Newbie ask advice, re: Frazetta Art as Tattoo
Andrew
My name's Andrew from the D.C. area. Just got my 1st ink done last week. No complaints
and now planning for the next one.
I started out by having three diff. parlors telling me why Frazetta wont work - too subtle
shading, too much shading, too fine, too much ink - But mostly too fine and too small to
do something like a half sleeve.
My questions to the group are;
1. I found one older discussion thread on a site where a guy claimed he knew a guy who
claimed to be doing Frazetta tats with license.(I know). Anybody heard of this "guy" ??
2. Any Frazetta flash or other resources out there for turning my favorite illustrator into
something I could wear as well ?
I have little or no art skills myself. But I do see the point of some of the artists. It did occur
to me that a graphics program that could re-size objects with-in a piece - or even render
them in more basic line drawing form would be a pretty nifty tool so that if not a carbon-copy,
at least an adaption recognizable as Frazetta might be do-able. Ideas? Sort of take the oil
and turn it back into ink, resized and perhaps simplified for the limits of the tattoo medium.
Ideas??
Forgive the babble if so I seem and if I've left any confused my apologies in advance.
Drew
P.S. I *have* seen a couple site with "Death Dealer" or the advancing Viking guy with ax as
half-sleeve but I don't see flash for sale and they aren't local to me. Also, not my 1st pick of
Frazetta work.
The Queen of Cans and Jars
> I started out by having three diff. parlors telling me why Frazetta wont
> work - too subtle shading, too much shading, too fine, too much ink - But
> mostly too fine and too small to do something like a half sleeve.
I don't think you're talking to the right artists. A good one should be
able to adapt the artwork you want. It won't be an exact copy, but you
have to expect some differences due to the medium. Still, you should be
able to find someone. There are lots of tattoos out there adapted from
paintings; I have one myself and my artist had no trouble making it
work.
Try lish's list:
http://compunction.org/tattoos.html
Anyone on there is likely to be able to do it, or to steer you in the
right direction.
yttrx
> Greetings All,
>
> My name's Andrew from the D.C. area. Just got my 1st ink done last week. No complaints
> and now planning for the next one.
>
> I started out by having three diff. parlors telling me why Frazetta wont work - too subtle
> shading, too much shading, too fine, too much ink - But mostly too fine and too small to
> do something like a half sleeve.
>
> My questions to the group are;
> 1. I found one older discussion thread on a site where a guy claimed he knew a guy who
> claimed to be doing Frazetta tats with license.(I know). Anybody heard of this "guy" ??
>
I havent heard of this guy, but:
1. no one needs a license to do frazetta tattoos
2. last I heard, which was a few months ago (from the horse's mouth), the person
in charge of things like frazetta licensing had not licensed any tattoo artist to
do frazetta work.
-----yttrx
Curt James
> Greetings
Greetings.
> All,
>
> My name's Andrew from the D.C. area. Just got my 1st ink done last week.
Congratulations! Is this something you mentioned here previously? If
not, what'd ya get? And where?
Have you done something as obvious as a Google search for Frazetta
tattoos?
Text:
http://www.google.com/search?sourceid=navclient&ie=UTF-8&rls=GGLG,GGLG:2005-29,GGLG:en&q=frazetta+tattoos
aka http://tinyurl.com/fkpy6
Images:
http://images.google.com/images?sourceid=navclient&ie=UTF-8&rls=GGLG,GGLG:2005-29,GGLG:en&q=frazetta%20tattoos&sa=N&tab=wi
aka http://tinyurl.com/go7kw
Best of luck. Please post a follow-up.
--
Curt
http://curtjames.com/
Andrew
I'd like to use this one reply to answer all three of those decent to
respond to me.
Curt, the answer is: Yes, I did google this tpoic. If you'll notice
most of the responses
are either the Dan Henk "Death Dealer" or even designs from Spain ! Not
on my list
of destinations this year.
Still it does show, as Queen said, maybe I need to find a better class
of Tattooist, hmmm?
Obviously some artists out there are doing similar work as your google
hits show.
To the responder who denied any "frazetta licensees", I'm not
surprised. Everybody and
their brother has copied Frazetta at some point whether they knew it or
not.
