|
||
|
||
INKEDblog takes you beneath the skin of today's tattoo culture. Our mission is to celebrate tattooing as a modern art form which incorporates art, fashion, style, and pop culture. While paying homage and respect to the past, we look to present a contemporary take on the present and future of skin art.
Home / Email this post
Monday Dec 19, 2005
INKEDblog Interviews Tattoo Artist Nate Parrish
Nate’s a Seattle-based artist with a genuine affinity for Japanese tats and the history that comes with. The bonus? He’s an extremely talented guy. Yet he’s also humble enough to cop to a difficulty with Celtic work and honest enough to send that work elsewhere. And for a guy who runs a one-man tat studio, passing on business of any sort is no small gesture. All of which makes Nate an ink slinger y’all should be happy to get to know.
--- Justin Pelegano
INKEDblog: When did your love for tattooing begin?
Nate: Like any kid, I was fascinated by tattoos at an early age. When I got my 1st tattoo at 17 I was already interested in the application & craft itself. I was lucky enough to find a good artist who didn't mind talking while he worked, so I hammered him with questions. When I decided it was what I wanted to do, I couldn't stop thinking about it...I literally stayed awake thinking about tattooing & talked about it constantly. Drawing's the most important part of tattooing, I've done that all my life.
INKEDblog: I checked out your paintings and your tat work. Really great stuff. What is it about the traditional Japanese designs that appeals to you so much?
Nate: Thanks, everything I do comes from somewhere else. Japan's where good tattoos started, centuries ago. We all know tattooing can be found worldwide, but when you compare flowing Japanese bodysuits to more primitive designs being done at the time by Islanders, Indians, & everyone else...it seems clear that Japanese woodblock designs work well in skin. It has to do with technique too; that hand-pushed style has a quality that isn't duplicated even by modern machine. It's more advanced than the hammer-and-chisel method used in Borneo or whatever. I also dig traditional Western-type tattoos, which were heavily influenced by Asian design.
INKEDblog: Is there a tat style that you won't go near -- one that doesn't interest you as an artist?
Nate: I'm terrible at Celtic. To me, it's like tattooing barcodes...very technical & anal. My heritage is Celtic, but I've never had much interest in the art. Their animal designs are great, & there's folks who can do knot work really well, but for me it feels limited, not loose. Every style has limits, but I'd rather send Celtic work to someone who loves it.
INKEDblog: You're working out of Seattle. Is the tat community tight out there? What I mean is, is it a small world where all the artists sort of inspire each other? Or are we talking cutthroat competition?
Nate: I'm not a competitive person. Seattle's mellow. It's one of the tattoo capitals, but the downside is there's a s--- load of shops. Same as anywhere...and I contribute to the problem by having a shop myself. Customers tend to have a know-it-all attitude & want to design their own tattoos, which is usually disastrous. So basically, everyone's an artist, or thinks they are. Tattooers get along mostly. Many shops run multiple locations & most have 5 or 8 artists. It's crazy. I might be the only one-man shop in the city.
INKEDblog: How far would you like to take your tattooing? What is your ink dream, if you will?
Nate: I'm not sure anyone's capable of taking it further than it's been taken. I'm happy working within the parameters of what works. I don't have dreams about tattoos. I'm mostly interested in drawing & sleep deprivation. I want to learn more & get more done.
For more on Nate’s work, check out his site www.nateparrish.com
Comments
Amazing tat
Posted by: Amanda at January 18, 2006 12:08 AM
Very original content. I really like your site. Make Do Win - that is all that Gnome is capable of: http://www.newsforge.com/ , Gnome can Win Chair Memorizing is feature of Profound Player , to Roll Stake you should be very Tremendous when Stake is Opponents it will Destroy Circle
Posted by: Sean Carpenter at February 4, 2006 04:44 PM
Post a comment
© Electric Artists Inc. All rights reserved.
