Hooper Vs Peck(er)

Palm tattoos hurt. A lot.
When I try to tell people just how much, I think they think I’m exaggerating. I thought Thomas Hooper was exaggerating when he told me what to expect pain wise. He wasn’t. Coincidentally, the reason I sought out Mr. Hooper for my palms was because of a recommendation by Stewart Robson, who shot/edited this video featuring Thomas and Oliver Peck. Funny how things come full circle. You can see more of Mr. Robson’s videos on his ‘On the Shoulders of Giants‘ blog.

Hooper and O’Donnell collaborative tattoo update

Collaborative Tattooing: Sessions 2-8 from Taylor Toole on Vimeo.

*

Taylor Toole has updated the Hooper/O’Donnell collaborative back piece tattoo video over on his Vimeo page. I’m really digging the progress of this piece (the video seems to be sessions 2-8) though I’d like to see a little more sit down/talkie time with Chris and Thomas; though maybe they’re of the opinion that the work speaks for itself. Who’s to say.

For those of you who who don’t already follow Thomas and Chris:
Meditations in Atrament: Thomas Hooper.
Chris O’Donnell Blog.

Artifact Publishing Thomas Hooper Print Set

Just in time for the Holiday season (depending on which Holiday you celebrate; I’m going for Saturnalia this year) Artifact Publishing has released their first offering; a deluxe print set from Thomas Hooper in a hand stained/screen printed box. The prints are beautiful mandalas that have a very fractal/snowflake aesthetic, appropriate for a set that’s released on the Winter Solstice.

You can swing by Artifact Publishing for ordering information; this set is limited to 100 and won’t be reprinted.

From Artifact:

Thomas Hooper Winter Solstice (Black Mandalas Series:1) print suite.
Set of 28 individual 5-1/2″ x 5-1/2″ screen prints (white water based ink on black cover-stock paper). Prints are separated in groups of 7 and enclosed in 4 metallic gold heavy stock carbon printed envelopes sealed with gold foil stickers.

Envelopes are housed in hand stained, hand sanded wooden boxes with metallic gold screen printed cover, inside lid and raised floor panel with black satin Grosgrain pull ribbon.

Each box is signed and hand numbered by the artist on floor panel. Carefully packed with interlocking crinkled paper padding and shipped in a hand silk screened corrugated tab lock mailer sealed with a hand made craft paper sticker.

Color of box and wood grain may vary.

This is a limited edition of 100 and will not be remade.
Sorry, we can not meet any requests for specific numbers from the edition.

There are no returns, refunds or exchanges on this item.
This item will begin shipping the first week of January.

The opening of this edition marks the official launch of Artifact Publishing on the December 22nd 2011 Winter Solstice. The longest night of the calendar year. Our most sincere thank you for supporting us in our endeavors.

All packages are carefully packed to ensure safe delivery however we can not be held responsible for lost, damaged, or stolen packages. Customers must enter a valid and reliable shipping address. We highly suggest shipping this package to a destination where it will not be left outside. We also suggest selecting PRIORITY MAIL for fastest and most reliable shipping. Please allow additional shipping time for destinations outside the United States.

Finger Tattoo Healing

At just over a month my fingers are finally almost healed.
There is a little ‘bleeding’ of pigment in the tips that’s slowly being metabolized by my body, but otherwise things are pretty much settled. Thankfully the iguana skin of my last update is long gone and I no longer stick to things. That was un-fun.

The alpha/omega palm is coming up on three years old (in November) and was also done by Thomas Hooper.

Tomorrow I’m heading back to SAVED to get a little something from Scott Harrison while he’s in NYC. I’ve been getting tattooed a lot in 2011 and the Harrison piece should hopefully be my last new tattoo for a while. Give myself time to recoup.

I’m hoping to see some of my NYC friends while I’m in town, just depends on how grumpy I end up walking around with a fresh tattoo.

The Ugly Truth

I promised updates on the finger tattoos; for the sake of showing people the full healing stages I present you with this ugly truth- peeling, cracking skin and blown out lines.
Consistent with my palm tattoo healing but no less ‘icky’. There are still a few more weeks until they’re fully healed.

I’ve been calling them my iguana fingers.

Not pretty, but a reality check for anyone who wants palm/finger tattoos done the ‘proper’ way.

Sol Invictus

I’m updating via iPad with very swollen fingers from Boston; my birthday trip about to come to a close and my return to life’s responsibility a short sleep and a long bus ride away.

I visited Thomas Hooper at Saved on Wednesday 3rd August to do a little work on my fingers; bringing him abstracts and fragmented symbolism and asking him to work something up based on very little cohesive information.

To his credit Thomas was able to make something solid out of the more uncemented ramblings I presented him with and whipped up this piece and in no time flat had it on my fingers.

Despite the discomfort I left my visit happy; freshly tattooed and in the company of my sister and brother in law and en route to seeing an old friend who was visiting Boston. Thomas was kind enough to penguinize my hands to keep me safe from the elements…. Making subway and bus travel interesting to say the least.

Such and amazing few days that my current swollen finger situation prohibits me from talking about, but tomorrow I head home to  Bailey and will hopefully be able to make regular updates on the healing process of the fingers.