There is an inherent magic to the semi-permanence of tattoo as a medium. Honoring the places we love via tattoo can be a powerful grounding ritual, reminding us always of the connection we have to the land that supports us, the soil that feeds our bodies, the air that fills our lungs. During the ample alone time of the past year, I’ve done a lot of reflecting on my practice: what am I’m putting out into the world and why?
Ultimately, my objective as an artist falls somewhere at the intersection of activism, rewilding, and healing. If art can be used to connect people to the places we inhabit, then it can help folks feel held by and connected to the vast myriad of other species that we as humans inextricably interact with. If we can revitalize our inherent connection to the land, we’ll grow passionate about our roles as stewards thereof, and build a life that honors and nourishes it. If we are to have any hope of conquering climate change, it must start with raw, instinctual, animalistic passion for the earth we inhabit. We are biological creatures; the products of countless millennia of evolution aligning us with other species in an intricate, complex, beautiful web of interconnected life. The futures of all life forms on the planet are in our hands, and we exist at a pivotal moment in history.
“No one will protect what they don't care about; and no one will care about what they have never experiened”
―David Attenborough
Tattoos can be a part of that experience for the artist, the wearer, and those they choose to share their piece’s story with. While art cannot singlehandedly solve climate change, it CAN play a part in the collective identity shift necessary to tackle it. And that’s a pretty sweet motivation to do one’s thing.
All of my work contains this intention; the below pieces are just a few recent examples with very clear connections to places near and dear to the client.