But thanks for clearing it up.
So,...All the above raises a new question or two:
Any ideas on who in the Wash. D.C. area you might suggest for this
kinda work ?
Regarding my inkwork - I'll bore you with the whole story -
After two parlors - Next Generation Tattoos & Marlowe Ink. balked at
the Frazetta art work
I brought in I rambled into Patriot Tattoo in Farifax City where I
live. Now you know it now
occurs to me at these other places I spoke to the "Greeter"/Front man
whatever, NOT the
artist about my project so maybe you guys have something to say about
that.
Patriot is in an older, kinda hole-in-the-wall bldg. AS I went in my
eyebrows went up a little.
Although they had the usual Cherry Creek Flash I was used to seeing
everywhere, the walls
were covered with Older Flash. One peice I dated to the Seventies ! I
thought, "Well, I've heard
of 'Old School' as a kinda of retro-style. Maybe that's what this place
is."
This time the Greeter was much more laid-back and even likable. No,
it's not a "Old School
Specialty Place" he explained. It's just that the guy has been doing
this, "forever". I like that.
Being a virgin to ink I was sure having sticker shock everywhere I went
and here to but by now
maybe a little more use to it.I had come in with some non-frazetta
flash I'd got off the 'net. A
very nice piece from tattonow.com called "Harley Dragon" - B&W 4X6
approx. They wanted
550.00$. Is that a fair price?
I balked and was going to say F---- it But thought I'd flip thru the
old flash because you never know.
I went through EVERYTHING they had taking my time as one or two other
came and went.
Finally, saw this pencilled notepaper sketch - I like it. Basically, a
skull in flames with a banner
above saying Harley Davidson. But instead of left or right-facing like
most skulls (so they look
like they are advancing on your arm) this was facing you, like coming
out of the flames right at ya.
It had very nice shading that made the whole thing very 3-d looking.
About 4X4. Maybe I shoulda
got it bigger, but I like it's in-your-face look and I LOVE my Harley,
so it works.
Artist was a great guy and we definitely hit it off. His name is Cris
Hewiit and has 17+ years exper.
Born raised locally like me so we had good stories to swap for the hour
or two it took.
Definitely 5 star service. I lucked out maybe too - No bleeding, no
itching until almost a week
later and that very tolerable. Some peeling now - like a sunburn sorta
which Chris warned me
about. Sinlgle-use needle and all parts that contact client or body
fluids,etc.
I am a satisfied customer. Maybe I should ask him directly about doing
some Frazetta ink although
I see it would not be cheap. It has to be my other arm.
Enough Yaking,
Andrew
Curt James
> Greetings Again,
>
> I'd like to use this one reply to answer all three of those decent to
> respond to me.
> Curt, the answer is: Yes, I did google this tpoic. If you'll notice
> most of the responses are either the Dan Henk "Death Dealer"
> or even designs from Spain ! Not on my list of destinations this
> year.
Okay.
> Still it does show, as Queen said, maybe I need to find a better class
> of Tattooist, hmmm?
> Obviously some artists out there are doing similar work as your google
> hits show.
> To the responder who denied any "frazetta licensees", I'm not
> surprised. Everybody and their brother has copied Frazetta at some
> point whether they knew it or not.
> But thanks for clearing it up.
>
> So,...All the above raises a new question or two:
>
> Any ideas on who in the Wash. D.C. area you might suggest for this
> kinda work ?
No experience wrt D.C. tattoo artists, but a Google RAB group search
might provide some useful info:
> Regarding my inkwork - I'll bore you with the whole story -
Good!
> After two parlors - Next Generation Tattoos & Marlowe Ink. balked at
> the Frazetta art work I brought in I rambled into Patriot Tattoo in
> Farifax City where I live. Now you know it now occurs to me at
> these other places I spoke to the "Greeter"/Front man whatever,
> NOT the artist about my project so maybe you guys have something
> to say about that.
Yes. Isn't it always better to get the scoop directly from the source
than from someone else? You might want to go back to the shops and see
if you can speak directly to the artists. Or not.
