Musings of a Tattoo Legend
It is not every day you get to spend an evening hearing stories and insights from one of the “founders” of modern American tattooing. While Nick Bubash did not set out to become an American tattoo icon, the revolutionary way he melded the concepts of art and tattooing has earned him a permanent place in the history books.
Still tattooing in his shop Route 60 in McKees Rocks, Pennsylvania, Bubash also has an incredible portfolio of artwork outside of tattooing. Through art school, Bubash found an immediate knack for sculpture. When he’s not tattooing you can find him doing everything from 3-D masterpieces to eye-catching mixed media. As Bubash told us “an artist does it all”…. and Bubash is certainly an artist.
We compiled some of Bubash’s most interesting insights and stories. He spoke of everything from being the only person to work alongside legend Thom deVita in his New York shop to attending one of the first conventions that featured both fine artists and tattooers with Ed Hardy. He has the most profound take on art and tattooing, and we figured we would let his quotes speak for themselves on this "Feature Friday"!
Make sure to continue following Save My Ink on social media to stay up-to-date on our website launch! Bubash’s full feature, including more of his history and stories, will appear on our website!
ON BEING THE ONLY ARTIST TO WORK ALONGSIDE THE LEGENDARY THOM DEVITA IN HIS NEW YORK STUDIO (AND HOW CUSTOM TATTOOING CAME TO FRUITION):
“He was doing something brand new. He was influenced by the abstract impressionists. He considered himself an artist. Not just a tattooer, but an artist. Previous to him, they were just tattooers.”
“The thing about Devita was that he thought out-of-the-box. He took designs and changed them into his own version, a modern version. He was an artist, he was a thinker.”
ON THE STATE OF THE INDUSTRY WHEN HE ORIGINALLY ENTERED IT:
“In 1975-76 there wasn’t anyone getting tattooed. I opened a shop across from the railway, and even the working guys wouldn’t get tattoos…You would go a long time without getting a tattoo.”
“It was mostly a working man’s activity. We did a lot of prostitutes, people like that. It was the fringe people that you were doing. Tattooing still had a big stigma on it even in the ‘80s and ‘90s.”
ON HIS ART CAREER OUTSIDE OF TATTOOING:
“An artist does it all.”
“I became a shop tattooer a long time ago… 50% of my energy has gone into fine arts. I have not sought to become a famous tattooer, although my history has made me a famous tattooer.”
“The seductive thing about art is if you make a piece of art that’s successful, you are a success, whether or not you are making money.”
“I can’t stop. I’m afraid I will evaporate or turn into a pile of dust.”
ON HOW MODERN TATTOOERS SHOULD ATTEMPT TO MIX POSITIVE CREATIVITY WITH TATTOOING:
“We didn’t do profanity on people. We didn’t do evil imagery. There’s so much evil imagery nowadays. Where the hell did this come from? Evil demons ripping people’s guts out.”
“Since the computer has come into the equation ….at least in my observation, its beginning to marginalize and look the same. Why would you want an exact picture of someone, like a photograph? I would prefer something with some character. Although the technique of it is magnificent, its technique versus art. They have the technique but they can’t make anything out of it.”
ON THE BEAUTY OF TATTOOING:
“The one thing I really like about tattooing, other than tattooing, is that it has given a lot of art kids opportunities. It’s given a lot of kids an opportunity to make a living.”
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