Blog posts of '2015' 'June'

Katzen, the German word for “cat” is the self chosen name of Katzen the Tiger Lady, a modern day tattooed woman who has made a career out of her lifestyle choice to live as a feline. Katzen, who is a tattoo artist, started her career in the performing arts as a contortionist in Key West, Florida. She was also a fire eater and a juggler before deciding to get her full body tattoos that ultimately led to her name, Katzen.

Katzen the Tiger Lady has stylized tiger stripes all over her body. They begin on her forehead and extend all over her face and down her shoulders, arms, torso and legs. Katzen also has extremely rare and painful eyelid tattoos to enhance her catlike appearance, as well as facial piercings that allow her to screw on whiskers onto her face when she wishes. Katzen is the first woman to have a full body theme tattoo, although of course La Belle Irene, a European sideshow act, was the first woman to be tattooed all over. She had heart tattoos, scroll| tattoos and cupid tattoos, but other than having feminine tattoos, her tattoos had no theme. Katzen actually planned her tattoo design in its entirety before it was implemented, and over 150 tattoo artists have worked on her strips. 

Before Katzen began her own body themed tattoo, she was instrumental in inking her former husband, The Enigma. This famous tattooed man grew up eating slugs and playing piano, and ultimately combined these two talents to create a very profitable sideshow act that was originally called simply The Slug. However, after the Enigma met Katzen and they fell in love, the two of them began designing his overall body themed tattoo, which is a jigsaw pattern. Katzen, who had a few hand-drawn tattoos but was otherwise inked very little, actually got her start as a tattoo artist through Enigma, who sent her money and tattoo equipment so that she could plan and ultimately ink his jigsaw puzzle design. While she was working on the Enigma's tattoos, she got the idea for her own body theme tattoo of tiger stripes. 

In interviews, Katzen describes seeing herself with markings from the time that she was very young about five years old. She describes feeling strong, independent and happy in those dreams, and wanting to recreate that feeling in real life. In her teenage years, she tried to recreate the feeling through rebellion and ended up in some trouble with the law, but ultimately as she was tattooing The Enigma, she realized that giving herself the feline markings that she now sports would be the right route for her to these positive feelings. 

Katzen owns her own tattoo shop and does custom tattoos. She also is known for her willingness to do controversial types of tattoos that other tattoo artists might shy away from, such as facial tattoos and overall neck and head tattoos. She has worked on personalities such as the Leopard Man on the Isle of Skye. Before she will tattoo anyones neck, face or head, Katzen consults with them to determine if this step is something that they fully understand. Any tattoo is a major undertaking, but a highly visible tattoo such as one on the neck or face can be particularly dramatic and have a major impact on a person's life in every aspect from social interactions to professional advancement. However, Katzen believes that some people truly will be happier and more successful if their inner markings become their outer skin as well, and if she is confident that tattooing is the right step for that person, she will help them by designing a tattoo regimen that will lead to the look that they desire.

In August 2005, Fox Television premiered a show about a man who deliberately commits a robbery in hopes of being sent to prison. Michael Scofield's goal isn't to run cellblock D or work in the prison cafeteria. His plan was to break his brother out of death row from the inside out. The show, Prison Break, became an instant success, bringing attention inmate life and the justice system with its detailed storylines. The program brought attention to prison tattoo culture because Michael Scofield (played by Wentworth Miller) had his entire upper body covered with detailed tattoo work. While most tattoo enthusiasts will tell you that piece of their ink has story and a meaning behind it, Scofield's are even more special. They hold the key to his crew's escape plans hidden within the tattoo symbols on his arms, back and chest. 

The actual tattoo on Prison Break was designed by Tom Berg and created by Tinsley Transfer. The tattoo was created using several separate transfers. When it was time to put the tattoo on actor Wentworth Miller's body, the transfers were pieced together to create the entire tattoo design. Putting the tattoo in place added another four to five hours to Miller's makeup time, beginning with cleaning the skin with rubbing alcohol. Then the tattoo transfers were pressed onto his skin and the paper was peeled off. Next, using a combination of glue and waterproof sealant, the tattoo pieces were stuck to his body. The final step was filling in blanks spots with body paint. Applying the famous Prison Break tattoo took nearly six hours, including an hour to remove it after shooting. To cut down on that time, in scenes where only a portion of the tattoo design would be visible to the camera, only that area would be applied to Miller. 

