Tattoo art


It's no surprise to find a tattoo on a Gypsy Joker motorcycle gang member, a grungy rock star, or a wayward sailor stumbling back on board his ship after some much needed R and R in Bangkok.

But a tattoo on an accountant? An attorney? A college co-ed?

You bet.

Folks in the Butte area with so-called "square" jobs are hiding a naughty little secret under that freshly pressed business suit.

Local tattoo artists are seeing more professionals and "regular" people getting inked. Jason Green, tattoo artist and owner of Body Grafix on West Broadway, welcomes the extra business.

"Tattoos used to be a stereotype for criminals or outlaws," Green said as meticulously drew a snowflake on the foot of a young, female Montana Tech student.

He said he's done tattoo work -- or "body art" -- for police officers, lawyers and even a judge.

John "Hoot" Gibson, tattoo artist with Mr. Gibz Tattoo on Harrison, said there used to be a certain type of person who went under his needle. He could tell by just looking at a person if they had ink on their skin. Now, there's so many different types of people getting tattooed, he can't tell them apart.

"I kind of get blown away myself when I see them come into my shop," he admits.

People from all walks of life are getting stamped.

"You don't have to be a badass," Gibson said.

Tattoo artists all seem to agree that a recent reality television show "Miami Ink" is the reason tattoos are becoming more mainstream. "Miami Ink" -- think "American Chopper" in a tattoo parlor -- airs on TLC and follows the lives a team of tattoo artists and their clients.

"A lot of people told me they've watched that show and it made them want to get a tattoo," Green said.

The new clientele is also asking for a different kind of tattoo. The skull and crossbones tattoos are being replaced by more more personalized art. Green said he's seen an influx of new mothers getting tattoos of their newborn babies' footprints.

"They come in with a copy of the birth certificate and have the baby's footprint tattooed on their body," Green said.

Frank Walsh never had a tattoo. But as he started researching his family history, he decided he wanted to honor it in his own personal way.

Walsh, who works as a manager for NorthWestern Energy, tattooed the crests for his mother's and father's family on his upper arms. He has to roll his shirt sleeve way up his arm in order to show off the tattoos, which he had done at Painless Steel Tattooing on Harrison Avenue about four years ago.

"I was a little nervous about it. I did a lot of research into the safety and hygiene aspect," Walsh said.

After asking many questions of the artist, Walsh said he was comfortable with getting the tattoo.

Probably the largest surge in the tattoo artist's new customer base is young women. High school- and college-age females are eager to get inked, according to Gibson.

"Ten years ago, you rarely saw a woman come into a tattoo parlor," Gibson said. "Now, they're about 50/50 with the men." Meredith LaFond, 27, is a bio-chemistry major at Montana Tech, with soft, brown eyes and a smile as sweet as New Hampshire maple syrup.

In her winter coat, she's the image of the "girl next door." But when the jacket comes off, she looks more like the girl gone wild.

She has a total of four tattoos, including a large portrait of a colorful koi fish breaching from an ocean of flowers, which covers most of her back.

"It's all pretty; it's art," she says about her tattoos.

LaFond plans to go to medical school and possibly pursue a career in the pharmaceutical industry. It doesn't bother her that a potential employer might frown on hiring someone with tattoos.

"If they don't want to hire me over a tattoo, it's not a place I'd like to work," LaFond said.

Ali Clarys, 23, doesn't believe her tattoos should interfere with her career choices of either being a teacher or an international business consultant. The Montana Tech graduate doesn't think tattoos are a lower form of art.

"I don't feel tasteless or trashy for having tattoos. It's possible to have tattoos and be classy," she said.

Despite the growing acceptance of tattoos, Green still says he warns his younger first-time customers about the stigma of tattoos.

"I tell the college kids that come in here they are about 80 percent likely not to get hired if they have a tattoo," he said.

Most people with regular jobs do the "sleeve test" before they get a tattoo, Green said. While wearing a short-sleeved shirt, the customer stretches his arm out before him and marks were the sleeve ends.

"The tattoo can't go beyond that mark," Green said.