NBAF 2012
QUESTIONS & ANSWERS
worked. Surrounded by all of this talent I decided to eat my words and pick up a machine. So the answer to this question is ‘No, I didn’t have a view to move into tattooing, but I think tattooing had a view to move into me.
NALA TATTOO, TAMWORTHNETTY B
You co-founded the Association for Safe and Professional Piercing - has the relationship with safety advanced a lot since you started in the industry? When Mark Perry and I first set up the A.S.P.P it was out of a passion to raise the standards of safety awareness in the body piercing industry. You see, at the time it was hard to get hold of information and the standard of supplies that you wanted. Now, just ask any piercer or tattooist what they think when they look in the glossy supply catalogues, It feels just like when we were kids looking at the toy section of the catalogue making our wish lists. But it’s a double edged sword; on one hand you’ve got all of this information and equipment you can use, then you’ve got everyone around you doing £10 piercings. Body Piercing is one of the industries where I’ve actually seen price go down rather than increase and when a product is sold really cheap something’s got to give, and I would say that is safety. So on a whole I don’t think things have advanced that much. Tere will always be piercers that are professional and passionate about what they do and in contrast others that only want to make a quick buck and don’t give a monkeys about what they do and who they harm.
You've been lucky enough to work in London, but have your own shop in the Midlands too. Do you think tattooing is an industry where quality can be found regionally, and doesn't flock to the capital? Tese days you can find really good artists in your hometown, depending on where you live and also what kind of tattoo you want. Te tattooing industry has been flooded with new studios and there’s some really cool talent coming out of these studios, which has raised the standards of local work. But the big cities are always going to have the greatest number of quality artists, by its very nature the allure of the city will always attract them.
You started off as a piercing specialist - did you always have a view to move into tattooing? I don’t know about this, perhaps subconsciously it was always on the cards. Funny though, when I first got into piercing I was quite anti-tattoo in my studio. I wanted to take piercing away from the connection it had as tattooing’s poor man’s cousin but in the end I was seduced! Tattooist Mandy Barber is my cousin and she kept encouraging me to learn to tattoo. I was also lucky enough to spend 2 years working at Into You tattoo studio in London where artists such as Alex Binnie, Xed Le Head, Mo Coppelletta and Jason Saga
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NORWICHBODYARTFESTIVAL.CO.UK
What are your favourite styles of tattoos to work on? I suppose my greatest love is big neo Japanese work, legs, sleeves and backs. I usually get first dibs on this when it comes in the studio. I’m working on a few big pieces at the moment which I’m loving; one’s a traditional Japanese back piece the other is a fusion of oriental work and geometric dot work. I also love it when a customer comes in with their ideas and we work it out between us, the customer with the seed of an idea then letting me get creative. To me, if I’ve done a good solid tattoo that makes me buzz and the customer is happy then that’s enough for me.
What are you looking forward to at the Norwich Body Art Festival? Tattooing, hanging out with my girlfriends, meeting new people and getting to spend time with my old mate Gemma from Indigo.
SIMON ERL LONDON
I believe you’ve recently been on your travels to America. Do you find working in different places keeps your mind ticking? Where do you find your greatest inspiration? Being on the road and working at different places really does help my mind. I'm lucky enough that I've been welcomed to work with amazing people in amazing studios all over, so it’s constant inspiration and help wherever I go.
Could you tell us about the Esoteric Gentlemen’s Club, or would you have to kill us? Haha, I wouldn't have to kill you but all I will say is it has nothing to do with tattooing. Te less is said, the less misconception there is about it, so that's all you get.
We’re stoked you’re coming to Norwich again, but what are you looking forward to working on? I guess some sort of traditionally inspired nonsense? I don't really know what you would call it. I like doing tattoos that look like tattoos, nothing too fancy. I don't know if I will be working on any ongoing pieces at Norwich so I guess we shall see what walks along. I'm glad to come back, thank you guys for having me each year!
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