Tattoos - Geoff's Tribal sleeve piece

I have always loved tattoos, piercing and all forms of body modification - seeing them as ways to physically reflect (and sometimes initiate) the inner transformations that herald moments of personal growth and mark important points within our lives

Inspired by the stunning work of Jo Harrison (both on David's back, and in her Modern Body Art studio in Birmingham) I decided to get Jo to draw me up a sleeve design (including a small amount of cover up work for a butterfly on my forearm).

As a witch, I chose a tribal design as a reminder of the tribal heritage of us all - and in the belief that some of those roots should be kept alive in the modern day. The design itself is a mix of ideas inspired by different tribal styles and peoples - from traditional spirals, and Maori "cross-hatching", to an Inca sun-design.

Jo and I worked closely in the initial stages - with Jo asking me to collect images and designs that I liked (and explaining what about each that drew me). She then took a careful tracing of my arm - noting the location of major muscle groups, elbow, shoulders etc, so that she could design the sleeve to complement the underlying musculature - so that the final design would flow with my body and compliment it.

Below are some pics of this most recent work...