The word serenity that you see inked here across my back is part of a work in progress.
I'd been thinking for a long time about a word that best represented how I feel about myself. Once it became clear that serenity was the word I went into Photoshop and designed the artwork that you see in the red square below.
The artist that inked the word serenity for me was good but I didn't feel very comfortable with him and decided to put the project on hold till I found the right person to keep working with.
It all began with the little red heart on my lower groin with my lover Les' name inked into it that you can barely see in the picture to your right. It's surrounded by the larger red heart and has mostly faded away since it was inked 15 years ago. Les had a matching red heart on his groin as well with my name inked into it.
Eventually I decided to have a larger heart done to surround the smaller one. It had my daughter Aurelia's name written across it but unfortunately the guy who did that work did such a lousy job that you couldn't even read her name.
A few weeks before I left for Europe in November of '03 I found Chas Byassee at Laguna Beach Tattoo and knew right away he was the guy to finish the work.
Word to the wise: Don't get tattooed just before you start traveling.
When I found Chas the first thing I had him do was work on this heart with Aurelia''s name in it that had become something of an embarassment for me. He covered her name up and rewrote it across the top and added my grandson Tristan's name across the bottom. Then he brightened and reworked the inks and added some flourishes. It was seeing this amazing work that Chas did that convinced me he was the artist I'd been looking for.
To your right is a representation of a bird of paradise in flight that I found from somebody else's tattoo. I took it into Photoshop and positioned it on my body to give Chas an idea of where I wanted to go next with the tattooing.
The first stage of this complex artwork is the outline of the bird that he inked in black in the next picture down. The magnificent tail feathers are still missing in this picture and the bird isn't yet colored in.
Next came the tail feathers. Chas outlined them and colored them in all in one sitting - pushing five hours if I remember it right. And let me tell you, this was by far the most painful of any work I'd had done up to that point. Seems the skin on the inside of my thigh is muy delicado. It took more than three weeks for the scabs to heal and for me to start walking like a normal person again.
No problem - it was totally worth it. Chas really outdid himself with the tail feathers and I think they're just about the coolest thing I've ever seen. I really like the way they fall gracefully from the bird's body and then curve gently down and out around my genitals.
Finally came the coloring in of the bird's body and the finishing touches - a welcome relief from the painful work on the tail feathers. Altogether there's probably about ten or twelve hours involved with the bird not counting the time Chas invested designing it and drawing it out on paper before inking into my skin.
The bird in flight is about my freedom, (free as a bird) and more specifically about my sexual freedom, which is why it's located directly above my genitals. It also ties into the flying dreams that I've had for most of my life.
There was a time of course when I couldn't have imagined anything being inked into my skin, believing then as many do now that tattooing was for bikers, renegades and jailbirds. But things change and now I'm totally into it and love having the work done.
For me, having these various works of art that Chas and I are designing inked permanently into my skin is about ownership of my body and creating something personal that I love looking at and that has a lot of meaning for me.
There's never been a moment of regret and I doubt there ever will be. I look in the mirror or down at my belly and leg and totally love what I see. It's interesting how much a part of me all of this artwork has become and I can't imagine myself without it now.
Yes, of course it hurts. But that's just part of the process and once the endorphins kick in after the first ten or fifteen minutes it actually becomes pleasant and the needling ceases to be an issue. For me anyway, the constant needling and wiping, needling and wiping, puts me in a meditative trance-like state that I love being in.
I have to be completely honest and say that there have been times along the way that the pain got to be too much and I popped a vicodin to help me get through it. I felt kind of weird doing that at first but eventually made my peace with a little assistance here and there to take the edge off.
With so many long hours involved in the process it helps to be working with an artist that I can talk to and feel comfortable and safe with. And that's why Chas is doing all of my work for me. He's both a gifted artist and a genuinely nice guy and someone whose company I'm really enjoying on this journey.
For anyone thinking of having work done, don't settle. Be patient and hold out for somebody you really like and feel good about working with. It makes all the difference in the world.
My ideas for these tatts have evolved over the years and that's why I'm fine with doing the work when it feels like it's the right time to do it. Some of my original ideas have fallen by the wayside and better ideas have replaced them while some of the ideas you're reading about right now are evolving and may not end up happening at all. As more work is finished I'll be posting new pictures here so check back every now and then to see what's new.
To the left you can see the next stage of the work that Chas completed. He added my new grandson Aidan's name to the cluster of hearts and inked in a wave around them that represents the Pacific Ocean, at whose water's edge I was born and where I now live. Chas did the wave freehand - I told him what I wanted and he totally nailed it. (Or should I say needled it.) I love the way it reaches up and around the hearts.
This cluster of hearts and names is the centerpoint for what will be a collage of artwork that will eventually wind from one end of my body to the other.
A work in progress...
If you don't mind seeing me naked you can click here and a different window will open so that you can see the finished bird of paradise without the distraction of the grape leaf. Please don't click if it's a problem for you seeing my dick. The page you are about to visit also contains pictures of my genital Prince Albert piercing. It's not intended for all readers. Please be sure you're comfortable with male nudity and advanced body piercing before continuing on. I have no problem with you seeing me naked - I just want to be sure you're OK with it. Thanks.
Here you can see how the bird's tail feathers morph into the vine.
Chas holding a baby squirrel.
The bird's tail feathers morph into a vine that winds down around my leg and ends on the top of my foot. Below left are pictures showing a sketch of the path the vine follows. Chas drew this on my leg so that he could get a better feel for how to do the tail feathers.
Chas then added a pair of palm trees sweeping up into the ocean wave next to Aidan's name. My daughter Auri took this picture of them moments after the work was completed.
Just below the palm trees are the words "from the water's edge" which is my signature for my Sundays in Laguna essays. Chas did the lettering freehand because I told him I wanted them to look natural and fun and not like I'd labored over them for hours and hours in Photoshop. A picture showing all of this new work is on its way.
Chas working on the lettering.
The vine is about being grounded; a counterpoint and a balance to the bird of paradise in flight. It's also about my love of gardens, plants and flowers.
My latest tattoo is this huge and very cool peace sign that Chas did for me. I'd been telling him for a long time that I wanted him to do something that I wasn't involved in - I just wanted to lay back on his table, close my eyes and let go for a change.
He pushed me to at least cough up the idea of a peace sign and he took it from there. I had nothing to do with this design - it's totally Chas' work and I love it. It incorporates the elements of earth, air, wind & fire along with the peace sign. Couldn't be more perfect.
Wasn't so sure at first about having my butt tattooed but now I'm totally into it and am thinking about having something done on the other cheek to balance things out.
Here's some details showing how the peace sign, the wave and the palm trees come together across my hip.
