tattoo industry – Tom Vater

My second skin, made in Thailand, in Nikkei Asia

July 30, 2023July 30, 2023tom

My latest story in Nikkei Asia was really fun to write and to live… a month or so ago, the Thailand Tattoo Expo took place for the 5th time, a great opportunity to reflect on my own relationship with tattoos…. I first got inked in a dingy tattoo parlor near the Cowley car works in […]

Figures Libres – A Tattoo Book Classic

June 27, 2019June 27, 2019tomLeave a Comment

I just finished translating Figures Libres, an incredible book that documents how tattoos morphed from back alley subculture to global pop culture. Published by Noir Meduse, Figures Libres features crazily beautiful portraits by Dom Pichard aka P-mod & a colorful round-the-world-to-follow-the-needle essay by Laure Siegel. Figures Libres is out in September in French and English. […]

ATC Books publishes host of tattoo stories, including Chris Roy – The Death Row Tattooist

May 27, 2018May 27, 2018tomLeave a Comment

The market for good print stories is getting smaller all the time. Especially for off the wall, niche or sub-cultural stuff. So it’s great to see some of my recent work published specially to be read on smart phones. Almost everyone has one and there’s more to life than Candy Crush. ATC Tattoo Books have […]