The Art Advisory Committee hosted a panel discussion on contemporary tattooing at the Student Union on Thursday, featuring three tattoo artists from New Orleans.
Dale Newkirk, Southeastern University art gallery curator, moderated the discussion of the three artists in the Union’s Atchafalaya Room with about 15 people in attendance.
Professional tattoo artists Donn Davis, Ed Dieringer and Adam Montegut answered various questions from the moderator and audience members.
“Tattooing is a craft, not an art,” Davis said.
All three of the men emphasized the importance of apprenticeship in the tattoo industry.
Davis said so few people do apprenticeships today, and it shows in the prevalence of amateur tattooing across the country. He said there are tattoo schools, but he would never get a tattoo from someone who wasn’t an apprentice first. There has to be a one-on-one mentor-and-apprentice relationship, he said.
“You can’t learn it by watching YouTube,” Davis said.
When Dieringer was asked how long his apprenticeship was, he responded with “25 years.”
Dieringer said he doesn’t get many people “on the fly” off the streets in his shop, and he never tattoos anyone who is intoxicated.
“If it is something that is going to impair your judgment and our ability to tattoo you, we will probably manipulate the situation to where we don’t tattoo you,” Dieringer said.
Jon Woodcock, history senior, attended the discussion for an American Folklore class project.
Woodcock said he has two tattoos and plans to get more.
“It’s addicting as hell,” Woodcock said. “I can’t even describe it. When it is done, it almost feels like you have accomplished something.”
One of Woodcock’s tattoos is an image of horses his grandmother drew before she died. He said people shouldn’t judge others’ tattoos until they know the meaning behind them.
The current exhibit featured in the LSU Student Union Art Gallery features modern and traditional applications of tattoos and conveys the social, symbolic and aesthetic significance of this art throughout the world, according to the LSU Student Union Art Gallery website.
Judi Stahl, Union Art Collection and Gallery director, said she has heard from students who appreciate the exhibit showing tattooing in a positive light.