> Patriot is in an older, kinda hole-in-the-wall bldg. AS I went in my
> eyebrows went up a little. Although they had the usual Cherry
> Creek Flash I was used to seeing everywhere, the walls were
> covered with Older Flash. One peice I dated to the Seventies ! I
> thought, "Well, I've heard of 'Old School' as a kinda of retro-style.
> Maybe that's what this place is."
>
> This time the Greeter was much more laid-back and even likable.
> No, it's not a "Old School Specialty Place" he explained. It's just
> that the guy has been doing this, "forever". I like that.
>
> Being a virgin to ink I was sure having sticker shock everywhere
> I went and here to but by now maybe a little more use to it.I had
> come in with some non-frazetta flash I'd got off the 'net. A very
> nice piece from tattonow.com called "Harley Dragon" - B&W 4X6
> approx. They wanted 550.00$. Is that a fair price?
No idea. Sounds expensive from my perspective (looks in wallet ;o)) but
depending on the amount of detail, number of colors, quality of the
artist, etc. (or none of that) that may be spot on or even inexpensive
for that tattoo.
> I balked and was going to say F---- it But thought I'd flip thru the
> old flash because you never know. I went through EVERYTHING
> they had taking my time as one or two other came and went.
> Finally, saw this pencilled notepaper sketch - I like it. Basically, a
> skull in flames with a banner above saying Harley Davidson. But
> instead of left or right-facing like most skulls (so they look like
> they are advancing on your arm) this was facing you, like coming
> out of the flames right at ya.
Cool.
> It had very nice shading that made the whole thing very 3-d looking.
> About 4X4. Maybe I shoulda got it bigger, but I like it's in-your-face
> look and I LOVE my Harley, so it works.
You got it on your arm, right? I read ahead and saw "other arm"
mentioned.
And what bike do you own? I have a 2001 Sporty. An 883 that I love, I'm
guessing, as much as you love your Harley. Recently enjoyed a run from
south central PA, Harrisburg area, up to past Erie, PA. Round-trip of
about 700 or more miles. Camping. Nothing like 30 to 40 people coming
and going, roaring campfire, and swapping lies with friends. ;o)
> Artist was a great guy and we definitely hit it off. His name is Cris
> Hewiit and has 17+ years exper.
> Born raised locally like me so we had good stories to swap for the hour
> or two it took.
> Definitely 5 star service. I lucked out maybe too - No bleeding, no
> itching until almost a week later and that very tolerable. Some peeling
> now - like a sunburn sorta which Chris warned me about. Sinlgle-use
> needle and all parts that contact client or body fluids,etc.
> I am a satisfied customer. Maybe I should ask him directly about doing
> some Frazetta ink although I see it would not be cheap. It has to be
> my other arm.
If you're comfortable with the artist and pleased with the work then,
yeah, I'd be inclined to go to the same person, but you might want to
get some feedback from your friends, too. What the heck. Couldn't hurt
to hear their opinions, right? I have three tattoos, all by different
artists. Haven't gotten a bike-related tattoo yet, but have been
dreaming (and not much else) of an eagle by Tom Renshaw or an equally
talented artist. No Harley logo necessary, but the eagle certainly
holds some H-D appeal for me.
> Enough Yaking,
Well, thanks for the follow-up. And best of luck on future work.
> Andrew
--
Curt
http://curtjames.com/
N Jill Marsh
>I started out by having three diff. parlors telling me why Frazetta wont work - too subtle
>shading, too much shading, too fine, too much ink - But mostly too fine and too small to
>do something like a half sleeve.
Depending upon how close a replication you said you want, and the
particular work, that may be true. However, under most circumstances
a good tattoo artist should be able to adapt a particular piece so
that it will make a good tattoo. This is one of the things that good
tattoo artists usually are able to do, and it's something that many of
them do often.
I would have thought that the style and subject matter would make
Frazetta a popular choice for custom tattoos.
>My questions to the group are;
>1. I found one older discussion thread on a site where a guy claimed he knew a guy who
> claimed to be doing Frazetta tats with license.(I know). Anybody heard of this "guy" ??
I don't think it's relevant to what you want, anyway.
>2. Any Frazetta flash or other resources out there for turning my favorite illustrator into
> something I could wear as well ?
