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The image below
is
an
animated
GIF
which
shows
the
progression
of
my
Japanese
style
body
suit
tattoo.
As of
May
14th,
2001,
I have invested
about
18 hours oftime
under
the
needle(s).
The artist is
Theo
Mindell,
owner
of
Spider
Murphy's
in
San
Rafael, CA.
415-460-6979.
I
will be
updating
this
page
as
often
as
I
update my skin. Lately I've been
going
in
for
a
session every
week,
but
Theo
is
leaving
for
Europe
at
the
end
of
the
month
so
consequently
I
will be
taking
a
few weeks
away
from
tattooing.
Ultimately I see everything
from
my
waist
to
my
wrists
being
done
with
the
exception
of
a
2
inch
vent
along
my
anterior
median
(traditionally
left
untattooed
for
Japanese
body
suits).
Most folks ask
two
questions,
so
I
will answe rthem
here.
1) Did
that hurt? As
you can imagine certain parts have been more
painful than others. After about the
first 10 or 15
minutes of each session my endorphins kick in and allow
me to manage
the pain quite successfully. I find
that for about 2 1/2
hours I
can visualize the painful feelings being replaced by pleasant memories.
This aspect alone has made the whole process worthwhile for me. After
about three
hours the endorphins poop out and I'm left to deal with breathing
techniques to get me through. I had
a 4 1/2 hour
session that really kicked my ass,
so I think Iwill
steer clear of the lengthy sessions. 2) Why
did you decide to tattoo yourself sodramatically?
I originally didn't visualize a complete
body suit. It was only after I got
about 12 hours in to the tattoo that I decided
that I wanted
to be as beautiful as the people I saw
in books who were fully dressed in their art.
I think that
on some sort of subconscious level I wanted
to reclaim my body after a lengthy fight with
painful neuropathy. Being tattooed really puts you back into your
body. The images I chose
are inspired by pets, that I give
a lot of credit
to for some
of the healing that I've experienced in my life, as well as traditional
symbols and Theo's experienced input.
