Traditional... Uncle Tim style
I have always loved American Style Traditional tattooing. It's pure and deliberate. I can also take it and make it mine by a few tweaks here and there. Throw in a Neo-tradtional twist and we have something a little different than the average "cookie cutter" results. I'm comfortable with the direction they are going.
Add a little lavendar background shadow and some white highlites to a snarling panther. Or maybe take a Sailor Jerry mermaid, add a sombrero and huge knockers to satisfy my Hispanic friend. A little white here and there can mak all the difference.
Let's face it...these colors weren't around way back when these classics were being designed. So, I took the Fred Marquand design on the upper left, added the banner, lettering, flowers and the ship&stars, tweaked her eyes to weep a bit and we have a bright, delicate Uncle Tim style traditional piece that I put on my ex-boss, Bob Baxter for his birthday. I took the Sailor Jerry "Boxing Girl" and used a little more modern shading to shape the legs and arms, added an orange background and made her eye shadow match her outfit. I also had her ample breasts hang out the bottom of her top just a little because Uncle Tim is a pervert and he likes that sort of thing. (yeah, me likey!)) The bottom two pinups show two different ways to do pinups. The pirate girl is more simplistic and the Hula girl shows a bit more realism. I like to blend the two. Half old and half new. Good combo I think. Still keeps that old tattoo flavor.
I like to take usually complicated imagery and make it as simple as possible. It can be either strong and powerful like the memorial piece on the upper left or soft and subtle like the waves on the upper right. Japanese is always fun to play with so I can add humor by inserting a giant squid instead of the usual Koi. Variations in the wave directions create action and power that commands the eye to move about the piece while viewing. Sharpening up the usual Japanese rocks (lower left) can add intrigue. Either way I try to find different ways of doing things.
Above are four of the same thing. Four anchors done four different ways. That's the major reason I love doing conventions.....I get to see how everybody else does things. These are just a few of mine.
How about a muted blue-ish-grey-ish rose? And, of course, humor always has a place in Traditional style tattooing. I can sit and listen to the Old Timers go on and on about how these should be done a certain way. I respect that, but, if this were the way to go....not changing...I would still be listeneing to Elvis and The Beatles. Doing them in the absolute traditional way is not a problem, but I prefer to experiment some.
There is something about the simplicity that I like. Non-pretentious and unassuming imagery that provides pure, clean, simple art for everyone. A cliche tourist idea with a different twist adds a special energy to an otherwise boring design. Sometimes just a simple arrangement of stars and a swirly dynamic background can have profound impact on the viewer. (This piece done on Jessica's arm stays integral even when the arm moves up and down.)
There is always a different way to do things. Debbie's heart and wings tattoo is a good example. A little striping and some fluttering hearts will dress up an ordinary design.
Hey! I always say go big or go home! (Pretty nice for a first tattoo, huh?)