with 4 of my best friends at  the time. We happened into a cool tattoo shop and 4 of us got our first  tattoos (the 5<sup>th</sup> person didn’t want one).It was great because we each got something that symbolized who we were at the moment but also who we hoped to be in the future.</div></blockquote>Here's a closer look at this quill and ink bottle tattoo:<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQ0yIiX7NDx2hNDJ07lrOgfDnGleQVHRVauuPZRVO-bVXYnBpmnsf-Osda7z7FK6Wk1l2d-UFZUIi33M55D-e2mTU7ZSIWH8QJwkisspiNP385DFDeLUYg6ndfOJoa9LUsfNzfK4E7U9w/s1600/wann2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="229" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQ0yIiX7NDx2hNDJ07lrOgfDnGleQVHRVauuPZRVO-bVXYnBpmnsf-Osda7z7FK6Wk1l2d-UFZUIi33M55D-e2mTU7ZSIWH8QJwkisspiNP385DFDeLUYg6ndfOJoa9LUsfNzfK4E7U9w/s320/wann2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br /><br />Lizzie shared this poem, as well: <br /><br /><blockquote><b>Grace</b></blockquote><blockquote><div class="MsoNormal">she lives here with me</div><div class="MsoNormal">but she comes & goes as she pleases</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">never tells me where she’s going</div><div class="MsoNormal">never leaves a note</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">it’s typical that she’ll come in</div><div class="MsoNormal">just as I’m falling asleep</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">I catch glimpses of her sometimes</div><div class="MsoNormal">usually when there’s music </div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">we used to be inseparable</div><div class="MsoNormal">I didn’t think she’d ever leave</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">now, daily happenings of my life</div><div class="MsoNormal">rarely interest her</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">but sometimes they do</div><div class="MsoNormal">and she’ll spend time with me</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">when that happens</div><div class="MsoNormal">I remember how good it feels</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">her company is like an avalanche of </div><div class="MsoNormal">warm towels out of the dryer</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><div class="MsoNormal">I could stay there all day</div><div class="MsoNormal"><br /></div><i>© 2010 Lizzie Wann</i></blockquote><br />Lizzie Wann started reading at open mics in 1995. She soon became an  integral part of the development of the San Diego poetry scene,  facilitating workshops at the Writing Center, creating her own readings  and producing original shows that featured poets and musicians. She  earned a spot on the 1999 Laguna Beach national slam team that competed  at the National Poetry Slam in Chicago of that year, and from there,  helped make slam poetry become a San Diego fixture. She was on the 2000  San Diego team that went to the West Coast Regionals in Big Sur, served  as coach for that same team in 2002, and co-hosted the fledgling San  Diego slam, held at the Urban Grind, until 2003. Her work appears on CDs  (<i>A Wing & A Prayer </i>and <i>A New Leaf</i>), in chapbooks including <i>Familiars, Naked Wrists, </i>and <i>Complicated Skies </i>and in anthologies including <i>Comstock Review</i>, <i>Incidental Buildings & Accidental Beauty</i>, <i>A Year in Ink, volume 2, So Luminous the Wildflowers, The San Diego Poetry Annual</i><i>, and Don’t Blame the Ugly Mug. </i> She also founded the Meeting Grace house concert series which ran from 2000-2008. One of her CD’s can be found at <a href="http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/lizziewann" target="_blank">http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/<wbr></wbr>lizziewann</a>. <br /><br />Thanks to Lizzie for sharing her tattoo and poem with us here on Tattoosday!<br /><br /><br /><div class="MsoNormal"><span style="font-size: x-small;">This entry is ©2011 Tattoosday. The poem is reprinted here with the permission of the author.<br /><br />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 </span> <span style="font-size: x-small;"><a href="http://tattoosday.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">http://tattoosday.blogspot.com</a> 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.</span></div>

The Tattooed Poets Project: Lizzie Wann

Here, on the penultimate day of the Tattooed Poets Project, our contributor is Lizzie Wann: Lizzie explains: As I came into my poetic self i...

