Feeling Crabby at the NYC Tattoo Convention

It's a long story, so I'll cut right to the chase - here's my new tattoo, inked Saturday at the New York City Tattoo Convention:

This tattoo makes me happy, and I am grateful to the good people of Independent Tattoo in Selbyville, Delaware, especially James Delzel (@jdelzel on Instagram) and Tasha Halphen, the shop manager, who helped set it up.

Now, the question, why? Here's the scoop:

This was my eighth year visiting the convention and I've always remembered talking to the crew from Independent who have come to the show. This year James was with Matt Amey, another great artist. Tasha was there last year. But at some point, several years back, a seed was planted. Someone mentioned that they had done a crab event, tattooing crabs a la Friday the 13th flash. Selbyville is in close proximity to Ocean City, Maryland, in the one county in the state where tattooing is illegal. And, well, crabs are quite popular in Maryland. I don't remember the details of the event (or who told me about it), but that stuck with me and I've craved a crab tattoo ever since, so much that it's subsequently come up as a possibility, but never a reality, until this year.

A month or so ago, I was messaging with Tasha and the stars aligned. She mentioned the possibility to James and he was excited to do it. The rest is history.

But, why a crab?

First of all, I remember my mom had these cool oversized astrology postcards when I was growing up. I loved playing with the Cancer card, a bright colorful illustration that featured a crab.

Add to that the fact that no kid grows up in Hawai'i, as I did, without spending time chasing sand crabs on the beach. It was just a part of my childhood that always stuck with me - one that also influenced my tastes. I was never a big seafood fan, but I'm convinced my distaste for crab has more to do with my affinity for the creatures, as opposed to what my actual taste buds tell me.

The design itself was developed by James, with the following image as a starting off point:

That is Scylla Serrata, known also as the mud crab, mangrove cab and, In Hawai'i, the Samoan Crab.

Why this crab? Well, put on a 7-year old's hat, and recognize that Samoan rhymes with Cohen. As a young buy, my active imagination took my astrological sign and merged it with this rhyme, making the Samoan Crab my totem. I even formed a "Samoan Crab Club," a group of friends, all with names given by me: Samoan Dog, Samoan Mouse, and Samoan Goat, to name a few. Silly boyhood stuff.

My father remembers this Samoan Crab business and occasionally reminds me of it, but I thought that was the extent of this long-lost aspect of my childhood, until a book-signing, several years ago. One of my oldest childhood friends, who teaches at a prestigious university and has published several books on cultural affairs (an oversimplification), inscribed his first book to me, "Bill - Samoan Crab!...". He didn't sign it "Samoan Goat," but he might as well have.

Anyway, that's why Scylla Serrata was the basis for my new tattoo. I left the final design up to the artist - they always know best, and it shouldn't surprise people that a lifelike rendering of the Samoan Crab, known for its dark color, would not translate well to skin. I was totally fine with lightening up the design and adding some color that "popped."

On the way to the convention Saturday, James told me that he and Matt had seen someone walking with a crab tattoo and they saw that it was very unreadable from a distance. James told me it was fortuitous encounter, as they saw what didn't work, in that instant, and it helped guide his idea of how to complete the tattoo.

James placed the stencil higher up on the leg, as it just looked better higher up, juxtaposed with the eagle on the side of my calf. 

It is off enough from the height of the opposite leg's tiger, that it is obvious we were not trying to line up the two tattoos.

James is a great tattooer - my legs tend to occasionally twitch unwittingly when getting tattooed, especially when we get into the second hour, but he just "rode it out."

James sizing up the tattoo with an Independent crab mallet (photo by Matt Amey)

So that's the story of my newest tattoo. This crab will keep me happy for many years to come, and I thank, once again, James Delzel and Independent Tattoo for all their good work and friendship over the years!

Be sure to visit them at their website here and, if you're ever looking to get inked in Ocean City, just head north to Delaware and find them in Selbyville!

This entry is ©2015 Tattoosday.

If you are seeing this on another website other than Tattoosday, without attribution, please note that it has been copied without the author's permission and is in violation of copyright laws. Please feel free to visit http://tattoosday.blogspot.com and read our original content. Please let me know if you saw this elsewhere so I contact the webmaster of the offending site and advise them of this violation in their Terms of Use Agreement.

