inked

C. Howel

2007-05-31T20:13:00.000-07:00

"...of his friends got the same "C" tattoo which represents Columbus"

J. Grigalunas

2007-05-24T20:08:00.000-07:00

Frat pride!

A. Barker

2007-05-24T20:03:00.001-07:00

Frat mascot

A. Barker

2007-05-23T10:39:00.000-07:00

"#1 Buckeye Fan"

D. Reed

2007-05-22T20:47:00.001-07:00

This was designed by the D. He also designed two others that his friends decided to get on their shoulders as well.

E. Midura

2007-05-22T20:41:00.000-07:00

Go Indians!

M. Means

2007-05-15T21:48:00.000-07:00

The tattoo is a reference to a song by Poison, Every Rose Has its Thorn.

iLan

2007-05-11T21:03:00.000-07:00

“So originally it started out as me knowing I wanted a tattoo, and being pretty sure I wanted it on my back, but then not knowing what I wanted… So I started thinking… What would be something I’d want on me forever… I came up with a couple ideas. Mostly geometric type things. But they didn’t strike a chord or anything. I don’t exactly remember how I came up with it, but eventually I thought of a “tree” and it just clicked. At the time the reasoning was just because I really liked trees mostly. My name means tree. I loved climbing trees. And I just like nature in general really. It was something that I have always liked. And so that kind of had a couple months to sink in.After a couple months I still liked the idea of a tree and started doing some sketches… This is when I really got serious about it. I happened to be reading a book at the time, and this is where the true and current meaning of the tree really comes in to play. The book was "Jungian Archetypes" by Robin Robertson, which is a really great book, by the way. Anyways, in the book it talks about a 14th century alchemical illustration in which a man is shot in the side with an arrow and a tree grows from his genital region…. The arrow represents some sort of pain or trauma. The man is forced turn on himself, acknowledging this arrow, and through that he is then able to access his anima (A Jungian concept) which is represented by the tree. The anima is the generally repressed feminine characteristics in a male (while the animus is the generally repressed masculine characteristics in a female). So for instance, sensitivity, creativity, passion. These sorts of things. So to make a long story short, essentially, this tattoo is a memorial for my mom and the acknowledgment of who I am as an artist, and what I’ve gone through to get to where I am. I have a vivid memory of my dad explaining how my mom is buried under a tree, and how they specifically picked that spot so it could give her shade in the summers and provide shelter from the snow and rain...I couldn't be more pleased with how it turned out...”

iLan’s Deviant page: http://laughingtree.deviantart.com/
iLan’s Tattoo Artist’s: http://www.durbster.com/

C. Shaffer

2007-05-10T04:35:00.000-07:00

" I wanted something that reminded me of our bond. We have the same initial (C) which I put in a guitar pic because he loved to play guitar for the neighborhood kids. Those things sit in a red rose to symbolize love and there are angel wings because I believe he is watching over me. The placement is key: The tattoo goes across both shoulder blades so that he will always have my back."

E. Silvia

2007-05-08T21:19:00.000-07:00

These are placed slightly above Eileen’s heals. The tattoo symbolizes good luck and her horoscope; Pisces.

Eileen and her boyfriend both have this tattoo. Eileen’s is on her left arm and her boyfriend had it placed on his chest. Both contributed equally into the concept of the tattoo. Eileen loves broccoli and bacon and introduced broccoli to her boyfriend, which he hated before he met Eileen but loves it now. The text “Something from nothing is something afterall…” comes from The McGunks, a band which Eileen’s boyfriend listens to, but she had never heard of them before they met. The tattoo is a collaboration of their similarities and differences.

A. McCandlish

2007-05-07T21:15:00.000-07:00

Amy received a music box when she was younger from her great great grandmother, which had an image of a fairy. Since the music box, Amy has been collecting fairy memorabilia. Amy’s tattoo is a reference to her great great grandmother and her interest in fairies. One thing Amy regrets is the placement of her tattoo and is currently planning on getting her second one.

R. Barringer

2007-05-07T08:38:00.000-07:00

Sun Tattoo: "An act of defiance, as I wasn't allowed to do anything until I was 18."

Lizard: "Liked the design."

P. Arnold

2007-05-07T08:34:00.000-07:00

Purple Rose; "Product of a midlife crisis."

Nic

2007-05-03T21:05:00.000-07:00

This is Nic’s second tattoo which he designed himself. He was attached to the image therefore decided on getting it tattooed.

C. Skatola

2007-05-03T20:55:00.000-07:00

Corey’s families crest; he was interested in getting a tattoo that would relate to his family.

