Deonte' "Tay" Head
External Expressions
Calling Urban Ink the best tattoo magazine out there, hands down--we tend to agree--certainly got our attention, but it was her colorfully bright marker rendition of Urban Ink that kept our attention. Deonte' "Tay" Head is an artist out of Washington D.C., whose mantra is, "Designing any creations that come to mind. There are no limitations." Her company, External Expressions, is an enterprise that offers various forms of art, ranging from tattoos and airbrush to graphic design and animation.
For anyone whose drawing abilities go little beyond stick figures and lollipop trees, Tay will take ideas and transpose them onto any material, such as backdrops, CD covers and tattoos. "'External Expression' comes from the term, 'External,' being outside and 'Expression' of one's idea of fascination." So bring any imagination, and Tay and her crew will make it reality.
http://tay.tripod.com/index.html
EV Jewelry
One of a Kind Creations
The EV Jewelry Designs company was formed in 2006 by Elias and Dimi, two men dedicated to drawing new standards in the arena of handcrafted, high-end, one-of-a-kind jewelry masterpieces.
The museum quality pieces created by EV Jewelry Designs capture not only the physical beauty of gemstones and precious metals, but also the artistic and creative lifeline of the jewelry world.
The EV Jewelry Designs product lines include the Silver Collection and The Gothic Collection. These collections feature rings, necklaces and bangles, while the Masterpiece and KALI MA Collections include a ling of earrings.
Tattoo enthusiasts will be particularly drawn to the Crosses necklace line, and EV also features a very special Art of Seduction jewelry collection that is equally superb and unique.
www.evjewelrydesign.com
Modern Expressions of the Tribal Black Tattoo Art
Progressive Ink in Black
All across the globe, artists practice the tradition of black tattoo art. The author, Marisa Kakoulas, traveled from the Americas to Australia and countries in between to find the most notable artists, who have mastered black ink. As she starts off with a history of tattooing, readers get an exquisite glimpse of contemporized interpretations on an ancient style that are broken down into the following chapters: Neotribal, Dotwork, Art Brut, Traditional Revival and Thai/Buddhist.
Each chapter begins with information, accompanied by an interview, of distinguished artists within each field, written in both English and German. This comprehensive volume features art using various techniques reminiscent in various scopes of painting: impressionism, tessellation and avant-garde.
Overall, Modern Expressions of the Tribal Black Tattoo Art is a superb collection of esteemed black tattoo artists and striking designs, not only tattoo enthusiasts, but anyone with eyes, will enjoy.
To learn more abut the author, visit her website and tattoo blog, www.needlesandsins.com.
For more information on the publisher, visit www.edition-reuss.com.
Bust It Baby Swimsuit Calendar
Hot Girls Keep You Warm Year 'Round
For ladies who've ever wondered what swimsuit would be appropriate for December, Big Gates Records, home of national recording artist Plies, presents the 2010 Bust It Baby calendar, featuring 12 talented and beautiful international models, who keep the temperature high during all four seasons.
Not only does it accurately depict the coming year, but appearing among the beautiful ladies in this calendar is Angela "Mayammee" Pitts, who has graced us with her appearances on reality shows, "Flavor of Love 3" and "I Love Money 2," and is currently available for calendar event release bookings and interviews.
All proceeds will go to benefit Big Gates and Plies Power of Visions non-profit organization. The calendar is now nationally available online in retail outlets worldwide.
Kara Walker: My Enemy, My Oppressor, My Love
Silhouettes of Race and Gender
Search for the truth and question the institutional history the education system has been plaguing schools with for years. Kara Walker: My Enemy, My Oppressor, My Love is a companion to artist, Kara Walker's, exhibit, which was featured in February 2008 at the Whitney Museum if American Art in New York City. As fact, fiction and fantasy are intertwined through pre-Civil War, antebellum silhouettes and watercolors, Kara Walker challenges her audience to disintegrate and re-synthesize events that have been taught as history lessons--within the exaggerated truths and fictionalized events, what elements are truths.
She uses caricatures to play off stereotypes and embellishes physical features to emphasize race and position of power. Often using cynicism, sarcasm and bowel movements, "Walker presents slavery as an absurd theater of eroticized violence and self-deprecating behavior, and she dares to laugh at authority, be it the slave master or the whole of official history" (Walker Art Center). Discomfort and anguish cause amusement with an onset of shame with the realization one is laughing at the distressed.
Though most of her works are black and white, Kara Walker's motifs present anything but easy and elementary answers to the questions of race, gender and social status.
