Rich Handford is a tattoo artist working out of Kapala Tattoo in Winnipeg, Manitoba. He has owned the shop since 2003 and has a great team working at the shop, and his own experience as a tattooer dates back to 1999.
Sleeve featuring a Hannya mask and chrysanthemumA tiger and snake back piece
Rich specializes in Japanese but also does great neo-traditional and occasional American traditional work. On his Instagram page you’ll find mainly colour work, but if you’re in the market for a piece without colour Rich can handle that for you as well.
An American traditional swallow and flowersNeo-traditional panther, flowers, and jewel
Rich’s portfolio is full of mainly large scale work such as sleeves and back pieces, but if you’re looking for something smaller he can take care of it.
Koi fish sleeve and cherry blossomsBright Mahakala and cherry blossoms
In addition to owning and operating Kapala Tattoo, Rich has been instrumental in getting the Red River Exhibition Park Tattoo Convention up and running, taking place every summer.
Kitsune and cherry blossomsDragon and hannya sleeve
If you’re in the area or are passing through Winnipeg Rich is a must-see artist at a great shop.
Foo dog and peony back pieceHealed snake and crane back piece
A number of people have brought to my attention that Max Rathbone has a large number of sexual assault and abuse allegations against him. Whether they are true or not is not for me to decide, but the number of women making claims against him is outstanding. Hence I have deleted photos of his work and will not be including him in future articles.
If you or someone you know has been abused by a tattoo artist, please say something. It’s an industry that unfortunately all too often allows men to prey on innocent people that are in a vulnerable position.
Spirited Away is Hayao Miyazaki’s most popular film to date. It is an Academy Award winner, and Japan’s highest grossing film of all time. It came out in 2001 and is still one of the most popular Japanese films out there.
Bright neon, neo traditional take on Haku and Chihiro with a smiling No Face underneath. Done by Brando Chiesa in Florence, Italy.Dotwork No face with soot sprites and bath house done by Hugo on Seoul South Korea.Yubaba and heads done by Russell Van Schaick in Orlando Florida.
The film was created without a script. The artwork came first, and it was drawn, directed, and written by Miyazaki himself.
Cute little soot sprites and cherry blossom branch done by Carly Kroll at Seven Tails Tattoo in Melbourne Australia.Three tiny soot sprites done by Jessica Channer at Tattoo People in Toronto Canada.Watercolor Haku by Jess Hannigan at Paper Moon Tattoo Collective.No face with leaves done by Scott M Harrison in Melbourne Australia.
The lead character, Chihiro, was actually based on one of Miyazaki’s friends’ daughters. She was supposed to be a relatable character and as average as possible. This was to show that ordinary people, particularly young women, could be heroes too.
Black and grey portrait of Chihiro with some kanji, done by Kozik in Melbourne.Haku and Chihiro in a geometric background done by Joice Wang at Grit N Glory in New York City.Cute No face with cherry blossoms by Lunie Chan at Coup de Foudre.Dotwork geometric No face done by Violette Chabanon at Bleu Noir in paris France.
A common occurrence in Miyazaki films are the quiet scenes of inaction. These are often some of the most beautiful scenes in his films. In Spirited Away, these scenes include driving, various nature scenes, and characters staring off into the distance.
Another vibrant Haku with cherry blossoms done by Chris Stockings at Legacy Tattoo.No face offering his gold done by Josh Legend who is a traveling tattooer.Sketchwork watercolor Haku done by Marc Durrant at Hidden Los Angeles Tattoo.
Spirited Away has many memorable characters that make for fantastic tattoos. Some of the most popular characters for tattoos are no face, Chihiro, Haku, Yubaba, and the cute little soot sprites!
Another soot sprite hard at work, done by David Le Goon in Melbourne Australia.Start to a sleeve featuring Chihiro, Haku, and the bath house. Done by Josh Crotty in Duluth MN.Whimsical Watercolor Haku done by Josie Sexton.No face with the bath house and sky inside of him, done by Matteo Nangeroni.
These tattoos are often done in blackwork, neo traditional, dotwork, and watercolor.
No face in full rage done by Hori Benny in Osaka Japan.Dotwork No face and soot sprites done by Jules Gordon at Frontier Tattoo Parlour in Cardiff Wales.New school Haku head done by Simon Zook in Santiago Chile.Bright geometric No face done by Simon K Bell at Design 4 life in liverpool England.
