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2012 Boston Tattoo Convention Wrap Up

Posted by natanalexander on October 1, 2012
Posted in: BTC. Tagged: , , , . Leave a Comment

The 11th Annual Boston Tattoo Convention has come and gone, and it was by far our best year yet. We were able to expand at the last minute and add additional booths to accommodate more artists, there was a significant increase in attendance, and best of all, we had a lot of positive feedback from artists and collectors alike. To everyone that helped make the BTC happen, and to those who attended in one form or another: Thank you, thank you, thank you. We look forward to continuing to grow with you in the next years!

Speaking of, we are already planning and preparing for the 2013 show, so keep checking bostontattooconvention.com for updates. In the meantime, you can find photos from the 2012 show right here. Below are some of our favorites.


Jenny manning the booth for us. See that painting on the right? There will definitely be a post about that here in the near future!
Photo by Iggy Barskov


Myke Chambers hard at work.
Photo by Iggy Barskov


Ladies of the Miss Boston Ink Beauty Contest.
Photo by Iggy Barskov


A shot of just some of the great work that was in the art gallery.
Photo by Tong Mangklarat


Photo by D. Markus Witt


Horikei, who did several tebori (traditional hand-poke) tattoos over the weekend.
Photo by Kathy Kim


Photo by Iggy Barskov


Aerial view! We had about 140 booths — we took up so much space, it would have been impossible to get them all into one shot.
Photo by Kathy Kim

New Work: Song Sparrows

Posted by natanalexander on June 13, 2012
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The song sparrow is one of the most familiar North American sparrows. Now, there are many different regional species of sparrows but this is the one you should suspect if you see a streaky sparrow in an open, shrubby, or wet area. And if you catch one singing what is described as a “stuttering, clattering song,” then you have probably just encountered the song sparrow.

Two were brought to life on K’s forearm this week. Take a look! We highly recommend clicking the image to see a larger version.

Completed Phoenix

Posted by natanalexander on May 19, 2012
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The phoenix is said to have a 500 to 1000 year life-cycle, near the end of which it builds itself a nest of twigs that then ignites; both nest and bird burn and are reduced to ashes, from which a new, young phoenix or phoenix egg arises, reborn anew to live again. The new phoenix is destined to live as long as its old self. In some stories, the new phoenix embalms the ashes of its old self in an egg made of myrrh and deposits it in the Egyptian city of Heliopolis (which means “sun city” in Greek).

Phoenix Featured on Inkbase’s Tattoo of the Week

Posted by natanalexander on May 5, 2012
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Inkbase is a platform (still in beta, but so far so good!) made for tattoo artists, studios and people who are interested in tattoos. Artists and studios can post their work, while tattoo collectors can search for artists, studios, and inspiration.

This phoenix back piece always seems to end up being a favorite, and also a recognizable image. The kind folk at Inkbase seem to think it’s pretty good too, because they’ve made it the tattoo of the week. Thanks, Inkbase!

You can find Witch City Ink on Inkbase here, and Lightwave Tattoo right here.

Event: Sacred Ink, The Art and Ritual of Tattooing

Posted by natanalexander on May 4, 2012
Posted in: Travels. Tagged: , , , , , , , . Leave a Comment

On July 21st, two very special events will be occurring at CoSM. The first is The Visionary Tattoo: Empowerment, Healing, & Transformation through Body Art, with Guy Aitchison and Michele Wortman. Starting with a historical summary of visionary tattoo traditions of the past, Michele and Guy bring the focus of the discussion into what is possible now with the cutting edge understanding of the art form available today, showing examples from some of the tattoo community’s most innovative members.

Second, which I am grateful to announce that I will be a part of, is Sacred Ink: The Art and Ritual of Tattooing, hosted by Alex and Allyson Grey and includes art talks, live painting, and music from 8pm-2am. Sacred Ink features Guy Aitchison, Michele Wortman, James Kern, and myself.

You can find more information and register for both events here, or if you’d prefer to only attend Sacred Ink, click here

To learn more about CoSM and get directions to the event, visit http://cosm.org.

In Progress: Raven & Lunar Cycle

Posted by natanalexander on April 30, 2012
Posted in: In Progress Tattoos, Uncategorized. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , . Leave a Comment

Sunday was no day of rest, but sometimes going in to work for the purpose of tattooing a friend is worth cutting a weekend in half for. This is the result of the second session of a back piece on Sarah, who is another client who traveled a considerable distance to be tattooed, and who also has a job to be envied (hint: it involves Alex Grey) along with plenty of interesting stories. She’s an all around cool lady, and it is always a treat to have her at Witch City Ink.

New Work: Scarab

Posted by natanalexander on April 27, 2012
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Scarabs were popular amulets in ancient Egypt. According to ancient Egyptian myths, the sun (Ra) rolls across the sky each day and transforms bodies and souls. Modeled upon the Scarabaeidae family dung beetle, which rolls dung into a ball for the purposes of eating and laying eggs that are later transformed into larva, the scarab was seen as an earthly symbol of this heavenly cycle.

And so this client traveled a fair amount of distance to have this scarab on his ribs, which was done at Lightwave yesterday. A transformation symbolizing transformation.

The Beginning of the Apocalypse

Posted by natanalexander on April 23, 2012
Posted in: In Progress Tattoos. Tagged: , , , , , , , , , , , , . 1 comment

Regardless of what you may believe, parts of the bible are incredibly fascinating, including the four horsemen, which are described in the last book of the New Testament (thanks, Wikipedia!). Wiki goes on to say:

The chapter tells of a “‘book’/'scroll’ in God’s right hand that is sealed with seven seals”. The Lamb of God/Lion of Judah (Jesus Christ) opens the first four of the seven seals, which summons forth four beings that ride out on white, red, black, and pale horses. Although some interpretations differ, the four riders are commonly seen as symbolizing Conquest, War, Famine and Death, respectively. The Christian apocalyptic vision is that the four horsemen are to set a divine apocalypse upon the world as harbingers of the Last Judgment.

Pretty cool/frightening, eh? We’ll keep showing you the progression of this tattoo. Here’s phase one!