Yes, most definitely. Pick your favourite Frazetta piece, that's your
first and most important bit of resource material. Then it's just a
case of finding the proper artist (yes, I know that can be the hard
part).
>I have little or no art skills myself. But I do see the point of some of the artists. It did occur
>to me that a graphics program that could re-size objects with-in a piece - or even render
>them in more basic line drawing form would be a pretty nifty tool so that if not a carbon-copy,
>at least an adaption recognizable as Frazetta might be do-able. Ideas? Sort of take the oil
>and turn it back into ink, resized and perhaps simplified for the limits of the tattoo medium.
>Ideas??
As was said before, this is a skill that most good artists possess. A
couple of words of advice - first, remember that you are asking an
artist to adapt another artist's original piece of work, so ideally
you should get permission to copy the original. I don't know what
Frazetta thinks about this, and it's sort of a grey area anyway, but
it wouldn't hurt to ask - there is probably a contact through the
Frazetta website, and considering the popularity of the material there
may even be something in a FAQ somewhere - try to do a little research
on that and decide if you'd go through with it anyway even if you find
out that Frazetta hates tattoo adapations.
Second, the artist doing the adaptation will put in a lot of work to
produce the design, this is not the same as flash, it's better because
you'll be getting exactly what you want. They should be paid for
this, even if you choose to not get the tattoo for some reason. Once
you find an artist, offer to make a deposit to cover design time, and
budget for this.
And speaking of budgeting, if you're in the DC area you are close to
lots of good artists, don't be hesitant to travel if you find someone
you really like, it's a piece of art that will be part of your body
for the rest of your life, don't fret about a few hours or dollars for
travel or a little extra time it may take to get it due to holidays,
waiting times, etc, it's worth it.
nj"good luck"m
--
"See, here he comes stealing through the undergrowth, his face shining with the light of
pure intelligence. There are no limits to Jeeve's brain power. He virtually lives on fish."
Andrew
2005 FLSTN/i Softail Deluxe, Big bore Kit I to 95cubes with a .203 cam but original heads,
V&H Big Radius pipes, Arlen Ness Big Suck Stg. I air cleaner and a Cobra tripot processor
Electronic Fuel Ignition upgrade. I intstalled the pipes, a/c, and EFI upgrade. The Big Bore
was put on by Devil Dawg Customs at Chantilly, VA. (And very well done, too).
Color bike is black on white ( so called "skunk tail"). Also has sissy bar, nostalgia style
windshield, and aftermarket brake and passenger pegs.
However,... I am notoriously anti-social and ride alone almost exclusively. My pop is in
Hanover so I'm sure you had a real pretty ride. Did you tour the H-D Plant ? I've never been.
It looks like no binaries allowed in this ng? Othewise I would post that Dragon Harley flash
for you to copy - it's really sweet biker tat. B&W.
Andrew
You make it all sound so common sense. Well said.
andrew
Curt James
I scribbled:
> >And what bike do you own?
[...]
> 2005 FLSTN/i Softail Deluxe, Big bore Kit I to 95cubes wi<snip>
Sounds like a sweet ride, Andrew.
> However,... I am notoriously anti-social and ride alone almost
> exclusively.
I prefer solo over group riding, too. Can set my own pace, stop for
fuel when I want, etc. And I don't have to worry about being rearended
by an inexperienced rider.
> My pop is in Hanover so I'm sure you had a real pretty ride.
I've been to Ray Wilt's over there. My brother and sil live not far
from there, too. I slabbed it going out, but did back roads coming
home. Definitely a real pretty ride.
> Did you tour the H-D Plant ? I've never been.
Well, if you get the chance, it's a must-see. I've been several times,
but I'm local enough that's it's an easy visit.
> It looks like no binaries allowed in this ng?
That's true.
> Othewise I would post that Dragon Harley flash
> for you to copy - it's really sweet biker tat. B&W.
Wouldn't mind seeing the flash. If you're so inclined, curtjames at
gmail.com. Or put it up on http://photobucket.com/. Free to register
and upload stuff.
Ride safe.
--
Curt
http://curtjames.com/