Loud and clear. The new editorial by Miki Vialetto

Seeing that we’ve just concluded the second edition of Gods of Ink, I must take this chance to share some reflections with you, the readers of Tattoo Life, about what this convention means to me.

The practical organization of the convention is truly exhausting work (just think of having to coordinate all the artists and satisfy individual requests not to mention how many aspects of the logistics and creative direction need to be dealt with before we even kick off). But it is not this side of things which preoccupies me year on year but whether I will be able to achieve my purpose at each edition.

That is, over the three days, give a complete overview of what tattoo means today, and ensure that the message gets through to each visitor. Not tattoo as it is shown on social media in videos which are kind of fun kind of dumb; rather “real” tattoo, passed on by those who have been practising the craft for over 40 years. The hard part is striking the right balance between those who have made history in this business and the young bloods, something far from easy for a number of reasons. Because everyone knows the big names, but convincing them to take part in a convention is no easy task. Unless you know them personally and have travelled a stretch of the road together you’ll have a hard time getting them to come, let alone be members of the jury for the contests, moments which draw the greatest applause but also criticism.…

Then choosing the fresh young talent, the rising stars of tattoo to promote – seeing as how they are selected from hundreds of others who due to questions of space are, alas, left on the waiting list – means hours of research to find those who truly have something interesting to say and take their work seriously from both an artistic and professional viewpoint.

To organise a convention just as to invite artists to give an interview to Tattoo Life Magazine and tattoolife.com, you need to have a personal and professional history on the scene, have built up enough experience that your name bears the stamp of a quality certificate.

This I believe is no more or less than the good name and credibility accumulated over years and years of work. Therefore it was an enormous satisfaction for me to see that Gods of Ink continues to be a reference point, a crossroads between tradition and what’s new, a place where if you want to get in you need plenty of talent, hard graft and an understanding of tattoo in all its shapes and forms.
See you in March 28-29-30 for the 3rd edition of the Gods of Ink!