Looks like Nathan Kostechko has a brand spankin’ new website–and we all know what that means: new photos! Additionally, Nathan’s told me he’ll be hitting NYC one week a month for the first quarter of 2012.
His first visit is slated for January 23rd-29th, so now would be a good time for you to book an appointment.
Tattoo by Nathan Kostechko (traveling tattooer)
All the work we’ve posted from tattooers based well outside the US has some readers (based here) a little bummed–and I don’t blame them. So here–good, solid work from someone not only based out of the US, but making laps around the country!
We can’t get any more helpful than that.
Tattoo by Nathan Kostechko (on the road)
A note from Nathan Kostechko, bearer of the sweet fetal skull tattoo you can see below:
I ended up going to Berlin for my 27th birthday with my girlfriend. We wandered around drinking all day, coming across random amazing bands playing on the street, checking out galleries and the history of the town. I knew I wanted to get tattooed, I’ve been collecting tattoos on all my travels these days.
I emailed Jakub Settgast and he responded right away excited to get me in his chair. He keeps a few days open every week for friends and people traveling. I told him I wanted a fetal skull, however he wanted to do it. When arriving at his private studio he had 4 designs for me to choose from, all fucking badass! One of which he felt most inspired to do, so I went with his gut feeling a let him have fun. It was one of my best ‘getting tattooed’ experiences, talking about our lives as tat zappers, he’s path to being a badass, listening to Electric Wizard, and he even showed me a few new tricks with no problem of exchanging his knowledge.
All in all I had a blast, even though Berlin is full of rats and a bunch of people claiming to be artist (who sorry to say are god damn horrible!), it’s kinda like a giant college party full of drunken douchebags barging around. Be sure to keep your hotel room window closed because you’ll end up with an army of insects within 10 minutes of being open…
Tattoo by: Jakub Settgast at Esoteric Gentlemen’s Club in Berlin, Germany.
Before you talk too much smack on owl tattoos (and this being our, what, third time devoting a day to just them?) bear in mind how useful they can be. As illustrated below, an owl makes great material for covering up those pesky tribal tattoo indiscretions of your youth…
Tattoo by: Nathan Kostechko — a man without a home base (for now)
It seems Nathan Kostechko has decided to close his studio, Coil Tattoo Gallery, once June rolls around. Nathan plans to be a world traveler instead–which is great for those of us that don’t live in Los Angeles or make it to many of the conventions he attends.
From his website:
Coil Tattoo Gallery is now operating as a private studio, no longer open to the public. I will be working by appointment only (as I always do). If you would like to stop by to discuss getting tattooed or to see the art work inside, please contact me to schedule a time. As of June, Coil Tattoo Gallery will be closed, so there is about 5 months left to get tattooed. I will be giving clients with existing work priority, not taking on many new clients, only small tattoos able to be finished in one session, in order to finish up on going large projects.
My plan is to shut down shop and travel the world, with no end in site. I’m to young to be sitting in a shop slaving away just to pay the bills, taking away from my time focusing on my art and my life. There is so much out there to see and experience which I want to show through my work, staying stagnant doesn’t help anything… I am in a position to do it as a person who tattoos, so I’m taking advantage of it. I’ll be announcing specific guest spots, conventions, and any travel destinations as they get planned and confirmed. Contact me with any destination requests, ideas, conventions, etc…
Below you can see a two week, 5-day session Nathan did on Aro from Italy. (Can you imagine sitting that much in such a short time span? Jesus.) They did everything except his elbow–probably a good choice, I can only imagine how swollen he had to be once it was all said and done.
That title is not supposed to have a homoerotic undertone but I think it’s unavoidable. At least until you actually see Nathan Kostechko‘s new skull tattoo from Thomas Hooper.
“I’m fucking psyched on the end result. Here’s a pic of my new tattoo! Never thought I would end up this tattooed…” -Nathan Kostechko
Tattoo by: Thomas Hooper at New York Adorned in Brooklyn, NY.
It’s been a while since I’ve posted anything from the guys at Coil Tattoo Gallery in Los Angeles. I happen to really like this piece from Nathan Kostechko. So sue me, I’m a sucker for a high quality bird tattoo.
