Hanamichi (English and Japanese Edition)

Tattoo Flash. Tattoo Designs. Tattoo ideas. Most folks know that I m an ex-pat from America and that I came to Japan 5 years ago to enter into a traditional Japanese tattoo apprenticeship at Chopstick Tattoo in Osaka. What a lot of people don t know is that before my professional debut in 2007 I produced literally hundreds of hand colored tattoo flash designs as a sort of spartan training exercise. This artwork has been collected into a beautiful hardcover volume titled, Hanamichi, and is my first foray into the world of publishing. This collection of tattoo flash chronicles the first leg of my journey through a traditional Japanese tattoo apprenticeship. In under 12 months I produced over 250 sheets of flash, covering a number of mediums, genres and styles. Several of these sheets have been reproduced here to inspire and stimulate creativity. Text is both English and Japanese. The hanamichi (literally translated, the flower road ) is a term used in Japanese Kabuki theatre for the long wooden catwalk-like bridge used by the wild colorful actors to ascend to the main stage. Though distinct from center stage, the flower road runs directly through the audience and thus the actor is uniquely positioned for a dramatic entrance. It would be three long years before I finally ascended to the stage of the Japanese tattooing world. In that final year when my apprenticeship finally began in earnest, I produced the tattoo flash presented in this book. It is a mix of varying designs of eastern and western influence spanning several genres. Though portions are rough and raw, they are the humble result of my efforts in a time of learning, education, and growth. This flash collection was my brief performance along the road of flowers.