Transworld Skateboarding Magazine/ Now and then...

This appeared in the new Trans World Skateboarding Magazine. This is the June 2010 issue.

I was at the grocery store buying some sh*t and picked it up, started flipping through it and on page 60 there it was. It was so great to have a mention like this, especially to be on the same page as Steve and Micke Alba and the Pappas brothers, all of which are friends of ours.

Skateboarding really does have a colorful history. It's so mainstream now, more than it has ever been and people don't realize what it took for it to be so accepted! The obstacles, we all had to go through. Sometimes surviving on small paychecks, unlike now, where there are million dollar shoe and clothing endorsements!

Thanks to people like Danny Way who pioneered the Mega ramp, people like Tony Hawk who was so advanced in his early days, blowing away all the established pros of that era and continued to do so for decades... thanks also to Duane Peters who set a standard for attitude and resilience - bouncing back from serious injuries and DEATH!!... we never thought about why we did what we did, it just came naturally - tattooing, punk and skateboarding and now, most of top professionals are tattooed! That was no accident! People take if for granted but there is a reason for the evolution!

We were all kids who loved to skate and for us, it has kept us young. It has done so much for us as people... Unlike team sports, skateboarding promoted individuality, self esteem, physical fitness and creativity... you didn't have to worry about losing the game FOR THE WHOLE TEAM because you didn't catch the ball, and then have to face ridicule from the rest of the jocks!! You could progress at your own pace or you could strive to be like your skate heroes and learn the tricks they did. Your goal could be to get as crazy at the Upland Pipeline skatepark as Steve and Micke Alba did...




you could learn layback roll outs like Duane Peters !!!

T-Bone Photo.

This was from our generation... we were kids looking up to them before we turned pro in 1985!!


Wanna say thanks to Mackenzie Eisenhour for the write up! Let's do an interview!!!

WE MADE IT ON MSNBC TODAY!!

Today, a story appeared on MSNBC. It was about Julia Gnuse (pictured). She is a long time friend and BEST client ever as I (Art and my brother Steve) did all her work. She is the Guiness Book of World Records' "Most Tattooed Woman". The article gives a brief but accurate story of how and why. DON'T BE SO QUICK TO JUDGE until you've read the story.

TATTOOS, FOOD, TATTOOS, FOOD, TATTOOS, FOOD...

When we start the day, it could be with "traditional style" job like this one that Sasha did with super clean lines and super solid color.


Or maybe, a black and grey dragon like this one that Mark did. Notice the details... the shading, the unique style unique only to Mark Lankin!

Or it could be a JEEP like this one that Juan did... perfection. If I was gonna get a Jeep, this would be the one I would want...

Or maybe... just maybe you're a SPICE GIRLS FAN... you could get that too just ask Art (me) to do it..... Personally, I would get DEVO tattooed on me but Curt doesn't give a fuck, he can get whatever he likes!!!

Or maybe you're a Virgin Mary fan...

This is what WE do at the Funhouse.. a variety of tattoo styles and sizes, from realism to traditional, to black n grey... any theme any size. We're not gonna moralize and judge... we do what we do... the way we do it. While doin' it, we get hungry and if it's lunch time, how bout one of these?



Don't care if you like meat or not... we do. This is the TERNERA TORTA from "Las Tortas", up the street from the shop... such a quality sandwich. God... pickled jalapenos, pickled onions.. guacamole, beans, lamb meat... cabbage... all on a quality bun. It's not cheap but worth every penny.

Finish it off with a piece of chocolate cake from BEANS... just look at it... you can see the chocolatyness... even though the frosting is melting like a turd in the summer sun, i can assure you that it didn't taste AT ALL like a turd... such quality buttery chocolaty frosting.... and the density of the spongy cake made for a real filling and fulfilling lunch!!

So, that day, we all worked like dogs.. really! Long day, so guess what? are you hungry yet? ....

how bout now? It was time for round 2 at Memphis Blues Barbeque...

FUCK YEAH, LET'S EAT!!!

Ryan, Juan and Mark sharing the cooked carcasses of the pigs, birds and cows that donated their muscles and fats to feed us... and thanks to Memphis for gettin' the potatoes, beans, corn and coleslaw for our meal, before the hippies and vegetarians got to it... man, they always try to HOARD and keep this stuff for themselves.

F*CK THEM, LET'S EAT MEAT!!! REMEMBER, FOOD IS A REWARD FOR HARD WORK.

DESTROY EVERYTHING

Some peope don't get it. They would look at tattoos like this and go "why would someone put that message on their skin?... forever!" The simple answer is cuz they don't give a f*ck what YOU think! Instead of looking at the finished product and admiring the stunning, decorative and perfect lettering done by Juan, and how aesthetically perfectly it fits on Mark's back, people always have something negative to say.

Just look at the perfection. The cleanest lines around, the smooth transition from dark to light on the shading. and look how perfectly it fits...

Check this! Probably one of the largest TASMANIAN DEVILS ever done!!! Fester knocked it out quickly and executed it in awesome style, as usual. He does some clean work... Most people get these Tasmanian Devils smaller but this guy knew what he wanted and how he wanted it. He had a story to accompany it as well.

Some tattooers would say, "I'll never do a Tasmanian Devil.." We ask "Why not?" they would in turn give you some recycled answer they have heard some place before, from another un original artist... trying to act as if it's below them to tattoo this image. When in reality, who gives a fuck? It's a customer service job and they act like they're doing the client a favor!! Egos and attitudes have no place in this trade.

One day these guys are serving burgers and the next they're tattoo artists... it's an immediate image upgrade from ordinary to rock star status! Silly... don't stand for it! If you go into a shop and get treated like a turd, leave and come here!!

WHY WE DO WHAT WE DO. (photos by Juan)

Why do we do what we do?... there are several reasons we do what we do, the way we do it...

We tattoo all day... work really hard because we have fun at work, we challenge ourselves daily so that we can be more versatile, creative and technically advanced...

We do great work, like this unreal piece (below) by Mark. We feed off of each other's creativity and are stoked when we do really cool tattoos. This inspires us to be the best we can be.

We do it so that we have stories to tell. Think this one in the works (below) that Sasha is dealing with is gonna be a good one??? I think it definitely has possibilities... we talk laugh all day long, the conversation and the stories are endless.

That look on Sasha's face says it all!! Finally, after a long week... we get to reward ourselves with... MEAT... brisket, sausages, pulled pork, ribs, rib ends, fries, cornish game hen, fries, potato salad, beans, cole slaw, barbecue sauce... pecan pie for desert!!!

F*CK YEA, LET'S EAT!!!"