Tattoo Artist Magazine - The Quarterly Trade Journal for the Professional Tattooer

by Crash

Greetings. I am writing for a couple of reasons. To ask for your input on a new project, to invite you to participate in that project, and to inquire if you would like to help support this project. Some of you already know the basics of what I'm proposing to do, some of you do not. Let me begin with some observations. First, I think we all know how little many of the tattoo magazine publishers care about the wants and needs of the professional tattoo artists; it is a well known fact that the target audience of any newsstand publication is first and foremost the general public, NOT the professional tattooer. It is my hope that we begin to change that circumstance and that the professional tattooers, who are the very backbone of all these publications, will have a bigger voice.

Most of these magazines are full of fluff, month after month, offering the pro very little in the way of useful information or artistic inspiration. The tendency is instead to fill the magazine with 60 pages of topless women, mindless convention reports (which ALL read exactly the same), poor quality tattoo photos from poor quality tattooers, and dozens of advertisements for products and services we will never need or use... all without ANY ethical considerations before ad space is granted. I don't personally know too many quality tattooers who even buy tattoo magazines anymore, and these are all contributing reasons.
What I am proposing is something new. Something that has never been achieved before: a new magazine EXCLUSIVELY for the professional tattoo artist and, in fact, this is summed up completely in the title of this new magazine: "TATTOO ARTIST MAGAZINE, The Quarterly Trade Journal for the Professional Tattooer". I am representing a coalition of tattoo artists willing to donate their time, talents, and money to put this magazine in your hands. Allow me to lay out our plans.

The first issue is in the works now. It will be about 84 pages in length (to begin with; We hope to build this up to over 120 pages per quarter), full color, glossy, 70# paper with a 100# cover, and the price will be $10-15 per issue. We plan to have issue #1 completed by early May and ready to go to print. All things considered, our first issue should be available by mid-May, 2003. Our distribution plan is as follows:

• Subscriptions: This is the big one. This is how Tattoo Artist Magazine will survive over the long haul. Subscription orders will be placed primarily through our website, but also via snail mail.

• Supply companies: we already have a few reputable supply houses willing to not only distribute TAM, but also to provide us with advertising in their catalogs and mailings.

• Convention sales: most of the artists involved with the creation and running of TAM will also be offering copies of the magazine at their personal convention booths throughout the year. This will put the product in plain sight for a majority of tattooers and allow us to get the exposure we need the first year to build up our subscription orders. (If any of you are willing to help out in this way, please let me know.)

In all of these arenas, our main objective is to ensure that this magazine is ONLY available to professional tattooers. (Now, we're not naive... we know we're going to see these on Ebay the week after it comes out. But we don't want to make it easy for this to happen.) This will be accomplished online by confirming their personal information before any order is filled and shipped. With many of our supplier friends, this is already a common practice. At conventions, one must be known as a tattooer or be able to provide us with a current, legitimate, business card and have their employment confirmed via telephone before they are able to purchase an issue. This will be tough and time consuming, but it's worth the effort to preserve the integrity of the publication.

All right, now on to what everyone wants to know... who's involved so far: (I'm going to apologize in advance for the apparent name-dropping here, but these are people already committed to offer their time and talents to help insure this magazine's success...)

• Cory Kruger is doing an original painting for the cover of issue #1, which we will make available as signed and limited numbered poster to the first 500 subscribers.

• The opening feature of issue #1 is a 30-page spread on Adrian Lee and the entire NewSkool Tattoo crew. This will be comprehensive and will contain interviews with each artist, artist histories, sketchbook pages, paintings, and, of course, tattoos.

• Adam Ciferri will be contributing a Traveling Tattoo Artist Journal and will contain some high profile tattoo interviews. First interview lined up: Marcus Pacheco (who is still tentative as of this writing.)

• BJ (Soba) Johnson's technical column to help tattooers better understand their equipment. Opening article will be on springs and spring theory.

• Seth Ciferri will also be doing technical articles from time to time.

