Massacre makes killing putting ink on others
A top New York tattoo artist is in the country, leaving her mark on the Kiwis she encounters.
Megan Massacre, in New Zealand for this weekend’s NZ Tattoo and Art Festival in New Plymouth, made a name for herself with TV appearances on shows such as New York Ink and America’s Worst Tattoos.
‘‘Wherever you go, there’s a flavour of each culture and it’s constantly evolving,’’ the 31-year-old tattoo model says. ‘‘Trends take time to travel the world, but in New Zealand, you see a particularly rich history with tribal tattoos.’’
When Massacre began tattooing 13 years ago, she was living in a small town in Pennsylvania.
‘‘It was just different back then. Tattoos were associated with gangs.’’
And when she told her parents of her passion, Massacre’s father was the most disappointed.
‘‘We actually didn’t talk for a while until one day, he walked into a 7-11 and saw a magazine with a picture of me on the cover.
‘‘He called me and was like, ‘you must have done something right. I had no idea’.’’
Now, Massacre says she’s working on a full-back piece for him.
For about $568 an hour, Massacre will create vibrant, indefinite designs for just about anyone who walks in the door of her New York shop, Grit N Glory.
Massacre says she spent years tattooing parts of the body she would say no to these days.
‘‘I’m more concentrated on making the tattoo look good that I don’t even think about where it is.’’
And, she estimates she’s done between 4000 and 5000 tattoos.
While she says tattooing ‘‘is the most intense thing two people can do’’, what makes tattoo artwork so special is its dying days.
‘‘They’re going to fade and get wobbly, that’s just part of it,’’ Massacre says.
‘‘Other artists’ work will live on when they die, but mine will disappear one day.
‘‘If you think about it, it’s living artwork. It’s artwork with an expiration.’’