OK, before I get some smart ass commenting saying that not all designers are crazy artists types; let me just say I know that.
I ask, because it only seems natural that a good number of people who design for a living would probably be interested in tattoos. Thats a semi-logical assumption, dont you think?
I myself have several, many of which were inspired by artists I admire.
Why am I asking this question this week? Because, if you do have tats, I’d love to see some pictures of them. If I get enough responses, I’ll do a whole post about designers with tattoos and offer links back to your website.
Just shoot over a link to the photos in the comments section.
19 Responses to “Discussion: Do all designers have tattoos?”
I have a USB tattoo, but I guess that’s more tech geek than design geek.
http://www.craigwilson.co.uk/usb-tat.jpg
Not yet, but I have a half-sleeve in the planning stages. I also intend on getting a football tattoo, probably very similar to the UCL logo - http://content.answers.com/main/content/wp/en/b/bf/UEFA_Champions_League_logo_2.svg.png
Do you have any pictures of yours, Danny?
I dont have any, but its some thing I probably think about monthly. My problem is I change my mind way to often. If I got a tattoo the week after I would probably hate it…
At my agency 2/3rd of the designers have tattoos. The video guys have none.
This is on the inside of my right forearm so it was hard to get a good pic myself but here it is.
http://www.new.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=3716436&id=883025157
Im the only designer at my office. Im the only one with tattoos. I have a full sleve, my ribs, whole chest, legs, and am going to start working on my other sleeve hopefully this year.
I’ve never felt inclined to get one, because like current trends, they usually have an expiration date.
@Craig - Nice USB! Thats funny.
@Jayphen - I’ll post some of mine when I get enough pics of other designers tattoos. I’ll do a whole post.
Strangely enough, the artist doing my sleeve has just returned from his promotional trip to London & is ready to start working on my design. I’m pretty excited!
I agree with Kelly, in that what is cool and trendy now, will be sad and regretful later. As a designer, I also have a problem with letting someone else put their artwork on my body. You may have provided the designs, but its their hand and interpretation going into it. I’ll stick to showing my creativity and ‘designer-ness’ in my work outside of my body.
My fear with a tattoo is that after spending a lot of time deciding which one I wanted and going through the tattoo process that I would then change my mind and see something I would’ve rather had. Perhaps that’s why I like web design - if I don’t like something I made I can always change it later. Maybe I need a temporary tattoo.
Id like to make a comment about tattoos to everyone who calls them trendy or a fad.
A good tattoo should be nothing short of something thats important to you. Everyone of my tattoos has a story behind it and means something special to me. 50 years from now I will still look at my tattoos the same way I do now.
Anyone who gets a tattoo just for the sake of getting a tattoo will probably regret it.
A good friend of mind once said that everyone has tattoos resting under their skin, it just takes a artist and a monumental event to bring it to the surface.
Haha, interesting discussion. I have two tattoos, got the first one at age sixteen and the second at 26. Both have a specific story to them and are based on my own designs.
I can only agree with Danny. I can’t imagine not liking my tattoos any more as I grow older. In that logic, I’d have to question every decision I ever made, right?
http://texastee.de/080903tattoo.jpg
@texastee Cool tat. Whats the other one? Whats the story?
@texastee Very Nice tatoo. good job
@Danny and @Jose thanks. Dunno if you can see this, but it’s still ‘work in progress’, actually. Will get some more of the feather filled in, and the ‘eye’ of the feather. Unfortunately, my tattooist moved to Spain but I think I’ll wait until I get the opportunity to finish it with her. the tat winds round to the inside of my arm, couldn’t fit all of it in one photo.
My other one is just a small black abstract swirly thing on my hip. The story behind them… well actually I guess there is not one SINGLE story, but it’s rather like they stand for the multiple stories of their era.
Like the first one (small black one), which I got on Bali during that intense time as a teen when you just stumble through life, soaking everything in and try to have as much fun as possible. I grew up in Jakarta so Bali was (and is) where we went to party. Now of course it has a bit of a bitter undertone. One particular bar a lot of those happy memories are connected to was bombed in 2002.
The newer tattoo, on the lower left arm, I was thinking about getting that for years before I finally started it as a present to myself on my 26th birthday. I wanted it to be on my left arm, because I am a right handed and felt I could use some ‘balance’ for the left arm so it wouldn’t feel left out.
The peacock feather reminds me just how beautiful things can be, for no particular reason. Then there’s a water and a plant element, for movement and growth. all in all, getting the tat was a statement to myself, that I feel confident with my decisions, the direction I’m going, stuff like that. Cheesy, huh?
…blah, blah, blah, Sorry this comment is way too long… but you asked!!
I have a tattoo on my back. It’s like a stamp with faces taken from Morbid Angel’s Altars of Madness.
Maybe i will get a photo of it these days.
http://img1.nnm.ru/imagez/gallery/1/f/9/0/5/1f905a5e2c79758dae4d1a9cad18e79b.jpg
I was an apprentice tattoo artist before I got interested in graphic design!
I have a retro Iron Man tattoo on my wrist.
I like tattoo design but my tastes change so often that I can never commit to one, but I’m an Iron Man fangirl so that was an easy choice
I do think there are probably a higher percentage of designers that have tattoos than a lot of other professions. I believe your hypothesis is correct. Artistic people are more likely to get tattoos.