During Prison Break's first season, Scofield's tattoo led him and his team through each of the steps to construct an escape route out of the fictional Fox River State Penitentiary. In the second season, the tattoo still holds the clues on how to get the men out of the country and to Panama, where extradition to the U.S. would be impossible. The storyline often involved showing the designs of the Prison Break tattoo with special effects to explain the clues. In the fourth season premiere of Prison Break, Scofield has the tattoo removed to avoid being recognized while on the run. However, the show drew criticism when it chose to show him having the extensive work removed with one extended laser tattoo removal session. Critics said that Prison Break had finally moved into the science fiction genre because even the smallest tattoo requires several lengthy sessions of laser tattoo removal. Later, Wentworth Miller admitted that he actually asked the writers of Prison Break to remove the large tattoo from his character. "It was a fan favorite the first season," he told the Star Telegram. "But then Michael escaped - mission accomplished - and suddenly it was just something that had to be borne rather than be something that could be used as a plot device." 

Prison tattoos are one of the biggest subculture of tattoos. True prison tattoos are done while still incarcerated with homemade needles and tattoo guns. Needles can be made of paperclips, staples or nearly any pointy object. The needle is this placed inside an empty ballpoint pen and hooked up to a small motor that makes it move back and forth. While in prison, ink can be taken from a pen, melted plastic or even burned Styrofoam. Because of the makeshift equipment and unclean conditions, true prison tattoos are dangerous and can result in damage to skin and permanent scarring. Serious diseases like HIV and hepatitis can also be passed from one prisoner to another because of the lack of sterilization. Often it is safer to have prison tattoo designs done after an inmate's release. Most prison tattoo designs represent extremist beliefs, gang affiliation and/or violence. Common prison tattoo designs include teardrops and hourglasses as wells chains and the inmate's gang name. 

A prison tattoo design tells a story. It often is used to convey that the wearer has done time, is tough or is a badass. According to Wentworth Miller, the actor who plays Prison Break's Michael Scofield, he lacks in the toughness department. In an interview, the actor told The Daily Mail I need all the help I can get to feel like a bad ass . . . On the rare occasions when I have worn [the full torso tattoo} home and I am walking down the street I get some pretty strange reactions. Grandmas tend to give me a wide berth and I will get people who actually have the full sleeves for real come up, thinking we have some kind of experience in common. And then they are always looking at me with a little contempt when they realize it's not the real deal. Also a bit of envy when they realize it's not the real deal and that my tattoo didn't hurt.

Minnie Driver doesn't regret the rose tattoo she got on her butt when she was fifteen. "I don't see it often enough to regret it. It's on my right butt cheek. I got it when I was 15,and when I see it I kind of smile wryly. It makes me think about being 15, and there's something rather cool about that." Rose tattoos symbolize all types of love and the highest level of beauty similar to the lotus flower or cherry blossom. On her left bicep, Driver also has a heart tattoo with a dagger through it. Tattoos that incorporate a dagger stabbed through the heart symbolize a betrayal in love such as infidelity. It also represents a certain cynicism or reluctance when it comes to matters of the heart.

Minnie Driver (born Amelia Fiona J. Driver on January 31, 1970) is an English actress and singer/songwriter. She was raised in Barbados, the illegitimate daughter of a married man and his mistress. Her first big break as an actress was in the lead role in the movie Circle of Friends. Her next role in Good Will Hunting, earned her an Academy Award nomination. As a singer, she was a member of a band called "Puff, Rocks and Brown" and later released a solo album called ''Everything I've Got in My Pocket''. Driver has been linked romantically with several of her costars, including John Cusack, Josh Brolin and Matt Damon. In September 2008, she gave birth to a son whose father she has never publicly named.

Marianne Faithfull has one tattoo by her own admission. The tattoo is a bluebird on her left hand between her thumb and forefinger. The bluebird (much like its swallow cousin) is a symbol of good luck and hope in sailor culture. The bluebird often symbolizes happiness, prosperity, freedom and the arrival of spring. To Marianne Faithfull her bluebird tattoo means freedom. "I chose a bluebird at the time, which was 1966 or something, because I thought it would mean freedom," she explained. "What it really means is that I can't rob a bank if I wanted to because it's a distinguishing mark on my person."

Marianne Evelyn Gabriel Faithfull (born December 29, 1946) is an English singer and songwriter whose career has been four decades long. She started her career sing in coffeehouses as a folk musician and was discovered at a Rolling Stones launch party. Throughout her career Faithfull has collaborated with some of the biggest names in music like David Bowie, Billy Corgan, Metallica, Keith Richards and Tom Waits. Her dramatic highs have been overshadowed by her wild life, anorexia and drug use. She has had romantic dealings with musician Mick Jagger and artist John Dunbar. Marianne Faithfull was famously found naked wrapped in only a fur rug during a drug raid at Keith Richards's home in the late 60's.