Monmon is a Japanese term for tattoo, and a monmon cat is a cat with tattoos. They were designed by Horitomo, a Japanese tattoo artist well known for his hand work (tebori) and his monmon designs. He published a book entitled Monmon Cats and has inspired other tattoo artists around the world.
Sassy looking cat with skeletons by Amber Bananafish at Bananafish Tattoo Parlour.
Monmon cats are usually done in traditional Japanese style, and usually have their own Japanese tattoos. They can also be done realistically, in black and grey, and have other tattoos such as American traditional, flowers, and skulls.
Realistic cat with rose by Ash Valentine.Samurai cat by Simina at Old Bastards Tattoo Shop in Romania.New school cat with geisha back piece by Heather Sinn at Tattoo Room in Simi Valley, CA.Matching foot monmon cats by Horitomo at State of Grace tattoo in Japantown SJ, CA.Another by Horitomo with American traditional tattoos.Stomach cat by Horitomo with peony tattoos and a fun ball of yarn.Full sleeve with monmon cat also by Horitomo.More matching monmon by Horitomo with mean looking Oni!Monmon cat doing its own tebori tattooing by Jason Rose.Large monmon with koi fish and cherry blossoms by Jamie Negro at Be Hardcore Tattoo.Monmon with waves by Kika Blunt.Monmon with cloud and wind designs and cherry blossoms by Luana Cavalcoli.Monmon drinking sake with a wicked dragon tattoo and flowers by Sarah Baldwin at Control Tattoo in FL.Cute cat with peony flower tattoos by Sebastian Giraldo Nieto.Blackwork monmon cat with skull inspired by Takiyasha the Witch and the Skeleton Spectre by Utagawa Kuniyoshi done by Steph White at Cock A Snook Tattoo Parlour in Newcastle.
The geisha, or, “person of accomplishment” date back to 1751 in the mid-Tokugawa period in Japan. Geisha’s were originally men, but eventually became women.
Deep in thought by Ami James.
Geisha’s were trained artists skilled in tea ceremony, flower arranging, and as singers, dancers, storytellers, servers, and conversationalists. These women were all literate and were familiar with poetry and tales of warriors in order to entertain their patrons. Geisha’s were not prostitutes, but worked in the pleasure districts, also called “the floating world” and while not they were not sex workers, some did become concubines or mistresses for men who would buy their contracts from their masters.
Black and grey neo Japanese geisha with cherry blossoms by Andrew Mcnally at Northside Private Rooms in Newcastle, UK.Realistic side/stomach piece with cherry blossoms by Anna Yershova.Brilliant Japanese back piece by Horiyasu.
Geisha’s are known for their musical prowess, particularly with an instrument called samisen, which today is also used in kabuki plays and has an inherently “Japanese” sound. As for appearance, while working a geisha would wear a kimono tied from the back, which is another difference between a geisha and a prostitute as a prostitute would have her kimono tied in the front. A thick white foundation of makeup is applied to the face, neck, and upper chest, with a line around the hairline creating a mask like appearance. Other makeup includes black around the eyes and eyebrows with bright red lips.
Fantastic neo traditional neck piece also with cherry blossoms, by Daniel Gensch in Berlin, Germany.A more Westernized neo traditional geisha by Emily Rose Murray in Melbourne, Australia.Blackwork Japanese piece of a sly looking geisha by Gakkin in Amsterdam.Another traditional Japanese back piece with cherry blossoms, skeleton, and Buddhist imagery by Horihana in Brazil.Dark American traditional geisha and flower by Jarrad Serafino at The Sweet Life Tattoo in Melbourne, Australia.
Geisha’s still exist today, though due in part to the rigorous training in order to become one, are much less frequent. Today, geisha’s mainly entertain politicians at parties.
Neo traditional namakubi or severed head geisha with peony by Kevin Nocerino at Still Life Tattoo.Realistic black and grey geisha by Mark Wosgerau at Sinners Inc in Denmark.Bold mix of black and grey and colour in a realistic style by Michael Litovkin.Soft, colourful, realistic geisha by Pavel Krim in Stockholm.American traditional black and red work by Reuben Todd at Kapala Tattoo in Winnipeg.
