Under Your Skin

Last month, Jose Morales shared the stories behind his tattoos (January 2010; Issue #45). This month, he talks about becoming a tattoo artist and shares some of the tattoo art that he's done. Jose Morales moved from Santa Barbara, CA to Oahu with his parents when he was 17. Six years later, he began his tattooing career on the island and, with only two years in the business, has been...   Read this feature »

We’re with Jose Morales, a tattoo artist currently working at Tattoolicious. Jose has also worked at Black Cat Tattoo, Hart & Huntington, and other shops on the island. Read our story about Jose as a tattoo artist in the February 2010 issue of The 808 Scene Zine. Tell me about what you’ve got. First, this tattoo on my leg. It’s a...   Read this feature »

Tattoos of Brett Wolfington-Floodman from Black Prism, Big Dawg, & Shot Glasswww.myspace.com/BlackPrism, www.BigDawgRock.com WOLFINGTON (Mika at Hawaiian Tattoo Co. Kapahulu)Originally I got inked in 1991 on my left arm. WOLFINGTON was a tribute to my grandmother 'Aileen the Great' who had recently passed away. My grandmother was a very important part of my life, also for instilling in me...   Read this feature »

Tattoos of Derek, Drummer of The 86 List & Dolls Till Daylight Enjoy more tattoos than we could fit in the printed issue of the Zine:   86 List (Black Rose Tattoo, AZ) I started with this one when I was 18, because Josh, the singer, he got a tattoo when he was 18...   Read this feature »

Your Tattoo style is very colorful!Yeah, I think it is just my background being a painter, I love color.  Also, if you have fair skin and you can pull it off, it looks great.  Some people are afraid to use color, but every artist has their own talents and abilities whether its like being really good at portraits or black and gray or Japanese, but I love color so I tend to do it very well.What...   Read this feature »

Richie Lucero, tattoo artist at Black Cat TattooThe tribal on your left arm is the most obvious one:And the one I hate the most, unfortunately. It was done a long time ago before I became an artist, before I knew what people were capable of. I just went to the place that would do it for the cheapest, the most convenient, and fastest. I learned the hard way that you get what you paid for. It's...   Read this feature »

He’s a freelance DJ who goes by the name Hi-C, short for A Higher Concept. He is temporarily in the Marines. He hails from Warwhick, Rhode Island and plays a mean DJ set. You can see him play at various clubs here on O’ahu, so make sure to catch one of his sets sometime! Aside from him spinning, he also enjoys getting some ink done. I got a chance to sit down with him and hear all about it. Right...   Read this feature »

You have a beautiful tattoo on your back. Thank you. Can you tell us about it? I had it mostly done in San Francisco. Nitaro Sakai. I randomly just found him in a shop. I was going there for school. When I moved back to Hawai'i, it still was a little bit incomplete and it was finished by an artist named Josh Reed at Black Cat Tattoo. He’s not a resident in Hawai'i. He lives in Colorado. He comes...   Read this feature »

While covering the Beatroot finals at The Loft, we approached a few people for our tattoo column. It turns out that the hip hop crowd isn’t very tattooed and many who are are pretty shy about it! Luckily, the staff of The Loft was willing to show off their ink. RIGHT ARM A lau hala mat. In Hawaiian it represents family. I have three different ones that represent three generations. [They are all...   Read this feature »

CLADDAGH RING (Brody, New Jersey)It’s a traditional Irish engagement ring. The way the heart’s facing - If it’s facing towards your heart, it means you’re in love. If it’s facing away, it means you’re not in love. So it’s just like an un-love tattoo. And I’m part Irish.NICK DANGER TATTOO (Amy Wagner, Tattoolicious)So, 2 weeks after I moved out here, my friend Amy who lived out here was...   Read this feature »