Tattoo by: Nathan Kostechko at Coil Tattoo Gallery in Los Angeles, CA.
The Pint Size Painting canvas was the talk of the tattoo convention in Detroit on Sunday. As the 2″x3″ canvases were being handed out, some artists gazed at the tiny canvas in amazement, as others didn’t hesitate to get their masterpiece started.
The following week I was fortunate enough to see the paintings in person, and I was blown away. Just when I thought I found my favorite one, it was quickly replaced by another moments later. The amount of detail and time put into these paintings was indescribable.
As we sat around talking about the different paintings, I was able to ask Durb and Tony some questions about the project and their future plans. Read below for the exclusive interview.
Tattoo Snob: What exactly is a ‘pint sized painting’?
Pint Sized Paintings: A Pint Size Painting is a unique miniature masterpiece, art done on a very small scale. All the paintings are on a 2”x3” canvas board, and each one has a huge visual impact.
TS: How many of the paintings were handed out?
PSP: So far we have shipped out almost 1000 canvasses, and received more than 400 back.
TS: With that many handed out, I’m sure you won’t be able to recite everyone that participated. Is there an official list online?
PSP: Yes, you can go to our website, PintSizePaintings.com, and see the list of artists who have submitted art work.
TS: Will we be able to see them live in person?
PSP: We will debut the entire Pint Size Collection at the Hell City Tattoo Festival, May 21-23 at the Hyatt Regency in downtown Killumbus. Following that, the show will go to Sacred Gallery NYC in July. From there we will display it at Hell City Phoenix at the Biltmore, August 27-29. Then it will travel to Coil Tattoo Gallery in L.A.
TS: All of the paintings are going to be featured in a book, right?
PSP: Not all paintings received are printed in this first book from Pint Size Publishing. The book is a 224-page hardcover collection of these miniature masterpieces, with 208 of the paintings displayed in full color and printed to actual size.
TS: Will the book’s pages be 2″x3″ as well?
PSP: The book is 6”x9” landscape, and there are two paintings per page to give the focus to the amazing artwork. The book is printed in an art gallery format with bright, white pages and a very clean and simple view so as to not take away from the small paintings.
TS: Where can people pick the book up at?
PSP: You can of course pre-order the book from Pint Size Publishing on our website, Hellcity.com, and they will be available with a limited edition ruler/magnifying glass at Hell City Killumbus, available with the first 200 books purchased.
TS: I hear you’re already working on volume two? Is this true?
PSP: It is true, with the amount of Pint Size Packages we have already sent out, each submission received now is for Volume 2. Submissions pour in on a daily basis. There are hundreds of artists who have not yet sent in their Pint Size Paintings, and more want to be involved every day. Numerous artists have heard of this project heard through the grapevine, plus with the excitement for the release of Volume 1, Pint Size Paintings will most likely have quite a number of editions.
TS: If an artist is interested in being a part of volume two, who can they contact?
PSP: They can simply send us their mailing address to info@hellcity.com and let us know they want to be a part of Pint Size Paintings. We will ship them out a Pint Size Package containing two of our boards (required to use) and a release form, along with some promotional material. We encourage artists from all genres to participate, not just tattoo artists. Spread the word!
Adrian Dominic updated his blog yesterday with some big news:
“So it’s official: I am moving to Los Angeles, CA to work with Nathan Kostechko and David Barton at Coil Tattoo Gallery as of March 2010. I am very excited to make LA my new home, and look forward to meeting and tattooing many new people there. Stop by the shop and say hi, 646 North Spring St. Los Angeles, CA 90012. I have many available appointments, so please contact me for booking, or stop by the shop.”
Tattoo by: Adrian Dominic
As most of you probably know, this past weekend was the Detroit Motor City Tattoo Expo. This year marked the 15th anniversary of the show, and despite the bad weather – the turnout was great. The artist turn out was nothing short than stellar, and the floor was packed all weekend.
As always, I brought out my camera and tried to capture some of the quality work that surrounded me. I snapped entirely too many pictures to post on here, so I’m just going to post the cream of the crop. Please remember, my photography skills are amateur at best.
If you’re interested in seeing all of the mediocre pictures I took, become a fan of Tattoo Snob on Facebook. All of the pictures from this past weekend are posted in the albums.
