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this is not a tat talk

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To what degree have tattoos become embedded with your identity?

Hà: At the beginning, I had the tattoos on the side and then the insides of my arms; they were easy to conceal. But now I think the most identifiable thing is...people actually recognise me not from my face, but by my giant branch. So I think in a way it's like a recognisable facial feature on your body.

Stefan: I'm sort of conflicted on that one because on the one hand, my parents hate tattoos and I had to hide my tattoos from them for basically forever until last year. We're talking about almost six years that I hid my tattoos from them; I'd wear long sleeves all the time around them. Even now, they know just that I have some, but not where they are or what they look like and I still will keep them covered all the time because it just makes them uncomfortable. So on the one hand, I try to make tattoos not central to me at all. They’re just illustrations and pieces of art I enjoy. Because of how against them my parents are I've mentally not been able to think, oh, this is me and I can't see myself without them. I totally can see myself without them.

Hà: I think I'm the opposite. My parents also hate them. I had this phase where I also hid them for a while, but then one day I wore a bikini and my mom was [shocked noises]. The more aggravated she is, it gives me like a really sick pleasure; sick not in a good way.

https://skinstories.exposure.co/ha-stefan taken in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam by @skinstoriesproject

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4 years ago

Why do you think dance and movement are your outlets?

I feel like I'm just naturally into dance. I would feel really liberated. I like that every time I dance or perform, I feel like I figure a little bit more about myself, like I just understand my body more. Understanding my physical body more has helped me go deeper and become more aware of my train of thought or my flow of emotions. So that's why I really appreciate movement and club dancing. - @ Miên (@mienahlisa)

https://skinstories.exposure.co/mien taken in Café Slow by @skinstoriesproject

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4 years ago

How would you describe your own tattoo style as a tattoo artist?

Weird and free perhaps. A lot of people tell me that my tattoos bring a certain positivity to people. I guess it comes from my inner self because I don't really consider myself a positive person, but the energy is always existing in my flashes. I think by creating and continuing to create them, I can find positivity at some point. - Alex @ankemdau

https://skinstories.exposure.co/alex-ankemdau by @skinstoriesproject

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4 years ago

Has becoming a tattoo artist changed you, good and bad? If so, how?

Becoming a tattoo artist has made me get less tattoos. I like giving tattoos more than I like getting them. I've always liked tattoos, back then the only way that I can have that interaction is getting a tattoo. Tattooing has brought me so many new connections and meaningful friends; I really appreciate it. I feel like nothing bad has ever occurred in the journey of becoming a tattoo artist. It's been all very good and happy. I'm really appreciative of the friends that I've made along the way. Everyone's been so supportive. - Khuê (@pokeflesh)

https://skinstories.exposure.co/khue-pokeflesh by @skinstoriesproject

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4 years ago

Apart from your interest in Japanese culture, were there any other reasons as to why you wanted to get tattoos? In the same vein, what do your tattoos mean to you?

If you want the literal meaning of peonies, it actually means a mother's love. But the initial reason why I wanted a sleeve is to tell myself that I made this decision to be in this scene. And this you can't revert back, once you do it it's here forever. It's more like a reminder that you have to work hard, this is what you have chosen for yourself, you better do it and make it. - Alize (@alizetattoo) from @8voltstattoo
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https://skinstories.exposure.co/alize-8-volts-tatoo by @skinstoriesproject

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5 years ago

Tell me something most people don't know about you.

Science, I guess. So most of my life I was training to be a scientist, I [was] in NTU doing biological science. I [focused] primarily on human genetics and some prokaryotic genetics, but largely on developmental biology and molecular biology. I also used to work in Illumina, a third-generation DNA sequencing company, as a protein engineer, so I helped develop DNA polymerases for [laughs]...okay it gets a bit technical. But yeah, so that's what most people don't know about me. I wasn't actually trained as a creative, have never been to art school, I studied science for a big part of my life. I went to Ngee Ann Polytechnic for biomedical science and then went to NTU for biological science. But I'm trying to get away from that and focus more on tattooing cause that's where I feel the happiest.

Who were you pursuing science for?

