When you come to Brighton, you can just about find strokes of colour anywhere you look. Sprayed onto walls, chalked onto concrete, dyed into hair, spread onto a canvas, and – as it turns out, inked onto bodies. Written by Xantippe Steele
There are many theories as to why the tattoo culture is so prevalent and important in Brighton. Perhaps the seaside town can find its inking history in the muscle armed and fish bearded seamen with striking jolts of colour spread across their forearms – storytelling their adventures offshore. Or maybe Brighton has just always been a harbour for an intense and passionate art scene. Either way, we are eccentric, bold, and creative. I got to see these attributes in full force on February 24th, upon visiting the renowned and nationally celebrated Brighton Tattoo Convention.
2024 celebrated the 15th anniversary of the Brighton Tattoo Convention, and warmly welcomed over 500 artists and traders to the Brighton Centre in an epic celebration of one of the most diverse and permanent art forms in the world. Upon entering, I was witness to floor after floor, alive with the soft buzzing of tattoo pens and shuffling of stencils, as people allowed their body to transform into a canvas of a colour and stories.
But it wasn’t just tattoo artists that filled the rooms, the convention also made space for a museum that celebrated tattoo anthropology, a meet and greet with Pascal Baggot – author of the research project “The Tattoo Writer”, a projected viewing of “Eternal Clothing; the tattooed shaman of Mentawai”, tattoo competitions, live music and the Xed Le Heads Divine Canvas Exhibition. If attendees didn’t want to commit to the lifelong contract of a tattoo, they could purchase art prints, clay models, keyrings, jewellery items, t-shirts, stickers, resin art, and so much more.
One of the tattoo artists I spoke to – Liv Hope (who specialises in traditional tattooing, her incredible work can be found on Instagram @livhopetattoo) described the convention as being “brilliant… always hosting the best artists, you are guaranteed quality here.” Liv, who had started off with making stencils for conventions and now celebrated her own tattoo stall, talked with me about how the Brighton Convention further stands out from other conventions as “Brighton always attracts the ‘other’ crowd.”
When I asked why tattooing as an industry was so popular, she responded by saying that it was the most “accessible art… you get to keep it with you all the time and you get your money’s worth everyday.” Liv was able to sum up the spectacular nature of the Brighton convention as it had “so much life and energy… this is what tattooing is about”. I couldn’t agree more, maybe it was the heaves of people milling through with admiring grins plastered onto their faces, or maybe it was the hive of conversations filling the atmosphere – but the convention was, very much, alive.
I’ve always believed tattooing itself to be one of the most living, breathing forms of artwork. It grows and evolves with the culture it finds itself in. Tattooing as a practice is over a millenia old, and when you track the styles through its ages, it is hardly recognisable between each culture shift. I talked about this more with the talented Richard McCane – co-owner of the @hallmarytattoostudio, who specialises in grey realism and embroidery patch tattoos. Richard grew up in a small village in South Wales, and was surrounded by a family who were covered in tattoos.
After completing a degree in fine arts, he pursued the tattoo industry – unaware that a few years down the line his success would reach the point where he and his partner completed a collaboration tattoo of Joe Rogan – a tattoo which went on to win an award and be shared by the muse himself. Richard’s biggest inspiration was always pop culture, and when conversing on the developing style of tattoos, he described how the tattoo industry is “much like the fashion industry, so it is always inspired by pop culture.
It all spirals, changes, and evolves.” Rob Blythin, owner of the Rare Candy Tattoo shop, backed up this sentiment. He told me how the “convention is amazing… it’s huge, other conventions are nowhere near the size and scope of this one”, which explained why he came all the way from Chester in order to showcase his work at the Brighton Tattoo Convention. Rob was inspired by other forms of pop culture too, having had his passion for tattooing being born from The Crow – a gothic movie filled with rock and alternative music. He went on to explain how “the culture is here. There are loads of cool things to do.” You can check out Rob and his amazing work, like the Captain Hook you can see below, @rarecandytattoo on Instagram. I find it so interesting that, unlike other art forms, tattooing lives and dies with the body it is inked on. It morphes between stages of life, refusing to stay stagnant in the busy planet we call home.