2:31 AM

Rilke On the Flesh

It's February 1, which means we are only two months away from the start of a new edition of <a href="http://tattooedpoets.blogspot.com/2010/03/index-of-tattooed-poets.html">The Tattooed Poets Project,</a> and I have begun assembling the first posts for this annual extravaganza.<br /><br />What better way to acknowledge this looming event, but to post a poetic tattoo?<br /><br />The following piece is one that I spotted at the end of last summer on Penn  Plaza. Belonging to a young lady named Rosa, it has been one of my few remaining 2010 leftovers:<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-U4ZuQdr-MF7GphTQmrVROovGgMIAg9qqLyqtCrxd9U-cD76q5C6sPtILiTrHfMogmiCgwYU5vFHMnApgEAs_iqU6LTTNJqRiGafCxMZp_Rnn_2N6fKa1mnIxG8X-vyAuymiyz6fEjr8/s1600/rilke.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi-U4ZuQdr-MF7GphTQmrVROovGgMIAg9qqLyqtCrxd9U-cD76q5C6sPtILiTrHfMogmiCgwYU5vFHMnApgEAs_iqU6LTTNJqRiGafCxMZp_Rnn_2N6fKa1mnIxG8X-vyAuymiyz6fEjr8/s400/rilke.jpg" width="343" /></a></div><br /><br />What I noticed first was not that this was a line of verse, but that it  was placed on the body in an unusual way. Most lines of poetry, when  manifested on flesh, are on the arms and wrist, or the lower legs and  occasionally a back. This tattoo runs from the front of to her back,  vertically climbing and descending from her shoulder.<br /><br />The line is in German, and represents a piece from <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rainer_Maria_Rilke">Rainier Maria Rilke's</a> <i><a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duino_Elegies">Duino Elegies</a></i>.<br /><br /><blockquote><b>Ein jeder Engel ist schrecklich</b></blockquote><br />Or, in context: <br /><blockquote><i>Who, if I cried out, would hear me among the angels’<br />Hierarchies? and even if one of them pressed me<br />suddenly against his heart: I would be consumed<br />in that overwhelming existence. For beauty is nothing<br />but the beginning of terror, which we still are just able to endure,<br />and we are so awed because it serenely disdains<br />to annihilate us. Every angel is terrifying.</i> <i><br /></i></blockquote> Those are the opening lines of the first elegy, translated by <a href="http://www.stephenmitchellbooks.com/transAdapt/poetryRilkeExcerpt03.html">Stephen Mitchell</a>.<br /><br />Rosa didn't give me much insight as to why she had the line tattooed, but it is quite a powerful statement.<br /><br />When I asked her who the artists was, she replied only that it was someone in Brooklyn that went under the name "The Milk Maid". This sounded familiar at the time, but I couldn't quite put my finger on it. Of course, I came to be reminded that The Milk Maid is the moniker of Joy Rumore, at <a href="http://www.1228tattoo.com/">Twelve 28 Tattoo</a>, quite a wonderful artist, whose work has appeared previously on Tattoosday <a href="http://tattoosday.blogspot.com/search/label/Twelve%2028%20Tattoo">here</a>.<br /><br />Thanks to Rosa for sharing this lovely line of verse with us here on Tattoosday!

Rilke On the Flesh

It's February 1, which means we are only two months away from the start of a new edition of The Tattooed Poets Project, and I have begu...

