Tattoo Style

We all know the extremes that football fans can and will go to for their teams. The more outrageous the better, and few sporting events will bring out the creativity in its fans that football does.

Well the Seattle Seahawks may just have the ultimate fan on their side. I am, of course referring to the HawkFiend, Bryan Murphy. Bryan is such a rabid fan of the Seahawks that he has actually created an almost superhero persona in the HawkFiend. But, I get ahead of myself.

Bryan who was 5 when the franchise debuted in 1976, grew up watching the team with his father, Donald Wayne Murphy. He was crazy about the Seahawks right from the word go, but sadly lost his dad to cancer at the age of 13 and made it his mission to continue the family fanaticism. But, this was not the birth of HawkFiend.

The HawkFiend was actually born in a Tattoo Studio. (Kewl!!)

Four years ago Bryan saw an elaborate tribute tattoo on an Oakland Raiders fan , and thought to himself, “There’s no way I’m going to let a Raiders guy have a better tattoo.” He then sought out tattoo artist, Cody Hart of DermFX Tattoo, and laid out his plans for the ultimate tribute tat. When it was finished he had turned his left leg from the knee down into a Seahawks Tattoo. When Cody had finished the work he looked at Bryan and told him he was a “…fiend for the Seahawks.” The name and an idea stuck.

With a vision for the HawkFiend in mind Bryan headed for the nearest Halloween costume store, found a mask with two horns sticking out of the forehead and painted it blue and green. Finishing the costume with shoulder pads and claw-like gloves the HawkFiend was born. And well received by the team as well as fellow fans, I might add. Now with season tickets firmly in claw, HawkFiend and his tattoos have become a celebrity in his own right. Dad would be proud, I believe.

“HawkFiend is the crazed fan,” says Murphy, who is also the president of the Sea Hawkers booster club. “HawkFiend’s job is to be there at Qwest with the other 67,000 people and help the team.”

Recently Bryan has added to his now legendary ink, and his right leg has joined in the tribute. The right tattoo portrays the Seahawks as beasts of the NFC West, with HawkFiend in the middle in all green.

Now that is dedication, and some damned good ink as well. Kudos to Cody Hart. Good job, Man. But, somehow I don’t think the HawkFiend is done just yet, so keep those needles ready.

Bryan himself has said that if the Seahawks should win a Superbowl, “I have my whole back for that!”

I’ve no reason to doubt it, and I’ll add…“GO SEAHAWKS!”

Tags: Cody Hart, DermFX Tattoo, fan tattoos, football, football fans, HawkFiend, Inspired, News, Seahawks, Stories, Tribute tattoos

Posted in Inspired, News, Stories | No Comments »

A company known as Global Tattoo Orthotic Prosthetic Innovations has made its business by painting tattoo art onto prosthetic limbs. To make things even cooler they have been given the green light to provide the service to our veterans by none other than Department of Veterans Affairs, thus paving the way to become a U.S. government contractor.

Now, I don’t know about other artists out there, but I would tattoo a wounded veteran for free. I figured since they had put their ass on the line for me, it was the least I could do. They had already paid the price in blood. This takes it one step further.

One of the most traumatic things that can happen to a human being is to lose a limb, and to lose said limb in service to our country is the ultimate price, short of dying, that is.

According to their website:

“Twenty years into wearing a prosthetic, Dan Horkey, a trained Orthotic and Prosthetic Technician, created his own socket and applied his first tattoo, thereby initiating the tattooed prosthetic concept.
Global Tattoo Orthotic Prosthetic Innovations (GTOPI) founder Dan Horkey pioneered an innovative method for applying artwork to braces and prosthetics, empowering fellow amputees to express their individualistic ideas through custom orthotic tattoo. Horkey’s process vastly expands the options beyond the laminated fabric choices currently available.”

Custom painted cosmetic services are now available to Veterans through all VA Hospitals across the U.S. and your hometown VA Contractor Clinics. And, as far as I can tell is a service that is now covered by the VA.

Now is that cool, or what?

So, you vets out there. If your missing your old tattoo, or you just want to show your well deserved pride in your service, hit the link and check ‘em out. They have some really cool pictures of their artwork.

For our civilian readers who may want some of the same for their own prosthetics, they do that, too. And considering the beauty and durability of their work…it’s well worth it.

All images ©Global Tattoo Orthotic Prosthetic Innovations, all rights reserved.

Tags: Dan Horkey, Department of Veterans Affairs, Inspired, Military, Military tattoos, News, Products, Prosthetic Tattoos, Prosthetic Tattoos art, Stories, Tattoos, Veterans, Workforce

It’s funny how a little bit of curiosity can go such a long way. I never ask people what their tattoos mean to them. I may be thinking it, but it’s always seemed to me to be a rather personal question. I’ve told people that I like their tattoo or tattoos and I’ve asked people where they got the work done and who the artist was, but when it comes to getting right down to brass tacks and asking about the meaning, I always stop short. After reading this article about photographer Marianne Bernstein, I may have to rethink my policy on talking to people about their tattoos.

Bernstein, 53, of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, made the decision one day to talk to a homeless girl who was sitting on the street. Bernstein asked the girl if she would mind having her photo taken, and also if the girl would write down on a piece of paper what her knuckle tattoo “Lost Girl” meant to her. The end result became the catalyst for Bernstein’s new book Tatted.

Tatted is the culmination of a vast amount of curiosity and care. Within its pages, is a collection of people’s tattoos - a photo and a page written by the photographed person on what their tattoo means to them. There are almost 100 such photos and written statements. What Bernstein found while working on Tatted was that tattoos aided her in finding out so much more about the people she photographed.

“People are so much more interesting when you look closely. How many times do you walk by somebody like that and wonder what their story is? It was a chance to connect with somebody.”

It took Bernstein a year to complete Tatted, walking Philadelphia’s South Street and finding people whose tattoos caught her eye. The book was then published by Brian Jacobson and Nathan Purcell of GritCityInc.

At an opening party earlier this month at Pure Gold Gallery at the Piazza at Schmidt’s, almost 150 of Bernstein’s images and accompanying handwritten descriptions were on display and for sale. Jacobson said there was something nice about seeing some of his more straitlaced family and friends from out of town mingling with the city’s tattoo culture.

“They hold a common misconception that people with tattoos are different,” Jacobson said. “Being there with people covered in tattoos and seeing the images on the walls, I think it surprised them to see that the only difference is these people literally put their emotions on their bodies. I hope it changed their perception of tattoos.”

I think what’s possibly the most interesting thing about Marianne Bernstein and her book is that Bernstein herself doesn’t currently have any tattoos. For someone outside the tattoo culture to look so deeply into it and to learn so much from it is a really special thing. If more people took the time and care that Marianne Bernstein has taken in amassing Tatted, then maybe we would all be a tiny step closer to understanding one another; tattooed or not.

Tags: brian jacobson, grit city inc, Inspired, marianne bernstein, nathan purcell, News, Pictures, Pure gold gallery, South Street Philadelphia, Stories, tatted book, Tattoo Pictures

Posted in Inspired, News, Pictures, Stories, Tattoo Pictures | No Comments »

Now, I’m the first to admit that the ways of our government are strange. But, that seems to be the way it has functioned since Gen. George “Muttonhead” Washington was sworn into office. (Yes, that really was his nickname.) It seems that making contradictory decisions are a hallmark of government. But I have to say, considering the Military’s new stand against tattoos, that I like this one.