Tasha's Horned Viper (from the NYC Tattoo Convention)

The 17th Annual New York City Tattoo Convention has ended, but I'll be expanding this week on some of the amazing tattoos I saw (and tweeted out) during the show.

First off is this amazing horned viper:

This vibrant tattoo is on the left hand of Tasha, the shop manager at Independent Tattoo, in Selbyville, Delaware. Matthew Amey, one of the owners, put this on Tasha Friday evening at the convention, so when I took the photo it was still fresh.

When I asked Tasha about why she got this particular piece, she explained, "I was actually gonna get Medusa, but it's like, ten pounds of shit in a dimebag - it's just too much for a small area so [Matt] said, What about a horned viper? and I was like, okay, and he brought the drawing in that he had done and I was like that's pretty cool!"

The rest, as they say, is history.

Tasha, Matthew Amey and Tres Denk, all from Independent, are super cool to talk to, and if you're ever passing through Delaware, are well-worth a visit.

Thanks to Tasha (and the rest of the crew from Independent Tattoo) for sharing this awesome horned viper with us here on Tatoosday!

This entry is ©2014 Tattoosday.

If you are seeing this on another website other than Tattoosday, without attribution, please note that it has been copied without the author's permission and is in violation of copyright laws. Please feel free to visit http://tattoosday.blogspot.com and read our original content. Please let me know if you saw this elsewhere so I contact the webmaster of the offending site and advise them of this violation in their Terms of Use Agreement.

Dispatch from the 16th Annual NYC Tattoo Convention - Day 1

There's just something about the NYC Tattoo Convention that makes me smile.

For the last five years I have attended and, despite the fact that a large majority of the booths are occupied by many of the same companies, there are always new changes and a grungy intimacy that make me happy I attended.

I'm normally a "Saturday only" attendee, but I thought I'd give it an early go, and check it out Friday evening when things were just getting started. I still plan on spending a larger chunk of time there today, but I still wanted to get the lay of the land.

No fancy convention center here, the Roseland Ballroom is a storied venue and its "lived-in" feeling contributes immensely to the intimacy of the event. As always, Saturday's contests are a highlight of the show.

There are trophies to be won!

I was very excited to see the latest incarnation of the Jack Rudy-designed show tee, in both gray and white:

Not to mention that this year, the convention is a stop on the Inked Up World Tour, co-sponsored by Inked Up, Rockstar Energy Drinks and the Sullen Art Collective. There's a booth on the main floor where you vote interactively with a heavily-decorated model vying for "Miss Inked Up 2013" on which artist designed the best can for Rockstar Energy Drinks (I chose Nikko Hurtado's design), after which you get to spin their prize wheel.

I got lucky and won a t-shirt!

Front of the shirt

And the back:

I swung by a whole slew of booths and will be back today to spend more time with the convention-goers.

Of note, I met a nice woman at the booth of Independent Tattoo, who now has me thinking about getting a crab tattoo. And it was great reconnecting with Kevin from Sacred Tattoo and catching up.

There is plenty to see, and I have only begun to covet my neighbor's tattoos! If there's anything that will give you a sense of ink envy, it's attending a show where the majority of the people are so dedicated to decorating the skin of others, or filling up their own personal canvases.

Of course, for me, it is also about finding great people to interview for upcoming installments of Tattoosday.

Here's one photo I took which will be part of an upcoming feature:

This PHENOMENAL piece belongs to Hannah, and was created by the amazingly-talented Shawn Barber. I will devote a separate post to this in the coming week, but talking with Hannah, and having her so generously share work from a talent like Barber, was just one of the reasons I left Roseland last night with a huge grin on my face.

There may be bigger and brighter conventions, but the New York City Convention will always hold a place in my heart.

I will be there today, as well, and will be posting on Facebook and Twitter (@Tattoosday). Doors open at 12 Noon and close at Midnight. The show also runs Sunday, May 19, from Noon to 8:00 PM.

Thanks again to the organizers of the NYC show for always doing such a great job in putting together the event!

This entry is ©2013 Tattoosday.

If you are seeing this on another website other than Tattoosday, without attribution, please note that it has been copied without the author's permission and is in violation of copyright laws. Please feel free to visit http://tattoosday.blogspot.com and read our original content. Please let me know if you saw this elsewhere so I contact the webmaster of the offending site and advise them of this violation in their Terms of Use Agreement.