The Idea-The Contest

Back in February of 2006 I announced a contest putting my faith and skin out to the DA community as a sign of my trust and also of my dedication to them. The contest was to design a tattoo for me, which I would then get inked on my forearm.

The contest received hundreds upon hundreds of entries and it was a daunting task choosing which one would make the final cut, or final inking as it were. But, much like the immortal line from The Highlander, there can be only one. And so one it was.

And once the dust cleared it was this magnificent design by =zombiebe10u

The Reason

So, why this design? It is a question I get asked often enough and it is a good question to which I have always had an answer for since looking at it but was waiting to get into for when I wrote this. And to be honest it is not the easiest thing to put into words and do it justice because I take it pretty seriously.
But, here goes.
The motivation for it came shortly after I took over my position as Director of Community Development which was, suffice it to say not a normal transition and involved a fair amount of turmoil and some questions about my dedication to the position. This began the idea of doing something that would literally and artistically show my dedication.
But maybe this is where to begin, with an explanation of my dedication to this community and where that comes from, and hey, it's soon to be deviant Appreciation day after all. My dedication to this place that I have called home for almost 6 years now has always come from one place and one place only and that is the community, the tribe, the family that I found here when I first showed up.
I say this often but I always mean it, and that is that there simply is no place as globally, idealistically, or artistically diverse as this community and you guys should never forget how kick ass you are.

So, back to the why. This piece has a lot of symbolism and I truly appreciate the time and effort =zombiebe10u put into that aspect in addition to the design itself.

The clown face is fairly obvious as to where that comes from if you even have a remote idea of who I am. The door to me is symbolic of me coming into this position and joining the community in a new way, and the somewhat beaten up Fella represents the community itself.
At the time the meaning for me was fairly obvious, there had been some upheaval and my work was to repair that and pull the community back together.
In the long term it means much the same, just keeping things stitched together but also represents the natural turmoil that will follow this many artists in one place at the same time, and is by no means a negative thing.
The aged stone carved DA logo at the top of the door is the length of time I've been here, you've been here, and how long this place will last. It's made its mark and is set in stone and there's no undoing that, much like getting this design put into my skin. The key has an obvious meaning attached to it, and that is simply the admin symbol on top but also the way it is placed underneath Fella, who represents community, shows that the key to making this work is the community and nothing more. Nothing less.

The Tattoo

So once the design was chosen then I went into the process of choosing someone to go to and get it done. This was a process of several weeks as I was being very picky about it.
I don't want something permanent to look like crap and I didn't want to insult the original work by going with the quickest options, and believe me, in Los Angeles there are plenty of fast mediocre tattoo artists. But after much searching I kept coming back to Zulu Tattoo for a ton of reasons. His color work is top notch drop dead gorgeous, and his ideals behind the concept of tattooing were very grounded and positive and fit very much in line with what I was looking for. So, I dropped his studio an email with the design and we set up a date, the only catch was it was a solid year wait.
But the wait gave me more time to look up his work and check it out and believe me, it was worth every second of the wait.
Getting work done at his shop is just an experience. The studio itself is stunningly decorated and very relaxed. No blaring punk music like most shops, no people talking non stop or interrupting, just a man and his passion and dedication to his craft. Once you go there it is very easy to see why he is considered one of the best in the business.

So, two separate sessions later, one for the black work and outline and a second for the color, and here it is, my statement of appreciation, dedication and inspiration to and from this community.