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1) How can a doctor find a vein if all the veins are covered with tattoos?
Rinat: I recently went to the doctor to have my blood taken.
Both of my arms are covered in tattoos, including the bends and the vein area, and they take blood quite easily.
They apply a tourniquet, the vein swells up, and they simply insert the needle into it; the tattoo doesn't get in the way.
A legendary tattoo artist nicknamed Gorshok used to live in Tomsk. He left a small clean spot on his arm in the shape of a catheter so that doctors could easily find his vein. An original move.
Both of my arms are covered in tattoos, including the bends and the vein area, and they take blood quite easily.
They apply a tourniquet, the vein swells up, and they simply insert the needle into it; the tattoo doesn't get in the way.
A legendary tattoo artist nicknamed Gorshok used to live in Tomsk. He left a small clean spot on his arm in the shape of a catheter so that doctors could easily find his vein. An original move.
2) What should you do if you end up in prison with criminal tattoos, but you got them while you were free just for fun?
Rinat: I don't have any criminal tattoos.
The only thing that might raise questions about my tattoos is the portrait of James Hetfield from Metallica on my forearm, unless someone says, “Why is it so small, it should be bigger!”
I don't have any gang symbols, crime marks, or anything like that. Most likely, in such a situation, the reaction would be, “Wow, your tattoos are cool, let me see them.”
The only thing that might raise questions about my tattoos is the portrait of James Hetfield from Metallica on my forearm, unless someone says, “Why is it so small, it should be bigger!”
I don't have any gang symbols, crime marks, or anything like that. Most likely, in such a situation, the reaction would be, “Wow, your tattoos are cool, let me see them.”
3) Can you simply cover a black tattoo with white or flesh-colored ink so that it is completely invisible?
Rinat: Unfortunately, no.
A black tattoo cannot be completely covered with white or flesh-colored ink.
You can play around with it, add new elements around it, introduce light gray shades to create volume within the black.
But it is not possible to completely hide black pigment with light colors.
A black tattoo cannot be completely covered with white or flesh-colored ink.
You can play around with it, add new elements around it, introduce light gray shades to create volume within the black.
But it is not possible to completely hide black pigment with light colors.
4) To be a good tattoo artist, do you have to be covered in tattoos from head to toe?
Rinat: No, there is no mandatory rule.
But it is useful to at least partially be involved in the experience you give your clients, to understand the sensations and processes.
I know tattoo artists who don't have a single tattoo, although for me it's a little strange, like a shoemaker without shoes.
But it is useful to at least partially be involved in the experience you give your clients, to understand the sensations and processes.
I know tattoo artists who don't have a single tattoo, although for me it's a little strange, like a shoemaker without shoes.
5) How much does an hour of tattooing cost in Los Angeles, and do you deliberately drag out the session?
Rinat: In Los Angeles, a good tattoo artist charges an average of around $250 per hour, give or take depending on their skill level.
Normal artists don't drag out the session: it's important for them to do a good job, not to squeeze out a few extra hundred dollars by dragging out the session.
In many cases, a fixed price per session is used, especially for large tattoos.
Hourly rates are more common for miniature tattoos.
Normal artists don't drag out the session: it's important for them to do a good job, not to squeeze out a few extra hundred dollars by dragging out the session.
In many cases, a fixed price per session is used, especially for large tattoos.
Hourly rates are more common for miniature tattoos.
6) Why does it take you several hours to do one small tattoo? There's not much to draw.
Rinat: Because small, detailed work is always more difficult.
When you work with a large group of needles, such as a 23 magnum, you can cover a large area in a couple of minutes. With miniatures, you don't have that luxury: you have to use small configurations and literally “pick away” at the details. The skin swells slightly during this process, which makes the task even more difficult.
That's why small, complex tattoos often take longer than large ones.
When you work with a large group of needles, such as a 23 magnum, you can cover a large area in a couple of minutes. With miniatures, you don't have that luxury: you have to use small configurations and literally “pick away” at the details. The skin swells slightly during this process, which makes the task even more difficult.
That's why small, complex tattoos often take longer than large ones.
7) If you could press a button and remove all your tattoos for one day, would you press it out of curiosity?
Rinat: No.
Firstly, I like my tattoos. Second, I worked too hard on them to remove them all with one click and then go through it all again if they didn't come back.
Without them, I would feel empty, like a desecrated temple from which all the icons have been removed.
Firstly, I like my tattoos. Second, I worked too hard on them to remove them all with one click and then go through it all again if they didn't come back.
Without them, I would feel empty, like a desecrated temple from which all the icons have been removed.
8) If I bring a picture of a celebrity or blogger and say, “Make it exactly the same,” is that okay?
Rinat: In general, yes, it's okay. If you want a portrait of your favorite blogger, why not?
But you need to understand that it's impossible to make it “exactly the same, pixel for pixel”: skin and paper are different materials. The skin will still have its own texture, its own “corrections,” so the result will always be slightly different. You can want it, you can ask for it, but it's important to have realistic expectations.
Journalist: What if I bring a picture from the internet and ask, “Make it exactly the same.” Is that okay?
Rinat: Theoretically, it's possible, and the client's desire is understandable.
But if there is even the slightest claim to originality, it's better to listen to the master: rework the sketch, make changes, and get a more individual, “custom” version.
But you need to understand that it's impossible to make it “exactly the same, pixel for pixel”: skin and paper are different materials. The skin will still have its own texture, its own “corrections,” so the result will always be slightly different. You can want it, you can ask for it, but it's important to have realistic expectations.
