#09: Circle Design

This was a new experience for me. I tattooed my older brother. Needless to say (or should I say "needlefull"), I was nervous with this one, as tattooing a person close to you can have long-term effects on your relationship, positive or negative. It's a different feeling than when you tattoo a person you have never met before. However, I was able to get myself into the same zone that I have been using with all my clients, where all I can think about is the upcoming design and tattoo. This got me to the exact point I needed to be.

He wanted the design to be of a circle with a point in the center. All I need say is that he is into the abstract, and when I proposed a few concept drawings to him, he loved this one. A few hours later, when the kids were asleep, we were ready to go.

His first tattoo was another abstract design on his right shoulder, as shown below. This new one went well with it, but he wanted to embellish the first one a bit. You can see the fresh ink on both designs now. This was a neat experience, because I got some abstract experience. Even in my college studies, I hadn't been asked to create very many abstract pieces, and have certainly not seen many abstract tattoos (at least as far as the design is concerned). But I have a deep respect for the idea now, and am thinking of adopting it for my own future tattoos. How better way is there to express your inner self than having something on your skin that no person anywhere will have in the same way? Tattoo flash definitely won't do that. I don't say that to put down more common tattoos in any way. I am just feeling a connection with the originality of commissioned abstract work right now.