Miami Ink's Chris Garver Visits!

I've been waiting for this for weeks... actually since I found out from my sis last year that Singapore will host its 1st ever tattoo convention in Jan '09, and more recently, that Chris Garver of Miami Ink is coming down to our sunny island.

The talented team from Miami Ink: Chris Garver on extreme right.

I'm a fan of the show for two reasons: Firstly, the people who step into the shop requesting for tattoos each have a story to tell. I'm personally fascinated by these real-life stories, which have opened my eyes to the myriad of reasons ordinary people get tattoos. With Miami Ink, I started to see tattooing more as an "art form", a mode of self-expression.

Secondly, I am mesmerised by the artistic flair and raw talent of the tattoo artists on Miami Ink. I see people trickle in to the shop earnestly sharing their ideas, sometimes armed with a sketch or photo, and then I see how these guys transform these ideas into pure works on art. It's like bare skin is their canvas. The final product always blows my mind!

Miami Ink's Chris Garver & Kirby Lian on The Living Room.

In my opinion, one of the best tattoo artists around is Chris. This man is seriously GOOD at his craft. And I hope to one day be inked by him. He tells us though that the waiting list as of now is 15,000...

"15,001," I remind him, pointing to myself. Expectantly. But no such luck.

I must say it was a real pleasure chatting with Chris. He's warm and down-to-earth, and when he listens to you, he looks you attentively in the eye. When we were snapping the blog photo, he jokes, "So, do you want us to take off our shirts?" I was like OH. OKAY. But he just laughed it off... DARN.

Also on our couch this morning was Kirby Lian of Utopia Studio - the visionary behind the Singapore Tattoo Show 2009. It's undeniable how passionate this self-taught local tattoo artist is about his profession. He took a leap of faith by organising this convention, which will bring together tattoo artists from around the world.

It's truly an international platform where cultural ideas, styles and expertise will be exchanged. It's even garnered the endorsement of the Singapore Tourism Board. Kirby tells us that he plans to make this an annual event, which is exciting I think!

Well, I'm looking forward to checking out the convention this weekend. Who knows? You may just spot me with a brand new tattoo next Monday?

Singapore Tattoo Show 2009

9-11 Jan '09

11am - 10pm (Fri-Sat) 11am - 8pm (Sun)

Singapore Expo Hall 6B

$18 (1-day) / $50 (3-day)

www.tattoo.com.sg