Planet B-Boy
The World of Breakdancing
What came first: the breaker or the remix? In the 1970s, youths in the hip hop community of South Bronx in New York City started a street dance, called b-boying--or more commonly known in the mainstream as breakdancing. Today, it has evolved into an inspiring art form for the current and upcoming generations around the world, though still residing somewhat underground. Planet B-Boy, an official selection at the 2007 Tribeca Film Festival, follows the lives of five dancers and their teams as they practice for the ultimate competition in Germany, "Battle of the Year." Not only are they preparing for the fight to validate their skills, they are struggling for acceptance and understanding from their families and larger society.
As these performers seek approval, confront racism and search for their big breaks, they display graceful maneuvers and exhibit powerful athleticism. The varied and vivid backgrounds of Planet B-Boy--Osaka, Seoul, Las Vegas, Paris and Germany--frame the objective of this film: to show audiences b-boying isn't just an American niche. It's an international phenomenon.
Visit virgilfilmsent.com.
Tattoo Learning Center
Where Ink Dreams Begin
The Tattoo Learning Center in upstate New York specializes in teaching the art of tattooing in a fun and friendly environment.
TLC is the Northeast's only licensed, registered tattoo trade school. They offer an intensive two-week, fundamental training course that includes a lot of hands-on learning. "We teach the necessary skills and information to tattoo safely, responsibly and confidently," said Lisa Fasulo, co-owner and teacher at TLC. You may be wondering, "What do students work on?" "Living, breathing skin, and lots of it," said Jeff Looman, co-owner. "There really is no substitute for practicing on human skin."
At any given time, the school has hundreds of eager bodies waiting in ling to be tattooed by the TLC students. All work is done under the watchful eyes of the teachers, Lisa Fasulo and Matt Tyszka. TLC hosts students from around the globs: Iceland, Indonesia, Scotland, Belgium, The Netherlands, Guatemala and Israel to name a few. Since most students travel to the TLC from long distances, they include lodging in the tuition costs as well as equipment.
Class sizes are small. They only accept up to five students per class, so everyone is able to benefit from individualized attention. The Tattoo Learning Center also offers an advanced portrait class.
Currently, Lisa and Jeff are fundraising to help sponsor students from underprivileged countries for scholarships to their school. Their program, "The Endangered Ink Project," is seeking donations to help Crispus Kaitaita, an 18 year old from Uganda, who is desperately eager to attend the tattoo school.
www.tattoolearningcenter.com (800) 466 4117
Brandee Gordon
Another Look at Ms. Native Ink
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Brandee Gordon, owner and artist of Native Ink in Indiana, has been tattooing for over 11 years. Urban Ink interviewed her in a previous issue and featured her artwork in our glossy pages, including the pieces etched on Lil' Cease of Junior M.A.F.I.A. Brandee specializes in custom work with a strong emphasis in black and gray pieces. She also focuses on permanent cosmetics, including eyebrows, eyeliner, lipliner and some full color applications.
Most recently, she finished her back piece, a colorful, surreal image of a Native American woman transformed from an eagle--or vice versa, depending on how you look at it.
Native Ink Tattoo
7114 East State Road 28
Elwood, IN 46036
(765) 552 0655
www.nativeinktattoo.com
Street Artists: A Complete Guide
Graffiti at Its Best
For anyone who is agoraphobic or a hermit, Street Artists: A Complete Guide allows contemporary art fanatics to view more than 300 works of art displayed on major city streets around the world: New York, Los Angeles, London, Paris, Tokyo, San Francisco and Melbourne. The book features over 50 of the best street artists, including Banksy, Shepard Fairey, Blekle Rat, Swoon and many new, upcoming artists. This comprehensive guide includes a detailed biography of all artists, as well as summaries of their styles and insights to how their works evolved.
Eleanor Mathieson and Xavier A. Tapies, the authors of Street Art and the War on Terror: How the World's Best Graffiti Artists Said NO to the Iraq War, once again allow readers and non-urbanites to see the voices of artists, who refuse to use their "indoor voice." Street Artists: A Complete Guide is available in major bookstores.
TATS CRU: The Mural Kings
Exploration of the Aerosol Kingdom
Twenty four years ago, three teenagers from the Bronx sprayed the subway with graffiti art. This recognition tactic granted them the forefront position they hold in mural art today. And why shouldn't they, when it was their revolutionary act that launched the advancement of graffiti as art? The Tats Cru's objective is to perpetuate graffiti as a commercially viable art form, especially to businesses reaching out to young urban customers and companies searching for innovation and growth.
Tats Cru: The Mural Kings follows members of Tats Cru--Bio, BG 183, Nicer, Sen2 and the twins, How and Nosm--as they create their mural for the Graffiti Hall of Fame in Harlem, and uphold their reputation as the Mural Kings. During their creative process, exclusive interviews are intercut with rare archival footage, never before seen photographs and a behind the scenes look at marketing compaigns for hip hop artists, such as Fat Joe, Big Pun, Nas, Nelly, JLo, Missy Elliot and others.
Available wherever DVDs are sold.
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