Nigel from the Dirty Thirty Shares Some Traditional Ink

I met Nigel on the Upper West Side last month, across the street from Verdi Square. I spotted some tattoos on his arms and asked if he wouldn't mind sharing some of them. He was happy to oblige.

The first piece is a gypsy, inked by Dan Santoro of Smith Street Tattoo in Brooklyn:

"The gypsy," Nigel said, "is pretty much from travelling and bouncing."

He also shared two pieces done by a friend of his from Richmond, Virginia, Gerald M.

"The eyeball here on my right arm is ... blood sweat and tears," he told me. "It represents a lot of different endings and beginnings, as far as work and life and whatnot."

I particularly like this tattoo, on Nigel's upper left arm:

"The train is," Nigel explained, "more or less a story of how my art finished and started." Also by Gerald M., Nigel had nothing but praise for his work:

"His specialty is roses. He won an award in Las Vegas for doing the best rose last year, so that's kind of his thing.  His little trademark is an eyeball, as well, so you'll see an eye in most of his pieces."

The banner identifies "The Dirty 30," a nationwide art collective of which Nigel is a part.

Thanks to Nigel for sharing his tattoos with us here on Tattoosday!

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All Aboard! Susan's Train Tattoo Honors Her Son

I ran into Susan, walking south on 3rd Avenue last Saturday. She sports nine tattoos in all, but the one that jumps out at you is the piece above on her lower left calf.

I have yet to master the art of photographing a wrap-around piece, so bear with this one (although I think I did ok).

First the story behind the ink. Susan is a proud parent and, like most parents, her body art reflects her love of her child. She has been getting tattooed since her son was 3 (now he's 10) and he has even collaborated on designing some of her work.

If memory serves, her son's name is Nicholas, which explains the "N" on the locomotive.


He is a HUGE fan of trains, to the extent that he knows subway lines and is adept at giving directions and the MTA routes. Thus, the central element of the piece.

In front of the train is a railroad crossing signpost


and at the back is the caboose,

complete with hearts and a Pac-Man symbol to reflect her son's love of video games.

His love of rainbows, as well, is reflected by the multi-colored arc over the train. The piece is completed by the rising sun (a play on "son").


The end result is a vibrant, wonderful piece of body art which is poignant and visually-appealing.

This tattoo, along with all her other work, was inked be Peter Cavorsi at Body Art Studios in Bay Ridge. Peter inked my guitar-cherub (at the bottom of the page) and has appeared on Tattoosday many times before (click here to see the various pieces).

Thanks to Susan for bringing some colorful maternal ink to us here at Tattoosday!