Get yourself a bad ass portrait of Lemmy, like this one done by my old friend Shane Munce. When Shane isn’t on the road doing tattoos of rock stars, or doing tattoos on rock stars he can be found at Olde Media Tattoo in Media, PA.
An Australian native, legendary tattoo artist, author, and owner of world-renowned tattoo shop, The Illustrated Man, Tony Cohen has an incredible collection of stories that are almost as extensive as his portfolio. As a steely-eyed standard of inspiration, Tony’s name is to the tattoo business what Hubert Givenchy is to the fashion industry. Not only is he a hardworking man with more than 30 years of professionalism under his belt, a lover of Harley Davidson motorcycles, and a cowboy action shooter, he is also a man who has seen it all, heard it all, and possibly done even more. He lives every day as a walking timeline, a man who bridges the generational gap between memories of old-school tattooing traditions and modern-day techniques.
Upon visiting The Illustrated Man for the first time, I learned that Tony works out of a small, second-story room, his own private den of creativity. As alpha artist and leader of the pack, his self-imposed disembodiment from the rest of the staff (which includes his shop manager and daughter, Brooke, as well as tattoo artist and son, Brett), serves as a reminder of his ranking among the rest of the group. Surrounded by books and artifacts that present themselves as silent monuments to his adventures both in and out of the tattoo business, Tony sits comfortably in his chair and, with quiet conviction, explains how tattooing was always something he was programmed to do.
“I was a workaholic for twenty-five years and I’ve been going to tattoo conventions since 1972. Ah, it’s just… I haven’t done anything else, really, since I was about sixteen. Now my daughter’s got an interest in it. We went to the Reno convention about a year ago and had a great time. I got my son into tattooing when he was fifteen. All he basically had to do was teach himself how to draw. Now they’re both here in the studio with me and it’s definitely a thing that going to be passed down. Anyone who wants to work for me has got to have at least ten years’ experience before they want to get a job here. And the first shit tattoo they give, they‘re out. No second chances.”
When asked how society has shifted in its views of modified people since the beginning of his career, Tony responded, “Stick your head out the door, anyone who’s breathing has got a tattoo. Y’know, if we didn‘t do it, someone else would. I remember when I was the only shop for three or four miles for twenty years, now there‘s a couple within spitting distance. It doesn’t bother us, this shop doesn’t stop. We‘ve got the reputation, we‘re known everywhere. Since 1970, I‘ve got a virtual photo album from every year that has the work I’ve been doing.”
It’s that kind of resolve that keeps Tony’s hands firmly gripped to the machine and his mind unwavering about his standards for the business. Despite the rare status of fame he has achieved in his career, a customer’s happiness is still one of the most rewarding aspects of his job. “That never gets old, seeing people walk out the door with a smile on their face, and at my age, it might be a bit too late to go and do anything else.” This last remark warrants a bemused smile from behind his alabaster beard. “I mean, I’m old enough now, I do what I want. We could spend all day fixing up other people’s tattoos if we like. But if they have a real piece of shit on them and you make it look nice, y’know, spending three or four hours fixing up a piece of crap, then it becomes art. But the people that work here, I very rarely like to see them rework other jobs.”
Being heavily tattooed himself, Tony admits to his own laundry list of alterations, accompanied by a discerning smirk that only someone who has gained wisdom through hard-nosed experience can give. “Wherever I was at the time, I’d get something done. I mean, whenever I started getting tattoos, they were only five shillings. You used to have to get there at 7:00 in the morning to get in line. The first one would be done and then I’d think hell, I’ll get three, four, or five more tattoos. A lot of those ones have been covered up now, thankfully. But yeah, a lot of them are pretty old. I have had a few recent ones, a few on my legs that were done by people I’ve given jobs to. I don’t enjoy getting them as much as I used to. I’d much rather give them to people now.”
