More ink

I started the shading on my Buddha tattoo last week, “tebori” style. This is when the artist does not use a machine but hand-pokes the design with two needles. It’s a Japanese traditional style and it is very time consuming but very detailed.

I was nervous when I first entered Shinji’s studio as I had heard that it was a lot more painful than the electric needle - other people I’d been talking to over the previous 3 weeks since my last session were looking at me like I was mad and these were people WITH tattoos!!!

Incidentally, before I start I don’t know if I introduced Shinji Horizakura who is doing my piece. You can see more of his work here and you can read a bit more about tebori here. Shinji was a member of the Horitoshi family.

He is a quiet and unassuming guy and I noticed in the first session that once he gets down to work, he does not get distracted by anything going on around him - a true artist.

Anyway, he takes two needles out of an unopened pack (to show they are new and sterilized), they look weirdly like a pointy pair knitting needles. I’m pretty nervous by this point but he reassures me “You’re going to like it!”.

He stretches the skin around the starting point and starts poking away. I was expecting to flinch at least but I couldn’t believe it - it hurt a lot less than the electric needle.

It’s a hard feeling to describe - there is definitely a burning sensation - you can feel him picking away at your skin like a madman with tweezers - also there is kind of a feeling of relief like someone pulling off dead skin with a pumice-stone.

In short, I liked it, that was until he reached the back of my arm and close to the armpit where I assume there are a lot of nerve endings - here it hurt like hell and I had to concentrate really hard not to cry out.

Meditation on the causes of Suffering is one of the teachings in Buddhism, well in this case the causes of suffering was a small Japanese man jabbing me repeatedly with oversized toothpicks!
I picked a point in the distance and meditated on it, thinking about nothing just waiting to feel the next needle going in. I breathed out when he finished a section and in when he was starting a new section. The whole thing was rhythmic and pretty soon I found myself oblivious to the pain and spaced out.

Suddenly he cleaned off excess ink and blood with what I assume was an anti-bacterial solution - all I know is it was seriously cold and it made me jump back to reality.

Finished for today. Two hours up already!

The pain subsides to a burning sensation and you get a pleasant buzz off of it. When I sit up I feel high and I am smiling involuntarily.

TEBORI SHADING