Expressing Identity and Style in Ink
In the heart of Kirikiriroa in Hamilton’s CBD is Poison Studios: a tattoo parlour just around the corner of Garden Place. Hidden behind two very green doors, it’’s home to freelance artists with their own unique, individual styles.
One of them, Savana, has been working in the tattoo industry for a couple of years after doing her apprenticeship with Paradiso, a parlour out in Frankton.
Poison Studios is all about self expression. Each artist comes in with their own unique style. If you’re looking to get something classic, contemporary or abstract to hyper realistic, you’ll find an artist there keen to do it.
On Savana’s office wall there are framed artworks of King Arthur and Seven Waters. It captures the whimsical fantasy and nature style that she’s creatively inspired by.
She works with a 3 liner needle, which traditionally adopts the “fine line” tattooing style in the industry.
Fine line has become both a trend, and debatable topic of style within the tattooing subculture. The opinions on the style are not always favourable. It’s often complained about as being too small, or that the work won’t last and heals into a little blob in the course of a year.
Savana says, “I think what they (critics) are meaning is the tiny, tiny little ones that people charge thousands for, I think that’s the type of fine line that people get mad about. But Savana also defends the style and feels there are some criticisms that “partly stem from misogyny.”
“I think that the old-school male tattoos don’t like how women are now getting tattoos, because fine lines are considered feminine. They don’t like that women are coming into the industry, because it’s not a ‘hard’ style and you have to be really delicate.”
It’s a new approach to tattooing that the subculture seems divided by. But isn’t that usually the case with new ideas? On the topic of style and self expression, Savana believes,
“It’s what the person and their clients enjoy and I just don’t think that there should be any judgement on what people get and how they get it done or who does it.”
You can find Savana’s work @savana.tattoos on Instagram, and take a look at Poison Studios over at https://poisonstudios.co.nz