“THE TATTOO” BY TONY COHEN
After the interview, Tony steps outside for his routine smoke break. Cigarette in hand, he stares out at the unfolding metropolis of Sydney from the comfort of his studio sidewalk. As the potent Australian sun shines like a beacon above his braided hair, I can picture Tony riding on his beloved Harley, smooth and silent, across the open roads of nowhere, Australia. He is a man who has gathered several lifetimes of human experience only to gain a courageous badge of self-sufficiency, and somewhere in between, managed to become a walking testament to his own illusory reputation.
Darah is BME’s parable jockey, designated leftover-food finisher, and self-proclaimed nerdbomb.
Photography by Megan Dejmal.
THE FIRST FEW DAYS
World Tour! Wooo! I know, I know, you guys realllllly want to see an update of our time thus far in Australia. Don’t worry, it’s coming. In the mean time, I’d like to introduce myself. I am Chez and I am the BME World Tour, Tour Manager (see all those capitals? That means I’m important). I will be updating you all on the whereabouts of our crew and our day-to-day stuff. Like I said, don’t worry, the team are tirelessly working on an amazing post of the shops here in Sydney right now. In the mean time, here is a little overview of our adventure thus far!
We all met up in LA a few days before our flight out to Sydney so we’d have a chance to get to know each other and coordinate equipment and whatnot. missmeg and mcshady were gracious hosts in the great Casa Cholita. Getting to know each other came without much work which is nice considering we all have to share space for the next 3 months in unusual circumstances.
We trotted around the city taking care of last minute details like power adapters and travel sized toothpastes and most importantly, twizzlers. Finally, the day of our departure arrived. It seemed like the day flew by ridiculously quick and before I knew it, our airport shuttle was late and I’m pretty sure I called the company at least 6 times in a half hour time frame to ask where the hell they were. Even with the shuttle being late, we still made it to LAX with enough time to grab a quick bite in the one restaurant our terminal had to offer. (Seriously, why does LAX suck so much?)
We spent much of the first hour of our flight chatting to each other via the plane’s instant messaging chat system. Yes, we are that nerdy. We really tried to get other passengers involved but everyone kept turning down our requests. Boooo-urns! Eventually we all passed out and slept in spurts. I put on at least 3 movies and slept through all but Julie and Julia, which was surprisingly good. Made me quite hungry really. Airline food is no bueno. All and all, the flight went by really quick and it seemed like we spent more time in the immigration line than on the plane.
Nano met us at the Sydney airport because he’s a champ. We were at least 45 minutes late, plus the excessive amount of time it took to get through immigration and he was still there with a smile on his face ready to dole out hugs upon our arrival. After mussing around with our bags and exchanging some currency, we hailed a cab and headed to the city. We’ve been staying at a super awesome hostel that has been just as gracious as every host so far. Fernando showed us around town, explained the ins and outs of the transportation system, introduced us to another awesome IAM member, hotbrad and has just been an all around fantastic host. We were sad to see him go when he flew out to the states. If you see him this month on his journey across America, make sure to return the favor and show him a great time for us!
The team has been on point and working their butts off this week. We’ve had a few bumps in the road, as any new excursion does but all and all, it’s been amazing. The talent in our group is obvious and I can’t wait to see the finished products that we are able to publish on BME. Hopefully you all will be just as proud of these guys as I am!
Sincerely yours,
BMEWT,TM,
(That is BME World Tour, Tour Manager by the way… yes I get my very own acronym)
Ever wanted to be in a movie? This could be your chance. We received the following email today:
Nehst Studios along with Twisted Sister frontman, Dee Snider, are pleased to announce the filming of Strangeland II: Disciple. A sequel to Dee’s cutting edge film Strangeland, the film will feature similar progressive ideas and images such as unique tattoos, piercings and unconventional body modifications.
Nehst is currently seeking experts, trained individuals and participants in the fields of suspension, flesh hook pulls, tattoos, body art, piercings and body modification to be a part of the cast and crew of Strangeland II: Disciple. Those who are interested may register at www.screentest.biz
Watch Dee Snider personal video about his new film and find up-to-date information on Strangeland II: Disciple, on Facebook.