The reason why the nature of tattooing as an industry interested me so much is that I believe it resonated with the culture of Brighton in general. In my (totally unbiased opinion) Brighton gives New York a run for its money in owning the title of a city that never sleeps. It is constantly moving, melting and morphing into something new and exciting. The refreshing thing about Brighton is that no two days will ever look the same, no two buildings will ever have the same architecture, and no two people will ever have the same tattoo. If anything, the Brighton Tattoo Convention was an example of how Brighton is anything but stationary. This led me to think that this may be why the tattoo industry has long since been married to the Brighton community.
I had the pleasure of interviewing Timothy Smithen – who you might also know as Prisonstyle Tim, and can be found on Instagram @prisonstyle_brb. Tim specialises in the rather niche market of traditional hand poke freehand tattoos – a style that he comically explained he got into because he couldn’t ever figure out how to work a stencil machine. Tim lived in Brighton for 13 years, and told me how “Brighton has a really deep history of tattooing and a lot of very renowned tattoo artists.” He went on to explain how Brighton “is very inclusive and diverse… that heritage runs alongside tattooing very nicely. Anything goes with tattooing, there are no limitations or rules.” We did note after that not giving anyone ink poisoning was perhaps the only exception to this statement. This is a sentiment that echoes true to Brighton’s proudest trait – the unacceptable is expected in our city. We push the boundaries and ignore the borders, exploring unmarked territory and celebrating the unconventional.
When I spoke with Prisonstyle Tim, we touched lightly on how the atmosphere of the convention was very centred around community and a family based event. I noted how this was unusual, as the word “tattooing” doesn’t automatically bring to the surface ideas of family. On deeper reflection, it is bizarre how the tattoo industry is surrounded by a stigma of rowdy teenagers and troublemakers. In reality, tattooing isn’t an art that rose out of a basement with a needle and some biro ink, instead it is an expression of self that has existed for over a millenia. We were all reminded of this fact by The Brighton Tattoo Museum – a micro-museum
I came across whilst exploring the convention. Its curator, Meraki Fade, is a world renowned Geometric Dotwork tattoo artist. She is well versed in tattoo anthropology in remote tribal cultures. Even more impressively, she is the only European tattoo artist trained in hand tap tattooing, a skill she learned whilst living with the Iban head-hunter tribes in Sarawak, Borneo. The museum itself is focused on Tattoo Anthropology. It aims to challenge, inspire and educate on tattoo history and artefacts, whilst decolonising the academic space. The displays at the museum were no less than awe inspiring, I marvelled at the items dating all the way back to the 1700s, a statement to the rich history of tattoo culture. If nothing else, it was a reminder that the art of tattooing has always been significant in the history of man, it is a skill that should be respected and given the platform it deserves in our current day media.
It wasn’t just the eccentric artwork, beautiful lighting, or wide spread of different styles and artists that made the convention so stimulating. The people there and the stories I heard were absolutely wild, and really painted a picture on the diversity and entertaining nature of the tattoo industry. I had a chance to correspond online with Electric Feels Studio, who can be found on Instagram @electric.feels.studio. Electric Feels Studio merges two creative outlets through photography and tattoo art, in order to cultivate a truly immersive and cohesive art.
They are a female, POC, and LGBTQ+ owned and run company that aim to “change the problematic issues in the tattoo and photography industries.” Electric Feels Studio told me how they got into tattooing when they “met this kid in Salt Lake City who offered to let me tattoo a ram skull on him in his mom’s kitchen – the mom surprisingly was in full support of the idea and tattoo, by the way.” Perhaps one of the best dinner party stories I have heard to date – I wonder where that kid and his ram skull is now. The studio told me how “What I love about tattooing is seeing the joy it brings people; the confidence it gives them – how they feel more secure in their own skin…tattooing is special because it’s not only permanent but personal. It’s art that becomes part of someone’s identity, how they choose to express themselves. It’s an art that lasts longer than we do, and there’s an intimacy in the art form that makes it unique – this collaboration between tattooer and client, where trust and communication are paramount.” Electric Feels Studio is based in Dallas, Texas, so I was stunned to find out they had travelled all the way to Brighton – a subtle nod to just how inviting and incredible The Brighton Tattoo Convention was.
