Who Would Agree to Get a Mystery Tattoo?
Photo: Marisha Camp
Sunday night, backstage at a chilly gallery in Chelsea, Scott Campbell hunched over a disembodied forearm, his tattoo gun buzzing.
“I don’t want to sound like some crotchety old tattooer who’s like, ‘It’s so nice not to have to talk to the person I’m tattooing,’” said Campbell, who’s tattooed stars like Marc Jacobs, Sting, and Orlando Bloom. But he did, admittedly, benefit from the absence of small talk: “I can just follow inspiration. I don’t have to have permission.”
The appendage Campbell was working on at the moment belonged to Nate Schlie, a 20-year-old fashion student from Cincinnati, who had stuck his arm through a hole in a Milk Studios gallery wall as part of Campbell’s exhibit “Whole Glory.” He was the last of 23 people selected by lottery as part of the four-day exhibit that began Thursday and closed Sunday night. Like the other 22, Schile received a free, permanent, palm-size tattoo of the artist’s choosing. (Normally, Campbell’s tattoos start at about $1,000 an hour.)
“It is freedom that as a tattooer I have never had,” Campbell explains. “I feel like tattooers are kind of like the strippers of the art world. We get into tattooing because we like the lifestyle, and we like what seems like freedom, but no matter how good of a tattoo artist you are, it is always a service industry.”
Campbell had no knowledge of the people attached to the disembodied arms that bravely (or stupidly) appeared before him for a mystery tat, but even without knowing their history, their gender, or their tastes, Campbell said that he feels a telepathic connection. “Call it subliminal, call it juju,” he said. “But there’s a real communication that happens in choosing the design for people.” And many of those who went under his tattoo gun agree.
Sunday night, at the closing party for the exhibit, the Cut interviewed 16 of Campbell’s new clients — the first-timers, the tattoo-llectuals, and the superfans. Click ahead for more.
Jen Pountain, Office Manager at a private equity firm, 42 My mom and my dad both passed away, so I always talk to my mom in my head if I’m upset ...
Jen Pountain, Office Manager at a private equity firm, 42 My mom and my dad both passed away, so I always talk to my mom in my head if I’m upset about something. All yesterday, I kept thinking about it, and I was like, Mom, I really need this, I really want this, I need you to help me get this. I said, When I get picked you need to be right next to him, and you need to guide him because I need to know that you are still with me. He wrote "Love" on my arm and my heart just tightened up because I knew that she somehow got through to him. Now this is how I know she’s always around.
Photo: Marisha Camp
Brenna McShane, Costume Designer, 23 It wasn’t really an issue, trusting him — he’s not going to draw a dick on my arm. I’ve trusted other people...
Brenna McShane, Costume Designer, 23 It wasn’t really an issue, trusting him — he’s not going to draw a dick on my arm. I’ve trusted other people in way worse circumstances than this. I let my friend drive my car one time when she was drunk and she crashed it into someone’s BMW and then I had to pay for that — so I’ve had much worse experiences than someone fucking up my arm.
Photo: Marisha Camp
Steve Ali, Student at Columbia University, 19 I have these massive burn scars on my forearm — so despite the fact that I wouldn’t be able to spea...
Steve Ali, Student at Columbia University, 19 I have these massive burn scars on my forearm — so despite the fact that I wouldn’t be able to speak or issue any expectation, my forearm will not be silent.
Photo: Marisha Camp
Klever lliguipuma, Tattoo apprentice, 20 I have been trying to chase Scott Campbell for as long as I can remember. I got tattooed at the shop he ...
Klever lliguipuma, Tattoo apprentice, 20 I have been trying to chase Scott Campbell for as long as I can remember. I got tattooed at the shop he owns, Saved Tattoo, and that’s where I met him the first time. He changed my life in terms of how an artist can be and how I can approach it. He saved my life, almost.
What was it like to get tattooed by him? It’s a new experience in life, like when you go see your favorite band, in the front row, or when you have great sex, or sometimes if you have a really really, good meal — something that pushes you to the edge and back.
Photo: Marisha Camp
Anette Nilsen, Sales Coordinator, 22 You are really putting all of your trust in this person. I was hoping he would see that my arm is a lady-arm...
Anette Nilsen, Sales Coordinator, 22 You are really putting all of your trust in this person. I was hoping he would see that my arm is a lady-arm and he would do something nice. I wouldn’t change anything, but I would maybe ask what the meaning behind it.
Photo: Marisha Camp
Megan Campbell (no relation), Talent Rep, 27 A lot of my tattoos are on a whim or after a couple of drinks. I pulled my arm out of the wall, and ...
Megan Campbell (no relation), Talent Rep, 27 A lot of my tattoos are on a whim or after a couple of drinks. I pulled my arm out of the wall, and I couldn’t be happier. I secretly told one of my friends that if I got a skull, I wouldn’t be annoyed by it, because I think what he's doing is so cool — but I would have been like, Oof, it doesn’t go with my other tattoos.