For more information on Nehst Studios and upcoming products visit www.facebook.com/NehstStudios
Laura Novak
Social Network Director
NEHST Studios
If you’re unfamiliar with the first film, on which Keith Alexander lent a helping hand, check out the BME Wiki entry on Strangeland. If you’re unfamiliar with Dee Snider/Twisted Sister, I can’t help you!
So you want to submit photos to BME do you? Not quite sure how to do it? Well, allow me to guide you through the process (with visual aids to boot).
As you may (or may not) be aware, BME has been in the process of developing some long overdue changes and upgrades to the website. We are currently in beta mode. For those who have never heard the term before, being in beta means we are still in development. This is not the absolute final product and changes, upgrades and fixes are still happening. We are, however, able to update the site via the beta and loads of new content has been added to the site. Some people are still unsure as to how to submit images to the site so I’m here to give you a little step by step.
First things first, you need to log in and in order to do that, you need to head on over to the beta. Do you currently have (or have you had, in the past) a BME account? If you answered yes then that means you can proceed directly to logging in. At the very top of the page, on the right hand side, there’s a little link that says “login“. Click on that! To log in you would put in the email address associated with your present (or past) BME account and your password. Forgotten your password, have you? Never fear! You can have it reset here. If it’s your first time logging in, you’ll be asked to enter your birthdate. Make sure you put in your real birthdate!
“But I’ve never had a BME account before,” you wail. That’s ok! Creating a profile is free and takes 2 seconds! On the main page, click on the part that says “sign up“. You’ll need to choose a screen name for yourself. Put in your date of birth (again, make sure you put it in properly). Enter your email address. Once more! Finally, type in a password you’d like to use. Then type it again! Click Next!
Now that you’re logged in, go back to the top of the page, on the very same right hand side where you clicked login, you now have a link to your profile. Click that link!
Once you’re taken to your profile page, you can click on the sidebar where it says “media”. To the right there are some links for adding new content. So if you want to submit a photo, click on, you guessed it, “photo!”
Browse your computer for the photo you want to upload. Select it then click the upload link.
Once your photo has uploaded, you’ll see it in your gallery. It will say “not published” underneath it. Now you want to add details so you can submit it to BME, so click on “edit” to proceed.
Here is where you get to enter all the details. Give your photo a title. Make sure you check the box that says “submit to BME”! Enter the artist, studio and location details. If you’d like, you can even write a little blurb about photo. For example, if you’re submitting a tattoo photo in memory of someone, you could tell us who the tattoo is dedicated to. Whatever you want to say, just remember this will be published and everyone will get to see it so don’t put anything there you don’t want the world to see!
You’re almost done! The last thing you need to do is tag your photo so that it goes into the right categories. To tag your photo, click on the photo and draw a box around the mod. Don’t just click the photo, make sure you draw a box around the specific mod! That way if you have more than one in the photo (say a piercing and a tattoo), you can tag each separately. Type in (or scroll to find) the category for your submission. (A note here, if you are submitting an actual tattoo, don’t submit to the flash section, for example, the rose you have tattooed on your hip doesn’t go in flower flash, it goes in floral tattoos. The flash categories are for drawn flash submissions.)
Now that you’ve entered the necessary information just click “Save” and your image will be sent to a moderation queue! When your photo has been accepted, it will say “accepted” beneath the photo. While this explanation is long and drawn it, the process itself is quite simple. I tried to break down the process as much as possible so that those out there who may not be as used to computers and websites as some others will have a clear understanding of what to do.
Just a few notes about the new system:
1. There is currently a backlog of images. I’m working my way through them slowly but surely and once it’s caught up this will no longer be an issue but for now, I appreciate your patience.
2. This new system allows for nearly instant access from submissions. Before, you had to email or upload your content and wait for awhile to hear back. Images were processed in batches. This new system tosses images into a queue for moderation and as soon as one of the people with admin function clicks “Yes”, your image is posted. That’s some fast turn around time! As soon as that backlog is cleared, this is what you can expect.