They supported this, saying “Absolutely loved it. The convention’s always so well-organised and has such an incredible mix of talent from around the world… Brighton, to us (me and my wife), has always felt like this safe, welcoming, vibrant city that celebrates diversity, and this convention mirrors that. There’s a real sense of community and respect; a celebration of art and inclusivity, which inevitably fuel innovation and allow artists to continue to push the boundaries of artistic expression.” Whether it be skull rams in your mothers kitchen, or another artist who described how she had an individual request a large recreation of his GTA character to be tattooed on his back, the tattoo industry is certainly one that never gets boring.
One of the most incredible floors of the entire convention had to be the Femme Fatale room. Grace Neutral, owner of Femme Fatale, started tattooing fourteen years ago when they began hand-poking from home. They started Femme Fatale as a tiny shop with two stations in it, and since then its growth has been exponential. The name, written in bold above the stall, was one of the most striking elements to the room. Grace told me that the inspiration came from the want to “show the male dominated industry that women can do it too.” Femme Fatale has been with the Brighton Convention for ten years, and Grace told me how last year the organiser Woody asked them to curate some of the space for the convention. This was clearly a good move, as Grace had managed to design one of the most beautiful and stimulating rooms at the entire convention.
They picked the artists and had dressed the entire room to make it warm and inviting. With music, plants, a cocktail bar, and warm pink lights, the environment and energy of the floor was immaculate – something Grace attributed to the good vibes and energy of the artists. Grace told me that Woody had hired them to diversify the space, and related this to the entire atmosphere in Brighton, saying that the “artists in Brighton are chill and there is a sense of community and connection with a lot of unity between tattoo shops… you have to watch out for the calibre of tattooing in Brighton, it’s really good.” Brighton, having earned itself the unofficial title as the gay capital of the UK, meant that diversifying the convention was fitting, and enabled a huge range of work to be displayed. Grace does their own custom work, and you can find Femme Fatale’s incredible artwork @femmefataletattoo on Instagram.
Grace sang all praises for Woody, the organiser of the event. Having worked with him for ten years, Grace talked about how “Woody pays attention to the growth and evolution in the new generation of tattooists… he is an open minded businessman who wants to evolve and grow for the better.”
Grace was quick to introduce me to the artist next to them – also part of the Femme Fatale family. In a striking bold pink, the letters above read “Get Tattooed By A Dyke”. I had the pleasure of speaking to Holly (you can check out their incredible work @hollydoestattoos) who is hackney based but does Brighton guest spots. They told me how what distinguishes tattoo art is the “permanence of it… it’s like wearing your pride on your sleeve.” (Who doesn’t love a good pun?) Holly went on to explain how the Brighton tattoo culture is so loved because it is “very queer friendly, it is such a nice environment, the tattoos are always so inclusive and it is such a safe space.” In a similar sentiment to that which I heard from Grace, Holly told me how “the tattoo community has gotten a lot better from the toxic masculinity era it used to be in – we can make anyone comfortable enough to get a tattoo.”
I am not, unfortunately, an individual that is covered head to toe in tattoos (bar one slightly unfortunate stick-and-poke I got when I was sixteen.) Yet, even to me, someone who has never felt a tattoo needle in my life, the convention was one of the most engaging and entertaining experiences I’ve had to date. I think this is because in Brighton, art is what brings us together. In a time where war, politics, confusion, and division are rife – it is art that remains solid in the chaos and carnage. Brighton lives and breathes innovation – this is the city that exists as the space outside of the box.
I was able to talk about this bold culture within Brighton with the talented JayCRising (@jay_c_rising on instagram) – resident artist of the Gilded Cage Tattoo Studio (@gildedcagetattoostudio on instagram) who works with James Robinson (you can find his work @the_illustratedjeweller.) His love of tattooing was born when drawing on the back of schoolbooks and doodling on his friends hand. JC told me how “the tattoo culture in Brighton lies with it being in a seaside town…being right next to London helped. Brighton has everyone tattooed left right and centre.”
The convention was no short of spectacular. If you want to attend the 2025 Brighton Tattoo Convention, details of this event will come out this summer. You can purchase your early bird tickets as early as October 2024.
In Brighton, creativity and self expression does not need to be contained to the four sides of a canvas. We are walking, talking, breathing portrayals of art and beauty. Whether your expression lies in the strings of a guitar, the wired ends of a paintbrush, or the nib of a tattoo pen, you are welcome here. JC put it perfectly when he said – “we (Brighton) have the most colour.”
