decisions, decisions

I need to post a little something about the artists I forgot last time – particularly Scott Duncan and Éric Dufour.

I don’t remember exactly where or when I first came across Éric Dufour’s art; could it have been at NIX? I think so. And it was his paintings that drew me to him. Once again, a great sense of line, of colour, his characters, cities, and the ubiquitous honeycomb-like thingies that populate a period of his work…Just last year, there was an art gallery section at the Montreal convention, and once again, I was simply mesmerized by his paintings. My problem is that of all the tattoos I’ve seen, none of them quite capture what his canvasses do. I’m not sure if it’s the colours, the translucence…maybe he’s just not a great photographer, and his portfolio suffers. Maybe the brilliance of his colours shows up after the tattoos have healed, and he doesn’t have the photos to back it up. I don’t know. I know I keep going back to look at his book, hoping something will floor me. I’ll cross my fingers for September.

As for Scott, I remember meeting him very clearly. It was in June 2000, at NIX, back in the Colony Hotel in Toronto. I was a tattoo virgin. It was Friday, the convention had opened that afternoon, and I had carefully perused the books around the room. He was one of the few that had spoken to me, and he had been friendly and easy-going. I knew what I was looking for, more or less, and he listened to me closely. We struck a deal for the next day. Was that really about what was in his book? Not really, although his book shows a good level of depth and versatility. But for this first relationship, I needed to feel comfortable, and there’s something about Scott that is inherently soothing. So off we went. I was a wuss. I sat very poorly.

Aside: I’ve improved over the years, as I’ve come to the realization that endorphins actually make me cry, and that concentrating on my breathing is the way to go. I’ll never do marathon sessions, like Pat’s 6-7 hours of continuous sleeve work. But I’m more patient than Pat (at least sometimes!).

In my defence, when Scott went over my tattoo last year, he stated that he had really “dug into me”…so I guess we learned from each other. Fair enough.

This year, I’m torn between all the tattoo ideas floating in my mind: I don’t know how often Hannah Aitchison is likely to attend the Montreal convention (or even if she’d take on someone else: I hear her waiting list is closed…), or whether I should finish what I’ve started (if Scott is willing, of course…), or whether I should get the tattoo I promised myself upon graduation. Too many projects, too little money. Not to mention Pat will probably want something, too. He has plans to finish his sleeve, as well. Decisions, decisions.

In six: Words don't always come so easily.

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