3:16 AM

The Tattoosday Book Review: The Word Made Flesh

If you're looking for an awesome gift for an ink-loving special someone  this holiday season, and you can't afford a budget-buster like Marisa  Kakoulas' <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Black-Grey-Tattoo-1-3-English/dp/3934020852/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1292409182&sr=1-1">Black & Grey Tattoo</a>, I'd strongly recommend <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Word-Made-Flesh-Bookworms-Worldwide/dp/0061997404?ie=UTF8&tag=bill03-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" target="_blank">The Word Made Flesh: Literary Tattoos from Bookworms Worldwide.</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=bill03-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=0061997404" style="border: medium none ! important; margin: 0px ! important; padding: 0px ! important;" width="1" /><br /><br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEib4BGBHzLRjM2bYcXPrIwuPYkgtF7XYzQBE_E2zY59EH5IlAfi3LaXOLQAf0qjqpZxjX-SSqMga7zfs6RAinatt1Vof6ga54fuo-2BPd1pJB3erw2E4Z8n4wwpX89w8Io1WFzk1GqvJ0w/s1600/the-word-made-flesh-literary-tattoos.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEib4BGBHzLRjM2bYcXPrIwuPYkgtF7XYzQBE_E2zY59EH5IlAfi3LaXOLQAf0qjqpZxjX-SSqMga7zfs6RAinatt1Vof6ga54fuo-2BPd1pJB3erw2E4Z8n4wwpX89w8Io1WFzk1GqvJ0w/s400/the-word-made-flesh-literary-tattoos.jpg" width="350" /></a></div><br />As a lover of both literature and tattoos, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Word-Made-Flesh-Bookworms-Worldwide/dp/0061997404?ie=UTF8&tag=bill03-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" target="_blank">The Word Made Flesh</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=bill03-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=0061997404" style="border: medium none ! important; margin: 0px ! important; padding: 0px ! important;" width="1" /> is right  up my alley and, judging by the long-standing interest in sites like <a href="http://www.contrariwise.org/">Contrariwise</a>, should be an  enjoyable read for many.<br /><br />Last year, it seems, when I first posted (<a href="http://tattoosday.blogspot.com/2009/07/call-for-submissions-literary-tattoos.html">here</a>) about Eve  Talmadge's call for submissions, I was a bit jealous in a  why-didn't-I-think-of-doing-that sort of way. But I quickly got over the inkblogger envy and waited with anticipation to see how this would turn out.<br /><div id=":159"><br />The answer: pretty darn good.<br /><br /><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Word-Made-Flesh-Bookworms-Worldwide/dp/0061997404?ie=UTF8&tag=bill03-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" target="_blank">The Word Made Flesh</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=bill03-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=0061997404" style="border: medium none ! important; margin: 0px ! important; padding: 0px ! important;" width="1" />, as the subtitle describes, juxtaposes photos of  tattoos of a literary flavor, with blurbs from the contributors. There  is poetry and prose, as well as more symbolic imagery to represent  specific themes.</div><div id=":159"><br />Compiled by editors Eve Talmadge and Justin Taylor, the reader is  treated to a nice range of work, with a handy appendix which gives, when  possible, credit to the artists and/or shops where the tattoos were  inked.<br /><br />I wondered, when starting the book, if I would see any tattoos that had  appeared on Tattoosday. Sure enough, page 117 features a pair of  alphabetic ankle tattoos, one of which appeared in this past year's <a href="http://tattooedpoets.blogspot.com/2010/03/index-of-tattooed-poets.html">Tattooed Poet's Project</a>, <a href="http://tattoosday.blogspot.com/2010/04/tattooed-poets-project-rebecca-wolff.html">here</a>. To counteract that, there are two  subjects who declined to participate in the same project.<br /><br />The range of photos and stories is done quite well. We also get a  snapshot of <a href="http://ineradicablestain.com/stain.html">Shelley Jackson's Skin Project</a>, and a lovely piece belonging  to Katherine Barthelme, accompanied by an apropos story by her father,  the late <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Donald_Barthelme">Donald Barthelme</a>. Plus, amazing work like this:<br /><br /><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2C-gyq9qX7uO89XPDaGmGM7_yvE5AHEEZhA0fjP5mkOroba6jA6oNFH1kwpkkf4uiPhn9TU2CXAh9NyXG6SAP4VGiNiuj-2Ke5nPk_AIQEVkliwL90YEC_dUlP7Kg9NKBmFzBa6H1GeU/s1600/JP-COFFEE-1-popup.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="297" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2C-gyq9qX7uO89XPDaGmGM7_yvE5AHEEZhA0fjP5mkOroba6jA6oNFH1kwpkkf4uiPhn9TU2CXAh9NyXG6SAP4VGiNiuj-2Ke5nPk_AIQEVkliwL90YEC_dUlP7Kg9NKBmFzBa6H1GeU/s400/JP-COFFEE-1-popup.