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History in the Inking

Dragon Tattoo - First Sketch
I'm on a quest. A quest for a piece of artistic permanency upon my flesh. A quest that I admit took some time for me to decide to actively pursue.  What quest, you ask?  To get the coolest dragon tattoo inked into my flesh.

The concept: A European-style dragon, in mid-dive, spiralling down the upper portion of my arm.  It's head will start just past my elbow, resting on my forearm, and the tail will end just below my shoulder.  The wings will be tucked back, accentuating the dive.  That's all I got.  So yeah, as you can probably tell, I need help.  And it is thus that the quest begins.

In May, I paid a visit to Adrenaline Tattoos after extricating myself from an orthodontal appointment. Located in downtown Montreal, it is a very clean, very professional, and very cool shop. If you're curious, you can check their website out at www.adrenalinetattoos.com. After spending 15 minutes of wandering the establishment, I accepted the previously offered assistance of Nick, an employee (and apprentice piercer) there. After relating to him my concept (and my lacking guidance), a 15 minute consultation with Jeff (not to be confused with me) was setup. It was here that the first true step was made.

The day fast came where I would meet Jeff. I brought in what few bits of dragon flash that had sparked some interest, related my ideas, and indicated my general flexibility with the design. Well within his means, he took the materials provided, exchanged email contacts, and resolved to send some form of illustration.

Numerous email correspondences ensued.. Admittedly, not much was accomplished via email, and we both knew it.  So, an hour long consultation was suggested, where Jeff could draw on my arm and flesh out more of the details.  Excited by the concept, the appointment was booked for June 4th.

Time, as always, few by.  The appointment itself didn't take very long, but long enough for shapes to be drawn onto my forearm, and the overall positioning of the dragon to be determined.  First change: The dragon won't be spiralling down, it'll be swooping down.  Second: Colour?  I hadn't thought on it much, but I'm into doing it colour, and would prefer that if colour is used, that it be a red dragon.  That accomplished, Jeff can work on the drawing and plans on sending me something in a week or so.  With time to kill, I loitered with my friends Kim and Robyn until closing, skimming through the flash books with them.

True to his word, Jeff sends me a preliminary sketch of the dragon.  You'll find a sketch of it on the left.  I'm completely impressed, and the excitement hits a new high.  Via email we discuss colour again, and resolve to abandon the colour idea for now, or at least minimize it's use.

Then I get another email.  Jeff's ready to do the rest - one fell swoop.  He can pen the rest on my arm.  The time has fast approached after all.  Time to show off the sketch as much as possible before I book the appointment.

And that's where the quest stands at the moment.  Stay tuned for future updates...