Ori Flash Day at Hometown Tattoo
I still remember that time, years and years ago, when I first went into that ‘Indian/Head Shop’ situated on the Maaskade in Venlo. And the Indian Shop wasn’t the main thing. It was up that spiral staircase, where Greg Orie’s tattoo shop was situated above. It was a new world altogether!
Ori
The tattoo artist there, Greg Orie, who now calls himself Ori, was a cool guy, and I know many, many people from Tegelen, Venlo and beyond who got tattooed by him. I never got tattooed in that Shop on the Maaskade because I wasn’t 18 yet. I know, many had their tattoos before 18 at that time, but I just wasn’t one of the cool kids.
I did, however, go to Eindhoven and got tattooed in Ori’s shop, Dragon Tattoo later in my life. My first few tattoos were done by him. I still have my old tribals, because that was what was cool back then! Dragon Tattoo is still going strong and is run by Jim, Ori’s son. How cool is that, keeping the tradition in the family!
Richard also had his first tattoo experience at Ori’s shop, and Ori has been one of the inspirations for Richard to pick up tattooing. Even if that took a while.
Another Flash day
So when Ori posted that he’d be travelling in the Netherlands, doing hand-poke tattoos and spiritual sound circles, Richard reached out to Ori for a flash day at his shop, Hometown Tattoo. Ori loved the idea, so they quickly set a date, and as soon as I knew about it, I arranged a day off from work to help out a bit and take some photos to keep the day in our memories.
So on the 5th of October, I walked to Hometown Tattoo quite early and met Ori again. Ori and Richard were preparing a bit, so I helped where I could, and soon after, the first couple of guests arrived.
Ori had some flash they could pick from, which were all small to palm-sized ornaments and the Shanti Cristo Symbol. It didn’t take long for the first guest to pick a design and get tattooed.
Hand-poke tattooing
Ori doesn’t just hand-poke tattoo people, he does this with a small blessing ceremony. It’s a whole different experience from what I’m used to in tattooing up until now! I love the idea of bringing a bit of spirituality and ceremony into tattooing!
I already had a love for, and an interest in hand-poke tattoos, and this day added a lot for me. Ori inspired me to start practising again and to pick up drawing designs again. It’s still a learning curve, and I don’t know where it all will lead me, but I want to try hand-poke tattooing at least once.
Richard already offered to help me a bit, so soon I will practise the first one on human skin. My own skin, of course. I wouldn’t want to ruin someone else’s body! After I know whether this is something for me to keep exploring, and I really know what I’m doing, I might try on someone else, too.
Throughout the day, people came and went. Many got tattooed, and many of Ori’s old friends, customers and acquaintances from back in the day came by, so it was, all in all, a great day to be a part of. And of course, a great day to photograph! Ori tattooed for more than 12 hours that day, so it was busy enough!
I didn’t get a tattoo because of this, but that was ok for now, too. I felt that my part on this day was to observe, learn, and take photos to have something to remember the day by.
Thanks Ori and Richard for the cool day, the inspiration and for being you!
