There is no doubt that Where the Wild Things Are is one of the most classic children’s books. According to author and illustrator of the book, Maurice Sendak, it was at first banned in libraries and received negative reviews. Since then it has received high critical acclaim, and was even made into a live-action film directed by Spike Jonze in 2009.
The book’s latest adaptation was taken on by Steve, and a very lucky lady walked out of our shop last night wearing this on her arm.
New flash available! Designed by Sailor Jerry, re-drawn and painted by micah r. o. litant. Prices vary, but high-fives are always free. Inquire within to get one of these tattoos today!
flash
_witch city ink
witchcityink@gmail.com
978 744 9393
Coming to town to enjoy the weather, see the sites, and walk around? Pick up the perfect souvenir, a tattoo! Take a look at the artist portfolios on our website and facebook and give us a call today to book out an appointment in advance. See you in Salem!
_witch city ink
witchcityink@gmail.com
978 744 9393
Owner and artist, Natan Alexander, was recently featured on an episode of Channel Five Chronicle about local artists. Click the link below to check out Natan's feature on the show and to gain some perspective on the artistry of tattooing!
http://www.thebostonchannel.com/video/21920655/
Natan is always interested in begi
nning new custom projects and working with new people so make sure to give us a call (781.233.1780) or stop on by the shop (184 Broadway, Route 1, Saugus, MA) to book out your time today!
This is a tattoo I recently did of an Egyptian style scarab. This was the customer’s first tattoo and she wanted to make it count. Most of the time at Witch City Ink we recommend coming in for a consultation in order for your artist to gather all the information needed to give you a great tattoo. The results always speak for themselves.
Some tattoos get done in one session, and some take many. Brad wanted a Japanese dragon and he wanted it bright and strong. Thats exactly the type of tattoo work I like to do and I was very excited about the project. In the initial drawing consultation he described what he would like, we looked at some references, and I took some measurements to help me plan the tattoo. Brad and I began this tattoo knowing it would take a few sittings because there were 2 very solid tattoos that had to be covered as part of the design.
Heres a picture of the 2 tattoos we covered:
Brads Before Picture
When Brad arrived for his first tattoo session we sat right down and got to work. I was careful to locate elements of the design in places where I knew the color would mask the old tattoos. We tattooed for 3 hours and I managed to lay down the entire outline and some of the black. We made great progress but nevertheless, after the first session it was clear there was a long way to go. After our session, Brad took a picture of the outline. The photo is a little bit low resolution but you can at least get a sense of the progress. After 3 hours the tattoo looked like this:
First Session
The first session we got the whole outline in and some of the preliminary black, in the next session, 6 hours into the tattoo, we began to prepare the underpainting of the scales and background. Fortunately, Brad sat perfectly every session and was patient about getting the results he wanted. As a result I was able to concentrate on every detail along the way. Soon the tattoo started taking shape:
2nd Session
In the 3rd session the entire tattoo started really looking clearer and brighter, and we felt like huge progress had been made. At this point it started getting pretty hard to tell it was a coverup tattoo at all. 9 hours into the tattoo and the 1/2 sleeve looked like this:
3rd Session
At last we got to the final session, the last 3 hours. This is where a large amount of final detail work, color touch ups, and tightening of the outline took place. Using the last session to really perfect the tattoo gave me a chance to go over every area and make those colors pop out. Both Brad and I were very pleased with the final results as seen below:
Brads Dragon Final 1
Front View, Final Session
Brads Dragon, Back View, Final Session
Some tattoos definitely require patience, but in the end it pays off.
Tattoos are permanent, and you cant erase once you start, so its not uncommon for custom tattoo artists to make a complete painting of the intended design prior to actually tattooing them. Each one is a unique expression of the clients wishes and the artists vision for the design. While not every tattoo demands such elaborate preparation, its good to see examples of artwork other than tattoos from the person you choose to adorn you for the rest of your life!
Below are a few examples of artwork created by tattoo artist N^T^N Alexander. These paintings were created for clients specifically for the purpose of tattooing them:
Color Study for V-Twin Tattoo. Watercolor on Bristol Board, N^T^N 2007
A customer who wanted to immortalize his love of motorcycles commissioned this tattoo design from me. When circumstances prevented him from getting the tattoo, I decided to complete the sketch and make a watercolor painting from it instead. The flying eyeball comes from a skateboard deck design by Jim Phillips and the glowing spiderweb background complements the strong hotrod/rockabilly feel he wanted the overall piece to have.
The Road to Hell is Easy, Watercolor on Paper, 2006
This design was commissioned by a client who was in recovery after years of battling addiction. He liked the look of old fashioned pistols and wanted to have a skull and some poppy flowers in the design as well. After some discussion, we decided to include a latin phrase in the design, “Facilis Decensus Averno” which means, “The road to Hell is Easy” The tattoo was designed to serve as a reminder to him that he could always fall back into the hell of opiate addiction if he didnt stay strong and focused.
Prick Magazine Opening Notice, 2008
Subject: Witch City Ink Opening Party
Celebrating the opening of the Witch City Ink location in beautiful downtown Salem , Massachusetts was a lovely evening in June of 2008. Friends and family gathered for the festivities and Prick Magazine was there to capture it all. The tattoo shop has an eclectic feel and is filled with treasures collected from Natan’s travels throughout the world.
Kiku, Japanese ChrysanthemumÂ
This is the final piece of a band of Japanese flowers recently completed by Natan at Witch City Ink in Salem Ma. Â The rest of the tattoo is viewable in Natans portfolio at witcityink.com.
Natan specializes is custom tattooing and is available for appointments at any of his 3 shops in Massachusetts. Â He works by appointment only and is generally booked at least 3 weeks in advance.
