Update for the full leg, finished 99% - done over the course of 9 years. Motives a mixture of Crowley Tarot and (obviously) Alex Grey's art.
Tattoo was not planned out before but evolved as an organic process woth the tattoo artist Yancoo. It started out with the calves and shin, then upper part in the last 4 years.
Video taken with Nikon Z9 under professional lighting (if you wonder why the colours pop so much)
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VERIFY AS AN ARTIST
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How to tell us you listen to Tool without telling us you listen to Tool. Well done.
Only found out that Alex Grey"s artwork is used by Tool after the fact. (and actually never listened to more than two or three songs)
You're going to have awkward interactions with Tool fans then lol.
Yeah, true. There seem to be more Tool fans than Alex Grey fans.
album art is how most of us arrived at his work, to be fair
But there are less tool fans than LSD fans so you’ll probably net out positive on the conversations
I assumed you were an Alex Grey fan, for what that's worth.
Make sure you see them in concert at some point. You will appreciate those tattoos even more.
More like how to tell us you've taken a lot of acid without saying it, all jokes aside Alex Grey's work is amazing and this leg sleeve is really incredible work
Hah was coming in here to say the same thing. Love the Tool leg sleeve.
I IMMEDIATELY THOUGH OF TOOL YESSS
We should call leg sleeves pants
I hate saying I have a leg sleeve
Spiral out
Who are you to wave your finger? You must have been outta your head
DMTrippy! Great color and application
Haha first thing I thought was 'this dude DMTs'
Come one , do your knee pit. Yes it will be terrible but it looks unfinished without it. Unless thats the 1%
Yeah, I know. It's not about the pain (had worse) but about the location right above the lymph gland. Though with the amount of colour in my body it honestly can't matter that much anymore.
Is it unwise to tattoo above the lymph node? What's the issue? Just curious
Two friends of mine who are physicians advised against it. The lymph nodes of people with tattoos are fucked anyway but tattooing directly above it is unwise (especially with colour inks)
What does it do? Is it the ink or the needles? What the hell is the lymphatic system, anyway? Where are key nodes to avoid?
In simple terms it is an organ that jeeps bodily fluids in balance and is crucial for the immune system. Some of the important nodes are back of the knees, around the neck and the thoracic duct.
Research has shown that people with tattoos have impacted lymph nodes (where the ink particles are collected and seen as "attackers") and a heightened risk of cancer.
Wow didn't know that! Thanks for the information but now I don't want any more tattoos hahah kinda crazy that this info isn't more widely known and talked about in tattoo culture, people who smoke know how bad it is but I feel like people who are into tattoos don't know about this potential risk factor!
Either way I think I'm gonna go ahead with my massive back piece I have planned 😅
Does bro even spiral out?
Did bro even learn to swim?
Did bro even elbow deep within the borderline?
Did bro even slide a mile six inches at a time on Maynard's dick?
Did bro even get that Bob Marley wannabe motherfucker out of here?
Holy fuck this is cool
Great tattoo, but dear god Crowley was such a dickhead. Like raging heroin adict that ripped of his collaborators. Also the artist of the toth tarot is Lady Frieda Harris. It was Crowleys idea to make it, yes, but he nearly derailed the project multiply times (apparently working with a constantly broke addict is not the easiest) and left Frieda Harris complete creative freedom anyways. So actually you have pictures of Frieda Harris's tarot. Rant over. God I loathe Crowley.
Completely true. I am all for calling it Harris/Crowley tarot as all of the artistic decisions were made by her and he was just (?) a critical voice pushing her in certain directios. And as much as he is a hugely problematic character one can't deny his talent for self-promotion and building a (magical) reputation that heavily influenced Western Hermetic tradition.
(And the deck is just one of the most gorgeous)
In all honesty, one of the reasons he triggers me so much is because I just really want him to be a cool dude. He was so influencial to the arts during his time in the order of the golden dawn and after wards.
As a side note, the rider waite tarot isn't much better about mentioning the woman (Pamels Colman Smith ) that did the heavy lifting of its creation...
I don't know if you actively read tarot but I've been thinking of getting a toth tarot, as I usually read RWS. Would you recommend it?
I work with both depending on the situation. RWS is for me more suited for general questions where its more associative imaginary is helpful. Toth is very good when I need planetary or elemental input from a spread and when I am looking for a "free" interpretation of a certain situation.
But you are right, Western Hermetic tradition is not very food at acknowledging female contributions - just look at Fortune and her contemporaries.
Jesus your artist deserves a fucking award or something for this. Just unreal.
Nice, this really is a beautiful display of Alex Grey's work
Thats awesome!
Alex Grey is a genius. Awesome tattoo
Wow that is amazing! I need an artist like that in the US
That's awesome! So good
Ink pants! Not leg sleeve!
But what if you only have one? Pant?
Yes, I think that’s correct.
Love it!
True awesome 👏
Always an updoot for Alex Grey! ⬆️
Absolutely insane. So good
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That music is Tool though...
You're absolutely right, it's Parabola and I'm brain dead as hell today.
Holy crap ... Welp, looks like I'm going to Germany!
Perfection 👌
That might be the coolest tattoo I have ever seen
Awesome art with awesome colors
LFG 🔥😍
Spiral out.
https://preview.redd.it/y8z5pwers86g1.png?width=1080&format=png&auto=webp&s=9a78dd7e9be516a286238bf9e27e0f33504e530a
I thought I recognised this from somewhere. Saw the sculpture at an exhibition in London last year. Incredible tatt!
Incredible ! Amazing work
I’m from San Francisco and on 4/19 (Bicycle Day) Alex Grey and his wife give a talk at the party they throw at the Midway. It’s so interesting to hear him talk about acid and his process! One of my friends went on a retreat to Egypt with him and they tripped balls in the pyramids haha
Wow look at those colors bling!!
That's mind blowing. Absolutely stunning.
This is amazing!!
How will those fine lines age? Will they fade? Being in color it may turn out too much and the lines disappear...
That is truly phenomenal ⭐️⭐️⭐️ What an amazing leg tapestry you have.
That’s absolutely stunning work!
I’m not wondering why the colors pop with “Nikon Z9 under professional lighting”, I’m wondering what’s wrong with your other leg. Or can we just admit that the color saturation is dialed up to make it look better. It’s a cool tattoo, but come on.
True, the video was taken by the artist and posted on his IG and I don't know his post process - to his defence, it does pop much more with spot lighting and full-spectrum CRI LEDs. I will post some pics tomorrow taken with my phone.
Why?
Just WHY?