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;"><span style="font-family: "Times New Roman"; font-size: 12pt;">©2010 Eva Talmadge & Justin Taylor</span></td></tr></tbody></table><br />There is something for everyone here, unless of course, you're a barbarian and have never read a book in your life.<br /><br />I heartily recommend this title and at a list price of  $14.99, it won't break the bank.<br /><br />There's a slide show <a href="http://www.thedailybeast.com/galleries/2387/1/?redirectURL=http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2010-12-02/the-word-made-flesh-literary-tattoos-explored/">here</a>, over at <a href="http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2010-12-02/the-word-made-flesh-literary-tattoos-explored/">The Daily Beast</a>.<br /><br />You can read and see more, as well as hear how to submit for a possible sequel, at <a href="http://www.tattoolit.com/" target="_blank">www.tattoolit.com</a>. I also recommend visiting <a href="http://contrariwise.com/" target="_blank">contrariwise.com</a>,  as well as checking out the <a href="http://tattooedpoets.blogspot.com/">Tattooed Poets Project index</a>, which links  all the tattooed poets who have appeared here the last two years.<br /><br />You can buy the book here:<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe align="left" frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=bill03-20&o=1&p=8&l=bpl&asins=0061997404&fc1=000000&IS2=1&lt1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifr" style="height: 245px; padding-right: 10px; padding-top: 5px; width: 131px;"></iframe></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><br /></div><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br />And, as for what's next from the editors, a recent email from the editor's says it all:<br /><blockquote>"I'm happy to announce that we are now collecting images of music-related  tattoos for our next book. Song lyrics, band logos, record labels,  musician portraits, you name it -- if it's in your skin and has to do  with a musician, song or band, we want to put it in a book. Pass the  word, tell your friends. Here's the fine print:<br /><br /><b> THE WORDS TO EVERY SONG: Music Tattoos from Around the Globe</b> (working title, suggestions welcome), edited by Eva Talmadge.<br /><br />Submissions  now open for high-quality photographs of all kinds of music related  tattoo work: band logos, song lyrics, record labels, musician portraits  -- if it's a tattoo inspired by music and it's on your body, we want to  see it!<br /><br />We're looking for a wide range of genres and eras -- from classical  to rock'n'roll to hip hop, punk rock, indie and soul -- if you ever  loved a song or a band or a musician so much you went to a tattoo shop  and made your devotion permanent, we want to know about it!<br /><br />As with THE WORD MADE FLESH, we don't want <i>just </i>the images. We also want a few words from you about <i>why </i>you  got your tattoo, what that music means or has meant to you, and any  anecdotes involved. How much (or how little) you choose to say about  your tattoo is up to you, but a paragraph or two should do the trick.<br /><br />And of course please do provide us with tattoo artist/shop credit,  photographer credit, your name or pseudonym, the city and state or  country where you live, and the name of the band or song or composer  your tattoo refers to (even if it's obvious).<br /><b><br />Deadline for the first round is 12/31</b><br /><br />Please send clear digital images of the highest quality possible to <b><a href="mailto:tattoolit@gmail.com" target="_blank">tattoolit@gmail.com</a></b>.  Images should be around 2000 pixels across, or a minimum 300 dpi at 5  inches wide, but if you're not sure about all the technical stuff, just  set your camera to its highest resolution and send the best photo you  can. Text should be included in the body of the email, not as an attached document. Also be sure to include one or more pieces of contact information, so we can let you know if you’re going to be in the book.<br /><br />And finally, we are indeed still collecting literary tattoos for the tumblr blog, <a href="http://tattoolit.com/" target="_blank">http://tattoolit.com</a>. If you have a literary tattoo and want the world to see it, please do e-mail it to us at <a href="mailto:tattoolit@gmail.com" target="_blank">tattoolit@gmail.com</a>, or submit it directly (as an image, not text) to <a href="http://tattoolit.com/" target="_blank">http://tattoolit.com</a>.</blockquote></div>And, of course, I'd be remiss if I didn't direct people <a href="http://tattoosday.blogspot.com/search/label/Literary%20Quotes">here</a> and <a href="http://tattoosday.blogspot.com/search/label/Literary%20Tattoos">here</a>, the tags that link all the literary tattoos that have appeared here on Tattoosday.

