mikevaladez

My answer is yes we need apprentices...we just got a new apprentice at our shop...she got to know my boss before she got it...and she had already known tattooers...she moved from cali to texas just to learn how to tattoo...and thats what it takes, real commitment, not just bitchin about some shop down the street not taking you. to answer the question of teaching random strangers...its a NO...i dont know you, dont know what you really want with tattooing, probably just to mooch off of it like everyone else. those are my first thoughts for when strangers ask. if i get to know someone and know that they love it for the art...i would do it, but most people wanna be fukn cool, and wanna get rich. my apprenticeship took 4 years...no money, barely any tattoos done...most people dont wanna do that, they just wanna pick up a machine and start tattooing....bleh..my 2 cents as a tattoo artist.

a backpiece would be awsome...to most it would just look like a grim reaper...its the small details, like the owl, hourglass, and the earth that make it santisima muerte..i dont see a problem if you dont worship it...better for you, it usually involves some sort of offering..

My answer is yes we need apprentices...we just got a new apprentice at our shop...she got to know my boss before she got it...and she had already known tattooers...she moved from cali to texas just to learn how to tattoo...and thats what it takes, real commitment, not just bitchin about some shop down the street not taking you. to answer the question of teaching random strangers...its a NO...i dont know you, dont know what you really want with tattooing, probably just to mooch off of it like everyone else. those are my first thoughts for when strangers ask. if i get to know someone and know that they love it for the art...i would do it, but most people wanna be fukn cool, and wanna get rich. my apprenticeship took 4 years...no money, barely any tattoos done...most people dont wanna do that, they just wanna pick up a machine and start tattooing....bleh..my 2 cents as a tattoo artist.

The same reason why Dave Navarro is a judge on Ink Masters...

Was going to comment early on in the thread but wanted to know where it would go, my question is why are non-tattooers trying to respond to this tread?

I think the girl been booted in the ass about enough. She said she gets it, so leave us all lighten up a tad.

I started on here about a year and a half ago, I would not like to see this site crumble. It seems to me that lately, less and less knowledgable people are commenting,posting etc. It also seems that thier are more lurkers with "I know some shit" attitudes. those that fit this profile should understand that you are ruining this site. This site was started in hope of an intelligent place where some could learn about the nuances of this craft. Stating amateur attitudes on here does not help.Having gotten three tattoos does not make you an authority.

You can do whatever you want on your own...but there is nothing that says someone needs to help you via an apprenticeship. If you really care about tattooing, and want to see it become better, then you need to put aside your own desire to tattoo and do things the right way. Caring about tattooing as a "would be" tattooer, means you do anything to uphold the craft of tattooing. Sometimes that means putting aside your immediate wants and thinking about what is best for tattooing as a whole.
Also, just becasue someone "doesn't have time" or "doesn't know any tattooers" or are "struggling" doesn't mean that they need to be taught to tattoo. There is no point system here. Being a certain kind of person in a certain situation doesn't get you special treatment.
And before you say, "I work my ass off to get where I want to be"... So does EVERYONE who really wants to learn to tattoo and do it the right way.

My answer is yes we need apprentices...we just got a new apprentice at our shop...she got to know my boss before she got it...and she had already known tattooers...she moved from cali to texas just to learn how to tattoo...and thats what it takes, real commitment, not just bitchin about some shop down the street not taking you. to answer the question of teaching random strangers...its a NO...i dont know you, dont know what you really want with tattooing, probably just to mooch off of it like everyone else. those are my first thoughts for when strangers ask. if i get to know someone and know that they love it for the art...i would do it, but most people wanna be fukn cool, and wanna get rich. my apprenticeship took 4 years...no money, barely any tattoos done...most people dont wanna do that, they just wanna pick up a machine and start tattooing....bleh..my 2 cents as a tattoo artist.

No, I wouldn't say so; not anymore than a pin-up girl with calavera makeup. You can tell people it represents whatever you want, but like mikevaladez said, without the owl,hourglass,and earth, it's just a grim reaper.
Do some research- Santa Muerte is just a Catholicized version of Mictecacihuatl, the Aztec goddess of the dead that later inspired La Catrina.
Here's a video with some images in it:


from the song:
Mafiosos y de la ley se la empiezan a tatuar
politicos y altos jefes tambien le tienen su altar
yo le prendo sus velitas no es un delito rezar.
Gangsters and the law have the tattoo
politicians and senior managers also have her altar
I light her candles, it is not a crime to pray.

This one is nice:

Personally, I like the multi-color version (Santa Muerte of the Seven Powers) or else it just looks like a Grim Reaper:

or do some other image, like a panther, or shark, or vagina, or popsicle, or gorilla, or vagina. anything will work!

i did a portrait of a penis on a guys arm...that was pretty weird. actually the weirdest part was his wife. she was pretty adamant about the penis head being a particular size, and it being accompanied by a nice set of balls. idk..pretty random.

bob shaw piece..

bob shaw piece..

bob shaw piece..

bob shaw piece..

bob shaw piece..

bob shaw piece..

bob shaw piece..

bob shaw piece..

bob shaw piece..

bob shaw piece..

Blk n Gry | Facebook
@Reyeslv dnt know how to post the pic, but heres a link to said penis portrait.

I took a trip on a bus to Mexico last year. I was strongly advised to wear a long sleeve shirt, cuz apparently all the mexican gangsters look like me. So I did of course and was trippin balls sittin in those bus stations down there thinkin I was gonna get kidnapped or murdered because of my tattoos. It was hot as hell, my ass with sleeves down and collar flipped up. On a good note, the police seemed especially scared of me when I would visit other towns.