• Mike Dorsey is the first contributor in our Painting segment. He will do an original watercolor for TAM and will document every stage of the process with photographs as well as discuss what he did at each stage and why. The final painting will be available as a poster in the centerfold for issue #1. Other artists already committed to this column are Guy Aitchison, Dave Fox, Kore Flatmo and Adam Barton. We hope to inspire all the artists out there with the opportunity to learn a new medium. We plan to cover every possible medium and there are easily another hundred guys and gals on our want list, but these are the people already committed so far.

• Every issue we will offer a product reviewed by a panel of 5 different tattooers for a period of 1 week. Any supplier advertising in TAM must be willing to provide us with their wares and put them to this ultimate test. (How beneficial could this column be to our community as a whole?)

• A Spotlight on Machine Builders; another chance to show quality products available only to the professional. Aaron Cain is slotted for issue #1 or # 2 and he'll be taking us step-by-step through the forging of a tattoo machine frame!! (How freakin' cool is that?!)

• There will also be a monthly showcase on up and coming artists, Jeff Zuck is set for issue #1!

• PunOne has a few interviews tucked away that he'll be offering as well, rumor has it that he has a Frank Lee interview to unveil.

• Mark Longenecker will also be contributing another artist interview (that is the name of the magazine, right?), first up: Will Lollie!

• A monthly column on the business concerns of tattooers and shop owners, this issue's topic will be on everyone's favorite subject: TAXES.

• In addition to all this, we will also have a section showcasing new flash, (some of which will ONLY be available to subscribers), a limited amount of submitted tattoo photos, comics, cool websites to check out, letters pages, and quality ads for conventions, flash distributors, supply companies, and artist/ shop ads.

Whew... which brings me to the point of this letter. By our current calculations, we need to sell only 16 pages of ads in order to pay for the printing and shipping of our first issue. That's it. We want every ad placed in this trade journal to be of impeccable reputation, every company and person to be by invitation, and the integrity of the magazine as a whole kept intact... but in order for this thing to become a reality we need everyone's help. If you like what you have heard so far about this magazine then consider placing an ad in our first issue to help ensure our success. Enclosed is out Advertiser Price Sheet, and there are discount rates for everyone willing to commit to a long-term contract. The quicker we fill our ad space, the better our publication will be, and the more confident we become that this idea we have is one shared by the many respected professionals we know in this community.

In addition to all that's been written so far, and all that's been offered to you, I also want to give you something else... a chance to be involved. Are you willing to help teach other tattooers your painting techniques? Tattoo tips and tricks? Then submit us your idea and write it. Would you like to have your newest work available for your friends and peers to see? Then send us your new tattoo photos for our submission section, ASAP for issue #1!! Shoot us your flash and we'll put it in our flash section. Let us know if you are interested in having a feature done on you or your shop. I'm positive that every one of us at one time or another has had a super idea for a magazine feature, and we all know artists who deserve more attention... take the time to make this thing as good as it can be. Most importantly, offer us your suggestions. Give us your comments, concerns, ideas. Let us know exactly what you want to see... after all, this magazine is for YOU. And that's not bullshit!

An update: After going to the Detroit show and handing out an introduction packet to all vendors and artists, I have committments from 4 more advertisers for a year (totalling 12 full pages of ads sold already within one week), 2 more convention promoters, and content submission comittments from:

Guy Aitchison: step by step oil painting/ and the photo documentation of his NEW sleeve done by Aaron Cain and Grime one week ago!! 10 hours a day, 2 days in a row... both guys drilling on him the whole time!

Mike Malone wants to do some writing for use, but we don't know what yet.

Every tattooer I spoke with wants to be involved! This is no joke. Every one has offered (for free) to write, photograph, distibute at conventions, provide us with original art, custom flash, whatever we need to help get the magazine going and to sustain its success.

Thanks to everyone helping to make this happen.
Thank you for your enthusiasm.
-
Crash
crash@tattooartistmagazine.com
(678) 283-5445