The Tattoosday Book Review: The Word Made Flesh

If you're looking for an awesome gift for an ink-loving special someone this holiday season, and you can't afford a budget-buster l...

3:19 AM

Jack Kerouac Back

This is an orphan post, what I refer to as a photo with no real story attached to it, as the individual who let me take the photo, never e-mailed me with any further details.<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2adXQmsLLoXvCYmHHV3CT9QlD8UsASg2Vddvghbe7_oua3uokxAz-t6vyAnW9Qn9U-m4TTyNAq3Xv6Gv7P9fx3gT5kvpmYJnaNuW_zeR53MqDcycsDNmaK__SqC1aRbRwS-BbFuUn/s1600/kerouac+back.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="267" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2adXQmsLLoXvCYmHHV3CT9QlD8UsASg2Vddvghbe7_oua3uokxAz-t6vyAnW9Qn9U-m4TTyNAq3Xv6Gv7P9fx3gT5kvpmYJnaNuW_zeR53MqDcycsDNmaK__SqC1aRbRwS-BbFuUn/s400/kerouac+back.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />I shot the picture at the end of the Brooklyn Cyclones-Staten Island Yankees game at <a href="http://www.brooklyncyclones.com/">MCU Park</a> in Coney Island.<br /><br />The crowd was filing out, so a protracted conversation was not an option.<br /><br />The woman who belongs to this tattoo, however, did allow me to take the photo and said it was a quote from Jack Kerouac's <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Road-Penguin-Classics-Jack-Kerouac/dp/0142437255?ie=UTF8&tag=bill03-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" target="_blank">On the Road.</a><br /><br />It's a slightly modified version of this phenomenal passage:<br /><blockquote><span style="font-size: small;"><br /></span><br /><h1 style="margin: 0pt;"><span style="font-size: small;">“The only people for me are the mad ones, the ones who are mad to live, mad to talk, mad to be saved, desirous of everything at the same time, the ones who never yawn or say a commonplace thing, but burn, burn, burn, like fabulous yellow roman candles exploding like spiders across the stars and in the middle you see the blue centerlight pop and everybody goes "Awww!”</span></h1></blockquote><br /><br />If you're reading this, Dear Contributor, please accept my thanks for allowing us to enjoy your tattoo here on Tattoosday, but contact me, please, to tell us more.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=bill03-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=0142437255" style="border: medium none ! important; margin: 0px ! important; padding: 0px ! important;" width="1" /></div><br /><iframe align="left" frameborder="0" marginheight="0" marginwidth="0" scrolling="no" src="http://rcm.amazon.com/e/cm?t=bill03-20&o=1&p=8&l=bpl&asins=0140283293&fc1=000000&IS2=1&lt1=_blank&m=amazon&lc1=0000FF&bc1=000000&bg1=FFFFFF&f=ifr" style="height: 245px; padding-right: 10px; padding-top: 5px; width: 131px;"></iframe>

Jack Kerouac Back

This is an orphan post, what I refer to as a photo with no real story attached to it, as the individual who let me take the photo, never e-m...

