Refusal To Ink

I just got back from my tattoo consultation - my artist won't put a biomechanical on the side of my neck because he thinks (and apparently most respectable artists do) I'm not ready for it.

Well what the fuck. I sport a blue mohawk and have a barcode on the back of my neck. If that doesn't say I don't care what you think about me I don't know what does. I work in a shop, so nobody's going to give a shit - and I'll end up in the welding field anyway...like anyone there gets judged on appearance rather than skill and talent.

I'm mildly upset - but I think I'd be more concerned if my artist went right ahead without any hesitation, now that I think about it. It's a pretty high-end parlor. We're just going to plan for a full sleeve instead, that'll have to do for now :P

Thoughts anyone ?

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Permalink Reply by spike on January 10, 2009 at 6:52pm

it sux when people wont tattoo you cause of where you want my artist calls it a job killer and yeah employers discriminatory bull shit sux i just quit my job because of it but at the end of the day bro you gotta be proud of who you are it takes more to rebel for what you believe in or want then to give in. thats whats important, besides theyll do your neck when you run out of space

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Permalink Reply by Khaos on January 11, 2009 at 1:03am

A good artist will also do so with your best interests in mind. What if he needed to pick up a second job, part time, and doesn't want to work at a fast food chain? He is still getting something that he wants...and has the rest of his life to get that neck tattoo. And you don't see many people with a highly visible neck tattoo working in an environment that pays a half way decent wage, especially where I live.
Potential employers can say no. Uniform policies, etc. and it could affect your work environment (especially if you work with the general public and locale). It's not necessarily discrimination, per se, but if you were better qualified than a monkey they hire over you, that would be another story.

I know a kid who was in such a rush to get his throat tattooed (he's 29 or 30) that he stopped caring about the quality of his tattoo and who did it... :-\