Hell City in Phoenix became one of the brightest conventions in my American journey so far. I took Best of Show in the All Styles category, and the location itself made the experience even more memorable. Arizona is full of contrasts with incredible landscapes and extreme heat that instantly explains why the festival is called Hell City. You step out of the air conditioned hall and ten minutes later you are already looking for shade and cold air again.
Despite the climate, the convention attracts a large number of strong American tattoo artists. Hell City is organized by Durb Morrison, an experienced tattooer and long time event organizer who clearly knows how to build a high level festival. Everything is set up in a way that makes it comfortable for artists to work and genuinely interesting for visitors to walk around and study the tattoos.
For this convention I invited a client with whom I already had a solid history of projects. In the past I had done a Viking themed cover up on his back and a skull on his chest, also covering older tattoos. This time I suggested going to Phoenix and committing to a three day convention project, and he was able to make the time. We chose a full color concept with a shaman theme, dense in detail, rich in tones, and full of small elements that require careful and focused work.
I worked on this tattoo for three days in a row, building it piece by piece into a single cohesive image. The final result felt strong and complete, one of those works you enjoy looking at even after it is finished. The judges clearly felt the same. They spent a long time examining it, brought the client on stage, showed the tattoo to the audience, and after the results were announced a large crowd gathered to look closer at the details. This was the piece that won Best of Show in the All Styles category.
An extra surprise was the amount of prizes that came with the award. Along with the trophy I received a Cheyenne tattoo machine, sets of needles and cartridges from different brands, Hustle Butter aftercare products, and even small handcrafted lizard figures made by a local artist. At most American conventions you usually get a statue and that is it, so this was a very generous exception.
The afterparty took place at the hotel pool area. Clients obviously stayed out of the water because of fresh tattoos, but once the heat dropped in the evening, artists jumped into the pool, talked, and relaxed after intense days of work. The combination of live communication, warm atmosphere, and a very high professional level made Hell City Phoenix a convention I would genuinely love to return to.
Despite the climate, the convention attracts a large number of strong American tattoo artists. Hell City is organized by Durb Morrison, an experienced tattooer and long time event organizer who clearly knows how to build a high level festival. Everything is set up in a way that makes it comfortable for artists to work and genuinely interesting for visitors to walk around and study the tattoos.
For this convention I invited a client with whom I already had a solid history of projects. In the past I had done a Viking themed cover up on his back and a skull on his chest, also covering older tattoos. This time I suggested going to Phoenix and committing to a three day convention project, and he was able to make the time. We chose a full color concept with a shaman theme, dense in detail, rich in tones, and full of small elements that require careful and focused work.
I worked on this tattoo for three days in a row, building it piece by piece into a single cohesive image. The final result felt strong and complete, one of those works you enjoy looking at even after it is finished. The judges clearly felt the same. They spent a long time examining it, brought the client on stage, showed the tattoo to the audience, and after the results were announced a large crowd gathered to look closer at the details. This was the piece that won Best of Show in the All Styles category.
An extra surprise was the amount of prizes that came with the award. Along with the trophy I received a Cheyenne tattoo machine, sets of needles and cartridges from different brands, Hustle Butter aftercare products, and even small handcrafted lizard figures made by a local artist. At most American conventions you usually get a statue and that is it, so this was a very generous exception.
The afterparty took place at the hotel pool area. Clients obviously stayed out of the water because of fresh tattoos, but once the heat dropped in the evening, artists jumped into the pool, talked, and relaxed after intense days of work. The combination of live communication, warm atmosphere, and a very high professional level made Hell City Phoenix a convention I would genuinely love to return to.