Journalist: What if I bring a picture from the internet and ask, “Make it exactly the same.” Is that okay?
Rinat: Theoretically, it's possible, and the client's desire is understandable.
But if there is even the slightest claim to originality, it's better to listen to the master: rework the sketch, make changes, and get a more individual, “custom” version.
9) Do you sense that a tattoo is not meant to be for a particular client?
Rinat: I wouldn't put it that way, “meant to be” or not. I don't do tattoos that I think could seriously ruin someone's life.
For example, people who already have a lot of tattoos and consciously want a tattoo on their face, that's a logical step for them, not a drastic change in image.
I can definitely feel the client's joy when they first look in the mirror, smile, take pictures of their new tattoo, and send the photos to their loved ones.
This affects destiny in a good way: a person can become more confident, stop being ashamed of their scars, and start wearing revealing clothes.
For example, people who already have a lot of tattoos and consciously want a tattoo on their face, that's a logical step for them, not a drastic change in image.
I can definitely feel the client's joy when they first look in the mirror, smile, take pictures of their new tattoo, and send the photos to their loved ones.
This affects destiny in a good way: a person can become more confident, stop being ashamed of their scars, and start wearing revealing clothes.
10) If Siamese twins want different tattoos, but the location is shared, for example, one shared breast, what would you do?
Rinat: I would suggest a collaboration of two designs.
On one side of the chest, depict half of what one twin wants, and on the other, half of what the other twin wants, so that the composition looks complete. If it's not a matter of “tattooing something bad on the other person,” then technically and artistically, it's solvable.
For a beautiful reciprocal concept, you could come up with a “Siamese walk-in day”: blindfold one twin and tattoo what the other chose on their side, then vice versa. As a result, each will have their favorite part of the tattoo chosen by the other.
On one side of the chest, depict half of what one twin wants, and on the other, half of what the other twin wants, so that the composition looks complete. If it's not a matter of “tattooing something bad on the other person,” then technically and artistically, it's solvable.
For a beautiful reciprocal concept, you could come up with a “Siamese walk-in day”: blindfold one twin and tattoo what the other chose on their side, then vice versa. As a result, each will have their favorite part of the tattoo chosen by the other.
11) If a client comes in for a tattoo to spite someone, would you do it?
This happened to a tattoo artist I know many years ago.
A woman came to him for an ornamental tattoo on her face. She didn't look like someone from the tattoo culture: she had no visible tattoos, nothing hinted at a prepared image. He doubted whether a tattoo on her face would suit her, argued for a long time, but in the end she convinced him that it was a conscious decision. She did not warn the artist about her psychological problems and family history. When the session was almost over, she asked, “Is that it? Are we done?” to which the artist replied, “Yes.” And then she said, “Now I am truly free,” explaining that she had done it as revenge against her ex-husband, whom she had recently divorced. The tattoo artist realized that he had become part of someone else's personal drama and felt uncomfortable about it.
I would not want to be in his shoes and participate in such “revenge tattoos.”
A woman came to him for an ornamental tattoo on her face. She didn't look like someone from the tattoo culture: she had no visible tattoos, nothing hinted at a prepared image. He doubted whether a tattoo on her face would suit her, argued for a long time, but in the end she convinced him that it was a conscious decision. She did not warn the artist about her psychological problems and family history. When the session was almost over, she asked, “Is that it? Are we done?” to which the artist replied, “Yes.” And then she said, “Now I am truly free,” explaining that she had done it as revenge against her ex-husband, whom she had recently divorced. The tattoo artist realized that he had become part of someone else's personal drama and felt uncomfortable about it.
I would not want to be in his shoes and participate in such “revenge tattoos.”
12) How was the first tattoo in history made on a human being, and under what conditions will the last one be made?
Rinat: Let's imagine that the first person to receive an accidental tattoo was walking through the bushes. He had berries in something resembling a pocket, and one of the thorns pierced the fabric and his skin, pushing juice or pigment into it. He said “Ouch” and looked down to see a black dot from the berry juice on his skin.
A week later, the wound healed, but the spot remained, and the person realized that this was a way to leave marks on the body as a reminder of a mammoth, an antelope, or an important event. Gradually, this could have turned into conscious “drawing” on the body.
The last tattoo, according to one fantasy, could be done at the moment of the end of the world. The artist is working, music is playing, and suddenly he and the client see a giant mushroom cloud the size of several skyscrapers out the window. The artist looks at the client and says, “Well, shall we wrap it up?” The client replies, “I don't think so.”
But the history of tattoos will not necessarily end in disaster.
It may end along with the human body, if consciousness transitions to a digital or energetic form, where there will no longer be a physical shell to decorate. In that case, instead of tattoos, there will be “fashions” for energy beams, but that's another story.
A week later, the wound healed, but the spot remained, and the person realized that this was a way to leave marks on the body as a reminder of a mammoth, an antelope, or an important event. Gradually, this could have turned into conscious “drawing” on the body.
The last tattoo, according to one fantasy, could be done at the moment of the end of the world. The artist is working, music is playing, and suddenly he and the client see a giant mushroom cloud the size of several skyscrapers out the window. The artist looks at the client and says, “Well, shall we wrap it up?” The client replies, “I don't think so.”
But the history of tattoos will not necessarily end in disaster.
It may end along with the human body, if consciousness transitions to a digital or energetic form, where there will no longer be a physical shell to decorate. In that case, instead of tattoos, there will be “fashions” for energy beams, but that's another story.
Read the first part of the questions here