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Welcome to Tattoos In Flight

Posted on June 4, 2008

Welcome to Tattoos In Flight at www.tattoosinflight.com. Several weeks ago we decided to launch this site as a way to combine our two interests, tattoos and flying, into one place. Looking around the web, it’s hard to find tattoo imagery about flying or aviation and we thought it might be a good idea to have one website devoted to the theme as a way for people to connect with artists capable of working with flight-related imagery and to also connect others interested in both aviation and tattoos together. It’s a small group I am sure, but it’s worth it!

For now, we are assembling as many photos as we can from artists, studios, and wearers of aviation art to start putting content here each week. If you are interested in showcasing your photo, please email us at tattoosinflight@gmail.com with your photo (jpg or png please) and make sure to credit the artist, the studio (with location) and the studio website. If you have a story to share about the tattoo, please include that as well!

We are also looking for any stories relating to the interesting combination of aviation and tattoos… whether it’s a serious employment related story (such as “United Airlines wouldn’t hire me with my sleeves!”), or just a fun anecdote on how your tattoo came to be, please send that along too! Again, email us at tattoosinflight@gmail.com. We’ll keep your identity secret too, if that’s what you’d like.

For now, here’s a photo of the editor of the site… and his backpiece. It was designed by Chris Dingwell at Sanctuary Tattoo in Portland, ME and is an ongoing project.

The central figure in the image is Icarus falling from the sky (uncolored at this point). The orange mass at the top left is the sun… and the photo doesn’t do it justice at all. Very subtle colors and very vibrant.

The left lower back piece was designed as the start of the whole back project. The image was taken and adapted from a 1927 Airshow Program cover artwork. She represents “The Spirit of Propulsion” one of the two positive forces that makes flight possible. Done over 3 day-long sessions. Compare her with the “Spirit of Lift” in the backpiece.

The center top and right side is the “Spirit of Lift”, the other positive force that makes flight possible to balance the Spirit of Propulsion. She is adapted from the often used Vargas pin-up art that can be seen on many noses of WWII planes . She is in front of the 1894 Otto Lillienthal glider, one of the first practical and often flown glider designs. Of course the middle and lower parts aren’t done yet, and you can barely see Daedalus at the lower right. Three full-day sessions so far, up to three or so more to go.

This thigh piece was influenced by the early 30’s Bendix Trophy, an air race trophy in the art deco style. If you know the actual design of the trophy, you’ll notice this is like “if the trophy came alive”. The head shot is Jackie Cochran, famous female aviator. This was my first tattoo and took 20 hours.

So this is the start of hopefully a bunch of great photos and some great stories about Tattoos in flight!

Email us at tattoosinflight@gmail.com if you want to be part of the site!

Thanks! - The Editors.