The first Baikal Tattoo Fest 2018 has come to an end, and for me it was a very warm and memorable experience. The festival was organized by Denis Kalashnikov, Slava, nicknamed Povar, and Vova Babchuk. They managed to create a festival that was not large in scale but very cozy and welcoming. There were many local artists, tattooists from neighboring cities, and even a few from China, which made the event stylistically quite diverse.
For my participation, I chose a project featuring a plague doctor. We created a black figure with striking glowing accents around the eyes and an additional highlighted element at the waist. The tattoo took about six hours. The piece came together quickly and cohesively, and in the end we won first place in Best of Day. After the awards, we went back to our rooms, took a deep breath, and absorbed the excitement of the win.
This was my first trip to Irkutsk, where the festival took place. But the most interesting part was still ahead. The organizers planned a one-and-a-half-week gathering right on Lake Baikal. The program included trips to scenic locations, beautiful views, drawing sessions, possible bike rides, and just informal socializing.
This kind of tattoo afterparty gives something that is often missing at conventions: time. There is no rush to finish pieces for categories. You can talk freely, exchange experiences, and discuss the industry and new ideas. The trip to Baikal created high expectations and gave the sense that ahead of us was not only work, but also rich and lively interaction with people in the community.