As a tattoo a geisha will generally be done in Japanese traditional style, neo Japanese, American traditional, neo traditional, black and grey, or realism.
American traditional work by Shon Lindauer in Hollywood.Fantastic Japanese piece by Thomas Pineiro at Black Garden Tattoo in the UK.Bold American traditional piece by Tony Nilsson in Norway.Modern watercolor piece by Victor Octaviano in Brazil.tiny blackwork geisha and hannya by William Roos in Stockholm.Geisha head and fan by Zak Partak in Toronto.
Geisha’s are an important part of Japanese history and make a fantastic design!
Sean Cushnie is a talented artist working out of Kapala Tattoo in Winnipeg. His style is both neo traditional and neo Japanese. Sean uses a mix of black and grey with bright colours to make his work pop. Sean’s black and grey work borders on realism while his colour is solid neo traditional, making it not only a mix of colouring, but also mixing style.
Monkey King!Neo Japanese sleeve featuring a hannya, chrysanthemum, and waves.Neo traditional black and grey woman with red flowers.Another neo traditional woman with skull and flowers.Bright red hannya.Very royal looking neo traditional woman mixing black and grey and colour.Neo Japanese peony flower and snake with vibrant colours.Japanese shoulder koi with cherry blossoms and waves.Black and grey woman and hannya with red flowers.Black and grey religious Sacred Heart.Another mix of black and grey and colour with bright orange and red, featuring nature themes.Mermaid with skull make of waves.Bright neo Japanese dragon sleeve with clouds as background.Neo Japanese body panel with a huge tiger.One final neo traditional sleeve of Roman warrior and skull.
Sean is a must see Winnipeg artist for your neo trad needs.
Nissaco is a tattoo artist based in Shinsaibashi Osaka at an unnamed private studio that goes by the name room_23_26 on Instagram.
Smaller scale pieces. Healed waves and fresh geometrical shell design.
Nissaco does mainly large scale pieces such as full sleeves, back pieces, and even body suits. His style is black geometrical work and it is extremely detailed.
Big and painful back of the leg going right over the knee ditch with some popping red in the mandala and linework designs.Full back piece right over the butt and legs leading into a great sleeve on the left arm. Some great use of negative space in the back.Fantastic sleeve with bird skull and eye mixed with geometrical designs.
His work is hard sought after with visitors going to see him from all around the world. Along with having clients from around the world, he also travels, going to various tattoo conventions. Most recent he will be at the 13th London Tattoo convention in September 2017.
Filler neck/throat piece that fits great with the adjacent neck pieces.Matching geometric sleeves.Full back and legs with a lot of heavy blackwork for filler.Full front is a tender area going right onto the nipples, with brilliant line work and heavy blacks.Brilliant full torso, sleeve, and two leg sleeves with geometric designs and a hidden face.Half body suit full of heavy blacks in large scale geometrics.Fantastic intricate healed geometric design.
Along with being geometrical in design, Nissaco’s work also often features classic Japanese elements such as dragons, waves, flowers, snakes, koi fish, and hannya masks. These pieces are almost entirely black, but occasionally feature a small amount of red to make them really pop.
Full front, sleeve, and half leg sleeve. Featuring a brilliant Japanese dragon, and flowers such as chrysanthemums and cherry blossoms.Great geometric koi fish with some colour thrown in.Heavy blacks and lots of negative space with this angry hannya.Another hannya coming off of a sleeve and onto the back.
Nissaco is a must see artist in Osaka, Japan, but book well in advance as his books fill up fast!
Ichi Hatano is an artist working out of Tokyo, Japan. He has been tattooing since 1998 and has tattooed around the world in the United States, England, and Germany.
Backpiece featuring a samurai.Japanese woman backpiece.3/4 sleeve with a fantastic dragon.
His specialty is the traditional Japanese style of irezumi. His work is bold and precise. Ichi has brilliant attention to detail, and his work is full of the Japanese culture and tradition that people go to him for, from around the world.
Brilliant koi backpiece.3/4 sleeve with beautiful clouds as the background.Half sleeve of cherry blossoms, clouds, and wind.Colourful Oni looking ready for a fight.Samurai and a dragon in a delicate embrace.Gruesome Namakubi.Beautiful, tiny peony flower.Great contrast in this sleeve between the bright and dark.
Ichi Hatano is a must see artist if you’re in Tokyo.
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