The Philippine Tat Lair: Dutdutan X

MANILA, Philippines - I’m a tattoo virgin, which means I intend to get one soon — an eight-ray sun morphing into the Buddhist Dharm-achakra at the center of my lower back. For the uninitiated in all things tattoo including tattoo lovers themselves, the biggest, grandest, not-to-be-missed tattoo exposition is the annual Dutdutan Festival.

Now celebrating a decade of epidermal ink, this year’s Dutdutan X held last Sept. 24 and 25 at the World Trade Center gathered hundreds upon hundreds of people from various walks of life — predominantly punks, metal heads, hip-hoppers, skaters, artists, musicians, bikers, gangsters, the young and the young at art. From a one-day affair in an underground bar called Garahe in Mabini, Manila in 2005 with tattoo competitions and some band performances, the tattoo event has now grown to a two-day shebang including more bands plus the testosterone-filled URCC, a double-daring bikini contest, and drum duels.

Tattoos have served as punishment, rites of passage, marks of status and rank, religious and spiritual devotion, deco for bravery, sexual

Madonna man: A winning piece from Shadow Ink.

lures, pledges of love, marks of fertility and, needless to say, as identifying emblems of more criminally-inclined folk. A tattoo is commonly perceived as the mark of a rebel, but this isn’t always the case. Take it from Tribal Gear founder Bobby Ruiz who brandishes the name of his daughter as his first tattoo, while Tribal Ink’s guest artist this year, internationally sought-after Franco Vescovi’s first tattoo was the portrait of his mother when she pushed daisies. Believe it or not, The Wuds’ vocalist/bassist and Avatar Tattoo’s Alfred Guevara’s first tattoo is an “Aum” done in Sanskrit on his left hand. One week after Alfred got his tattoo in October of 1989, his destiny awakened and he felt “triggered to become a tattoo artist.” In May 1995, he, along with Nero Nievo and Mike Sambazon, among other founding members, established the Philippine Tattoo Artist Guild (PHILTAG) primarily for safety measures. “Dapat bago ang mga gamit for health and hygiene purposes at para maiwasan ang sakit kasi kung may nagkasakit, maaapektohan lahat ng artists. Dapat magkaisa ang patungo ng mga tattoo artists.” The second reason they formed PHILTAG is to unite artists to professionalize the industry and to enhance the tattoo artist community.

Von Damn: A portrait of Kat Von D by Vice Ink’s Marlon Capuno.

Being a former president of PHILTAG from ’96 to ’04, Alfred proudly states that tattoos are more acceptable now in contrast to the ‘60s and ‘70s, though discrimination from the corporate norm still exists. “Mabuti nalang ngayon nagpapa-tattoo din ang mga celebrity at alta de ciudad,” he enthuses, adding that if the Pope or if P-Noy got a tattoo, it would validate the saying that goes, “What great men do, common man follows.”

The Skinny On Skin Art

But tattoos aren’t for everybody and beyond it being a matter of your threshold for pain, tattoos, as Bobby Ruiz puts it, “hold a special place and meaning of a significant time of your life. They’re timepieces and extensions of your self.” This indelible art of self-expression and identity is one you’ll carry permanently, so don’t get a tattoo because it’s the fad. It’s not recommended either for those of weak character and those who aren’t in the right frame of mind (obviously that includes wasting ink while wasted). Bottom line is: think before you ink it!

Raoul Olbes of Vice Ink, a tat parlor and coffee shop in Makati, explains the current tattoo trends: “It’s now a Polynesian style of tribal art (characterized by) black and shading, basic shapes and weaving. People are going back to a traditional style of tribal because they’re more educated.” Some of these Polynesian patterns have been around more than hundreds of years. Pointing to the Polynesian tattoo on his leg, he emphasizes that he got his for aesthetic reasons. “Ours is more of body art instead of telling stories. There are different ways of expressing body art and we want to make it less taboo and more of art appreciation.”

Tattoo costing depends on size, color, location and detailing. It’s usually a grand per square inch. It’s gonna hurt and tattoo shops ain’t giving out Ponstan. The procedure can take anywhere from 15 minutes to six hours to several sessions, but when it’s over, you’re anything but a convict. You’re now of a breed with your own convictions.