3. There seem to be some rumours going around about BME no longer giving out free memberships for submissions. Not so! I’m not sure where this started or why but this just isn’t the case! You will still get a free membership for your submission! Currently memberships are set to go out soon for anything that has been posted recently and once the system is in place properly, accounts will go out at the same time as your content is moderated.
4. Another great thing about this new system is that it allows you to manage your own content. So now if you want to add in some detail that you forgot when you initially submitted, you can edit your photo and update with that information. Your photo goes back into moderation (this prevents issues of abuse). Or, if you decide “Holy cow, I don’t want the world seeing that naked picture of me!” you can delete the image instead of having to write in asking us to do it. Just remember that you will lose any membership time you got for submitting something if you delete it from the site.
I hope this helps clear up some issues some people were having. Remember, we’re still in beta but we’re really close to a full release. You’ll know we’re there when the main page of BME changes to resemble what you currently see on the beta.
One of the common issues I (and I would imagine a lot of other piercers) run into on a regular basis is the parents who bring their infant daughter in for ear piercings. No laws in my state keep me from doing this, but my personal ethics will not allow me to do any modification on an non consenting client. My view on circumcision is the exact same, I don’t feel it’s my right to decide the fate of my son’s penis. I feel that is a decision for him to make as a consenting informed adult.
Apparently, the parents of this BME Hard contributor, shared my viewpoints and left their son uncut. Now as an adult he has not only decided to get circumcised, it appears he decided to do the procedure himself using a gomco clamp.
To see the blood beyond the blur, keep on keeping on.
I don’t know about you but I’ve been doing my best to ignore the hoopla surrounding Sandra Bullock, Jesse James and “the other woman”. CBS has a short video up about how tattooed women are fighting back against the image that Michelle McGee seems to have (unwittingly or not) created for us. The video clip is fairly superficial and only a couple of minutes long but still worth a gander. Recognize anyone?
Edit: Marissa posted a short follow-up on her blog.
This BME Hard contributor has taken the term “oral hygiene” and creatively redefined it for his own pleasures.
For more pictures of this type check out the Saline, Sounds & Pumps gallery on the new (beta) BME site. For an unblurred version of this very picture, keep on keeping on.
Not since the the paparazzi caught Brad Pitt wearing fruit of the looms has fruit ever looked quite as sexy on someone as it does on my friend Katie’s side.
Tattoo by Zack Spurlock at Anonymous Tattoo in Savannah, GA.
For those of you interested in seeing this batch of boys who submitted their pictures for possible use in the upcoming BME Boys Calendar, keep on reading. If this isn’t your thing, come back later for other types of modblog post.
REMEMBER: Absolutely zero negative comments will be tolerated!!!!!!
About being a featured boy: This event is open to all BME Boys age 18 and over. BOYS of all shapes, sizes and race are encouraged to submit pictures. Contestants can be dressed or nude, but nothing too pornographic will be featured. Pictures need to be of decent quality, lest the readers condemn me to hell for posting webcam shots. Agreeing to be involved is consenting to be featured in the calendar, if you are selected for it. If you want to suggest someone, feel free to do so. I will contact them and see if they are interested, but no one will be featured without their explicit approval. To submit pictures, please email them to [email protected] Make sure to include your IAM: name (if you have one) and your real name in the email.
About voting: Votes will be tallied by emailing [email protected], just make the subject “Vote (insert name of boy you choose)” and your vote will be tallied. Voting last 7 days (168 hours) from the time the boy was posted. Votes will be anonymous, there is no reason for anyone to know who voted for whom and how many votes each boy got. Voting for one week ends when the following weeks post goes up. Please note, this isn’t about competition, it’s about a fun, interactive way to get the readers involved in the selection process.
About Commenting: I am enforcing a strict ZERO TOLERANCE policy for negative comments about the boys. They are being kind enough to share themselves with us and to help BME make a calendar, they should not have to fear public ridicule. Negative comments will be deleted, if we have a repeat offender, all of their future modblog comments will be sent to moderation. This isn’t about censorship, it’s about common courtesy and respect.
