Another great year for the Nantes Tattoo Convention! An efficient organization, incredible artists, festive shows, and enthusiastic volunteers for this unmissable event of the French tattoo scene, to say the least. 315 artists from 17 different countries had gathered on the 23, 24th and 25th of September at the La Beaujoire Exhibitions Center in Nantes for this colorful event. There is no way to guess how many liters of ink have flowed or how long you could stroll down those alleys, but one thing is for sure: cheerfulness was everywhere. And that is one of the many things that contribute to this convention’s reputation: the quality of the artists on view and the guaranteed good vibes.
This year, 12.100 visitors were drawn, to be tattooed but also, to discover insanely talented artists and take the opportunity to shop with the many designers that were there. From jewels to Dr Martens, upcycled secondhand and decorating pieces worthy of the most obscure cabinets of curiosities, piercings, post-tattoo healing creams, anything you could wish for to leave with a few souvenirs from this beautiful weekend. Food-trucks were also invited, where visitors would satisfy their taste buds and recharge before getting inked.
At Virgile’s mic, the festivities’ program is being announced: Freaky Follies’ Burlesque Cabaret with Canelle’s show began raising the temperature, leaving the stage to the interviews. First was Verveine, director of documentary “L-Ink : Le docu tattoo avec des gens bien ! » (The Tattoo Documentary with good people), followed with Stéphane Guillerme, presenting his photograph exhibition and his books dedicated to the art of tattoo in India. As a novelty this year, the interviews progressively turned into discussions with artists such as Jubs, Tom Asylum, Amiral, Maude Miel or Clo Palimpseste. It was the opportunity to address topics that are important to them, like the evolution of tattoo parlors, the status of artist and craftsman, and the commitment to this profession.
A tattoo convention is also an awards show, which allows to congratulate and honor the artists and their work. The trophies, wooden sculpted hands beautifully painted by Emmanuelle Sola, were this year’s rewards. The results: - Small pieces in black and gray: @brunander Petites pièces noires et grises, tattoo: @brunander, tattoo: @lesubjectifobjectif Petites pièces noires et grises, tattoo: @brunander, tattoo: @lesubjectifobjectif - Small pieces in color: @rosered_tattoo Petites pièces couleurs, tattoo: @rosered_tattoo, photo: @lomax.photographe Petites pièces couleurs, tattoo: @rosered_tattoo, photo: @lomax.photographe - Best of Day on Friday: @jeancrenoire Best of day vendredi, tattoo: @jencrenoire, photo: @lesubjectifobjectif Best of day vendredi, tattoo: @jencrenoire, photo: @lesubjectifobjectif - Ornamental: nadoz_tattoo Ornemantal, tattoo: @nadoz_tattoo, photo: @lomax.photographe Ornemantal, tattoo: @nadoz_tattoo, photo: @lomax.photographe - Large pieces blackwork: leguyt_tattoo Grandes pièces blackwork, tattoo: @leguyt_tattoo, photo: @luciedewildephoto Grandes pièces blackwork, tattoo: @leguyt_tattoo, photo: @luciedewildephoto - Bast of Day on Saturday: @alexkrunk_tattoo Best of day samedi, tattoo: @alexkrunk_tattoo, photo: @luciedewildephoto Best of day samedi, tattoo: @alexkrunk_tattoo, photo: @luciedewildephoto - Large pieces in color: @lionelmonsieurbiz Grandes pièces couleurs, tattoo: @lionelmonsieurbiz, photo: @lesubjectifobjectif Grandes pièces couleurs, tattoo: @lionelmonsieurbiz - Realism: @catherinesteuer Réalisme, tattoo: @catherinesteuer, photo: @luciedewildephoto Réalisme, tattoo: @catherinesteuer, photo: @luciedewildephoto - Best of Day on Sunday: @siemor_ntc Best of day dimanche, tattoo: @siemor_ntc, photo: @luciedewildephoto Best of day dimanche, tattoo: @siemor_ntc, photo: @luciedewildephoto - Best of show: @sampaguitajay_tattoo Best of show, tattoo: @sampaguitajay_tattoo, photo: @luciedewildephoto Best of show, tattoo: @sampaguitajay_tattoo, photo: @luciedewildephoto
The annual meet of the auction kept its promises and even broke its record. A total of 17.570 € were collected for the benefit of the association Petit Encre which helps improve hospital life conditions for children with pediatric cancer. 71 skateboards were painted by the artists and some of them even drove the prices quite high. The sales profits of these unique and original pieces were entirely donated to the association created by Laurent Z.
In a nutshell, art, smiles, beer, and solidarity. That’s the type of convention you want to see more often. So how about we set the date, same place next year, from 2023 September 22nd to the 24th? @nantestattooconvention https://www.nantestattooconvention.com/