4:18 AM

Kat's Mucha Tattoo, With a Twist of Lemony Snicket

At 31st Street and 7th Avenue, I stopped Kat to ask about her ink.<br /><br />She was happy to see me and had been wondering, having previously read Tattoosday and knowing she worked in the same area as I did, if our paths would ever cross.<br /><br />She has seven tattoos (and a cool blog <a href="http://www.katofalltrades.com/">here</a>), but we focused on the large tattoo on her upper right arm:<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhA8bFGbYX2_ttsNhOnp7x_APAcs8YrzS0Kfecvk21sWIWGjgrsbLhqy_PnoXusVb9fWKcKXCrDSiBXwkgPNAKIpP31t3OAf7Va-KfEciA-fP9n5AcPY8iDbX8iOQm35F4wm-3moaAe/s1600/Kat+Sleeve+c.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhA8bFGbYX2_ttsNhOnp7x_APAcs8YrzS0Kfecvk21sWIWGjgrsbLhqy_PnoXusVb9fWKcKXCrDSiBXwkgPNAKIpP31t3OAf7Va-KfEciA-fP9n5AcPY8iDbX8iOQm35F4wm-3moaAe/s640/Kat+Sleeve+c.jpg" width="288" /></a></div><br /> Or, looking at it as a whole:<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnz3TXPEU9nY2tF7PJvktFYJrMnF8EGskFt_-Y8rsCx3d6ofOqMFoDEyvBr9zc3xcg0FRCER5aoiQvAfljuhjz38DyFLWE7H-EcmXqAY7caoP41yww62YnR9JPTy3PSg7igYvPMrXa/s1600/Mucha+collage.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="397" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnz3TXPEU9nY2tF7PJvktFYJrMnF8EGskFt_-Y8rsCx3d6ofOqMFoDEyvBr9zc3xcg0FRCER5aoiQvAfljuhjz38DyFLWE7H-EcmXqAY7caoP41yww62YnR9JPTy3PSg7igYvPMrXa/s400/Mucha+collage.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><br />The art is based on the work of <a href="http://www.muchafoundation.org/MHome.aspx">Alphonse Mucha</a>, who has inspired a couple of other tattoos appearing previously on Tattoosday <a href="http://tattoosday.blogspot.com/2009/06/sarah-shoulders-her-slavic-heritage.html">here</a> and <a href="http://tattoosday.blogspot.com/2009/09/delissa-reveals-little-bit-of-monaco-on.html">here</a>.<br /><br />If that second link looks familiar, it is because both Kat's tattoo and Delissa's are inspired by the same work, "Monaco".<br /><br /><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbV-BkMZcB5SybIAJVlhCt0Xw3S93nVghXFRzviHdN7XQ61y6BeX8mECVto7QkVsAN3JK62ukjgaiuA9o2gTy7cgwaxK7HqYgLCYHpis1otOG8U-PRwPVGZ4JbYR56oXOG5GxEuuJv/s1600/Mucha_Monaco_Monte_Carlo_1897.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbV-BkMZcB5SybIAJVlhCt0Xw3S93nVghXFRzviHdN7XQ61y6BeX8mECVto7QkVsAN3JK62ukjgaiuA9o2gTy7cgwaxK7HqYgLCYHpis1otOG8U-PRwPVGZ4JbYR56oXOG5GxEuuJv/s400/Mucha_Monaco_Monte_Carlo_1897.jpg" width="296" /></a></div><br />Kat's tattoo is interpreted a little differently, translated with brighter colors, which, in Kat's words, were "amped up to be on my arm".<br /><br />The plan is eventually for this tattoo to expand to be a half-sleeve.<br /><br />The phrase "the world is quiet here" is a nod to a motto for a secret organization known as <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/V.F.D.">V.F.D.</a> in <a href="http://www.amazon.com/Complete-Wreck-Unfortunate-Events-Books/dp/0061119067?ie=UTF8&tag=bill03-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" target="_blank"></a><a href="http://www.amazon.com/Complete-Wreck-Unfortunate-Events-Books/dp/0061119067?ie=UTF8&tag=bill03-20&link_code=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969" target="_blank">A Series of Unfortunate Events</a><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=bill03-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=0061119067" style="border: medium none ! important; margin: 0px ! important; padding: 0px ! important;" width="1" /><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="http://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=bill03-20&l=btl&camp=213689&creative=392969&o=1&a=0061119067" style="border: medium none ! important; margin: 0px ! important; padding: 0px ! important;" width="1" />by <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lemony_Snicket">Lemony Snicket</a>. These books are favorites among Kat's list of much-loved titles.<br /><br />Her work was created by the artist <a href="http://www.google.com/profiles/the.milkmaid#buzz">Joy Rumore</a> at <a href="http://www.1228tattoo.com/">Twelve 28 Tattoo</a> in Brooklyn.<br /><br />Kind thanks to Kat for sharing her work with us here on Tattoosday!

Kat's Mucha Tattoo, With a Twist of Lemony Snicket

At 31st Street and 7th Avenue, I stopped Kat to ask about her ink. She was happy to see me and had been wondering, having previously read Ta...

3:50 AM

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