Julia

2007-04-30T10:53:00.000-07:00

Julia felt it was time for another tattoo, after getting her first one ten years ago. Julia likes anything and everything that relates with Dia De Los Muertos (Day of the Dead).

M. Warnet

2007-04-29T19:50:00.000-07:00

Mike had this done after his friend died in basic training during his time in the Air Force. Mike and his friend went through all the training, testing and bunked together during his six weeks in basic training. However, four weeks into basic training his friend committed suicide by hanging himself off a toilet seat with his boot lace. Mike was two days away from graduating from the academy, but passed out while running after 3.5 miles. He was diagnosed with asthma. Mike is now considering joining the navy.

"Japanese symbols - love courage and art."

Mike's myspace: http://www.myspace.com/mike0812

Clayton

2007-04-26T19:59:00.000-07:00

B. O’Rourke

2007-04-24T22:16:00.000-07:00

“I designed it, because I wanted my first tattoo to be something I could either work around or cover all together…cause, ya know, everyone regrets their first impulse tattoos.”

“It’s the two of swords from the
Rider-waite tarot deck.”

“Cause pirates rock!”

“It’s actually Ogham, which is what the druids use to write with. Each letter stands for a tree bla-de-bla. It says ‘fuck off.’”

T. Brofford

2007-04-23T10:21:00.000-07:00

Tiffany had this done recently; she has an active interest in astrology and her tattoo symbolizes her horoscope; Gemini.

B. Foose

2007-04-20T15:56:00.000-07:00

Brian designed this tattoo himself. He mentioned that there was no real reason for getting this particular tattoo. Brian noted that at the time he was a bit bored of hearing tattoo stories and decided he would design one himself and get one for the sake of getting one.

C.Thompson

2007-04-19T01:35:00.000-07:00

"The first tattoo I got was to pay homage to Led Zeppelin. The Zoso emblem, which has no pronunciation, was an emblem that I got off the Zeppelin IV album jacket. Jimmy Page selected it. I looked up the history surrounding it and got many different meanings, but it wasn't until I found a story about it that I discovered the true meaning. Jimmy Page actually made up the emblem for the album jacket. He created his own meaning for it, and told it to lead singer Robert Plant. In the years following Robert Plant and Jimmy Page were asked about the meaning of Page's emblem, but both had forgotten the meaning."

"The Second tatto is a graffiti piece of the word laugh. I thought that I would get the word laugh tattooed on my arm to keep on constant reminder of how I get through my life. I believe it is important to laugh and keep a positive outlook on life, no matter what the circumstance. So when all else fails I can look at my arm and see the word laugh and know that I will always have happiness with me."

J. Gillette

2007-04-19T00:40:00.000-07:00

"One is that I love mushrooms. I think they're the coolest looking little alien pod plants ever, and I love going out hunting for them (not to eat, just to check them out). The other is that it's a Brian Froud toadstool, and I've always loved his artwork, especially his collaborations with Jim Henson. "

D. Britenbucher

2007-04-17T22:18:00.000-07:00

"The first pic is of my dog, Hannah, and I got it to remind me how much she has helped me to get where I am today. If it wasn't for her, I would not be pursuing vet school. And I wanted to always remember her, because dogs do so much to help calm and relax someone."

"The second is of fetal steve, which I'm sure you have heard of, I got it to remind me of a very unique and awesome experience that in the process has created great friends and great memories."

J. Grant

2007-04-14T06:04:00.000-07:00

"The first is the cross on my forearm. I got this to always remind me that Jesus died on the cross for my sins."

"The second on is the Chinese letters on my other forearm. It means misunderstood in Chinese (and yeah I made sure that's what it says before I got it). I got this because that's how I feel. That's the way most of the people who don't know me and some who do, look at me, and get the wrong idea about me."

"The last one says R.I.P. Mattie. I got this because my grandmother died a little over a year ago. She meant a lot to me and it's tattooed on my shoulder in remembrance of her."

Devon

2007-04-11T16:37:00.000-07:00

Meaning: Big sister

Monica's Flower

2007-04-09T17:44:00.000-07:00

Monica's Cross

2007-04-08T06:33:00.000-07:00

Heath

2007-04-07T09:12:00.000-07:00

Roman numeral representing his date of birth…

L. Anderson

2007-04-06T15:38:00.000-07:00

The owner of this tattoo had it done just before he left for the Gulf War. The tattoo is a spiritual image which symbolizes courage; it was meant as a reminder to be aware and to remain focused.

Curiosities

2007-04-05T14:23:00.000-07:00

I’m curious about body art.
I’m curious as to why people decide to get tattooed.
I’m curious to see how many people are willing to share their stories.
I’m curious to see where this project goes…

This space is created to share my curiosities toward tattooing and perhaps other’s insight toward body art.