Photo: Marisha Camp
Elias Garcia, Bobcat Driver at a recycling plant, 28 I had four tattoos and now I have six. I got one in the morning, and one in the afternoon, f...
Elias Garcia, Bobcat Driver at a recycling plant, 28 I had four tattoos and now I have six. I got one in the morning, and one in the afternoon, for Friday the 13th. My friend and I have a tradition of getting tattoos on Friday the 13th; we’ve been doing it for four years.
Photo: Marisha Camp
Jennifer Diaz, Server, 29 I wanted to do something different — putting my trust in someone and letting that person decide what could go on my arm...
Jennifer Diaz, Server, 29 I wanted to do something different — putting my trust in someone and letting that person decide what could go on my arm, and something that would be with me for the rest of my life. I have a tattoo that says "Trust No One," so it's sort of ironic.
Photo: Marisha Camp
Eric Lagerberg, Architect, 54 It’s my first tattoo. I have a daughter who is really into tattoos, but we don’t let her tattoo anything with a hea...
Eric Lagerberg, Architect, 54 It’s my first tattoo. I have a daughter who is really into tattoos, but we don’t let her tattoo anything with a heartbeat— she tattoos fruits and things like that. She’s 16 and she saved up her Christmas money and bought a tattoo gun. I like the piece for a lot of different reasons, but I had to rehearse what I would do if I didn’t like it. But I got the double win: I like the image, and I got to experience the whole thing.
Photo: Marisha Camp
John Gachot, Interior Designer, 45 It’s nice to give someone a blank canvas, to just let them run and do what they want to do. Sometimes it’s nic...
John Gachot, Interior Designer, 45 It’s nice to give someone a blank canvas, to just let them run and do what they want to do. Sometimes it’s nice to design within constraints and parameters, but sometimes it’s really great, if you are in that flow, to just do what comes out of you.
Photo: Marisha Camp
Oscar Portillo, Student at Queen's College, 21 I've been a fan of Scott Campbell for years. I love the tattoo I got; I love the boldness of the l...
Oscar Portillo, Student at Queen's College, 21 I've been a fan of Scott Campbell for years. I love the tattoo I got; I love the boldness of the lines and the little detail in the butterfly. And it flows with all of my other tattoos, so it isn’t just random lines.
Photo: Marisha Camp
Hanser Pimentel, Location Scout, 35 I was the first person picked, and it felt really surreal. A few minutes earlier I was going to work, and the...
Hanser Pimentel, Location Scout, 35 I was the first person picked, and it felt really surreal. A few minutes earlier I was going to work, and then suddenly I’m the focus of an active art project and performance. I love the story that’s going to exist with this tattoo — tattoos should have a great story.
Photo: Marisha Camp
Ian Milliken, Musician/Composer for Film and TV, 30 There is a lot of pressure from spectators that I didn’t expect, but that heightens the whole...
Ian Milliken, Musician/Composer for Film and TV, 30 There is a lot of pressure from spectators that I didn’t expect, but that heightens the whole experience. People came into the gallery, and were taking pictures of me, and asking me all these really personal questions that put me on the spot, Like, "Aren’t you nervous?" or "You’re going to have to live with that your whole life," while I’m getting tattooed through the wall.
Photo: Marisha Camp
Jack Oberle, Student at The New School, 19 This is my first tattoo, and my dad hates it. He was like, "Wow, your job opportunities are going...
Jack Oberle, Student at The New School, 19 This is my first tattoo, and my dad hates it. He was like, "Wow, your job opportunities are going to be limited now." But I don’t want to be a doctor or a lawyer. My dad was like, "I’m going to sand-belt it off." His views are really antiquated. He was like, "Think about how it reflects on me as a parent."
Photo: Marisha Camp
Alexis Augustin, Digital Marketing Associate, 31 I don’t think I would ever pick a snake myself, or get a snake on my arm, but it’s growing on me...
Alexis Augustin, Digital Marketing Associate, 31 I don’t think I would ever pick a snake myself, or get a snake on my arm, but it’s growing on me, and I’m still getting used to having a tattoo on my arm. I think I would have picked one of the skulls or the geometric things, but I’m happy I got this.
Photo: Marisha Camp
Philip McAlpine, Flower Deliveryman, 23 What do you think of the snake? I wasn’t expecting it to be this big, so I am happy about that, and when ...
Philip McAlpine, Flower Deliveryman, 23 What do you think of the snake? I wasn’t expecting it to be this big, so I am happy about that, and when I saw that it was all these small lines and detail work I was very happy. It wasn’t what I expected, but I do love it a lot.
Photo: Marisha Camp
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