I was pursuing science for someone I wanted to be. Idealistically speaking I wanted to make the world a better place blah blah blah. I still think it's noble, and in a certain sense I still like learning and I still think it's for me, but there's a small part that doesn't feel fulfilled. I don't know. It's a part of my life that I still haven't quite figured out yet. But at this point all I know is that when I wake up and have to go to work I feel happier than when I was working in Korea last time as a researcher. I know I'm happier now. - Ian [2018](@iandamientattooer) from @ironfisttattoo
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https://skinstories.exposure.co/ian-iron-fist-tattoo by @skinstoriesproject

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5 years ago

“I worked in a law firm. I had a law degree, but I never became a lawyer. So I worked as a legal assistant. It was very boring. I survived there for a year, and then I decided to quit because I found that it wasn't for me. Well…it was fun studying for the subject but not working. I don't think I can survive in the legal world because it's too realistic, like you have to work until the morning, the dawn, just to prepare documents for clients. I can't do that. It's not my life. I prefer to have a work-life balance, so I'm so glad I got away from it after a year. After that I hopped to another job in a different industry, it was very different from my degree. I got a teaching job. I started off as a speech and drama teacher. I don't know if it was by luck, by fate or by chance, I just applied. Because at that time I was wondering, "What should I do? I have a law degree, but it's impossible for me to practice it. So what can I do?". I was looking at JobStreet, jobsDB, so I just sent in my resume. The director of this school saw my resume and called me in for an interview. So I got in!” - Cynthia (@cynthia_low )
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https://skinstories.exposure.co/cynthia-fingers-crossed-studio by @skinstoriesproject

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5 years ago

What are the other means by which you archive your experiences?

“I guess in some way, my music. Some of my earlier songs feel far away from me. I mean they are far away from, like one and a half years ago. And I guess I still am at the stage of music making where I am still like finding my voice and constantly like updating and refreshing my style. There is a constant progress. For example, I'm gonna put it up an EP up soon and I really feel like it's not exactly representative of where I am now. There's this sort of lag time because of how long it takes to put out music.”

How would you describe where you are right now?

“I would say light. I think I think I feel light in my behaviour. After I came back from New York in January 2019, a lot of people had said that they felt my colour had darkened. It manifested itself in how I was more reserved, quiete, and kept to myself more. I was also very depressed lah. So coming out of that I think for me was the lightening.” - Yaim/Yams (@yaaaaaaammy)
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https://skinstories.exposure.co/yaim-1 by @skinstoriesproject

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5 years ago

What usually occupies your mind when you're alone?

“So many things. I guess as quiet and awkward as I am, I'm quite ambitious. So when I'm alone, I'm with my worries and fears and wonder if I'm able to do what I want to do. If it's not career-wise, I think about my friends and the people around me, wondering if I've hurt those around me. I think back about the day and things that went wrong. [Laughs] That's so weird.” - Josephine (@grieddles) from @toothandnail.tattoo
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https://skinstories.exposure.co/josephine-tooth-and-nail-tattoo by @skinstoriesproject

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5 years ago

it’s gabriel. by @skinstoriesproject

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5 years ago

“For the first tattoo I think for a while I was thinking about getting a tattoo. I got it in 2015 maybe? Like JC 1 (junior college). I think at that point I was thinking a lot about social issues, specifically with regard to gender and sexuality. And then I think just the notion of equality was something I valued a lot. And then one day I was staying over at my friend’s house and then there was the news of the Orlando shooting where 50 people died right? And I think that moment was just very, I don’t know, I supposed shocking but it was just very… how know what’s the word? What’s the feeling when someone splashes cold water on you? You know what I mean. And then I was like, “Yo. What the fuck. This world is fucked up. And why? Because people have prejudices. It’s stupid as fuck”. Also just like, I remember out of the 50 victims a few of them were around our age. And now I’m just thinking, “That literally could have been me”. Dude I’m so upset I can’t remember the word. Anyway, point is, in the following day we were just like, “Let’s go get tattoos”. She went to get hers and I went to get mine. That’s pretty much it.” - Cai Jie/J
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https://skinstories.exposure.co/cai-jie-jay taken in Singapore by @skinstoriesproject

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6 years ago

“I think to some extent all my tattoos are self-reflexive. They're part of my identity and it’s why I have tattoos in the first place. I'm very invested in and conscious about how I perform my identity. So I think to some extent my tattoos are inherently about self-reflexivity.

I mean we're all social scripts that are constantly being read. It's also about people wanting to put out a very specific message and since I have the ability and the privilege to curate myself, why not put something out there that I think can challenge, that can get people thinking. But that also speaks to myself and speaks to the things I'm invested in.”
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https://skinstories.exposure.co/kristian-pt-2 taken in Singapore by @skinstoriesproject

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6 years ago