FAQ
I design art for tattoos. I do not tattoo my art. I gave up on needles in order to dedicate my time to solely creating the artwork. However, with 15 years of experience doing just that, I probably know a tattooist whom I trust to copy my art to your skin, right where you live.
As much as I would love to, I cannot possibly accept all artworks I’m asked to draw. Art needs time and I don’t want to rush it. So I choose my projects carefully. Please don’t take it personally if your idea doesn’t make it to the stage of being created. David will let you know within a few mails if for one or the other reason I cannot accept your project.
As you can see in my portfolio, neither the complexity, nor the religious background of the work play any kind of role in my decision.
Below, you’ll find 15 short [?] points, clarifying a few things that may not be self evident. Please take the time to go through them.
1. THE PROCESS
David will figure out the wording and the basics of your artwork with you. I will then discuss the fine details of your piece with you and create your art. It will take a few mails and usually a Zoom meeting. Please come with some patience and some flexibility. Your idea may just be best implemented in a slightly different way than you initially imagined.
In fact, if you want the best possible result, the best art, the most coherent tattoo, give me your story and complete artistic freedom. I know that’s not always entirely possible. But the more freedom you leave me, the better I can express your ideas.
2. TURNOVER TIME
I generally try to not schedule work for more than 4 months ahead, so at any given time, I have a waiting list of roughly 3 to 4 months.
However, including finding the right wording, finding the right time for a Zoom meeting, etc, it may well take 6 months from your initial mail until my art is on your skin. As mentioned in bullet point No.1: come with some patience. You may end up needing it.
Of course, we’ll have pretty exact estimations of the waiting list before you commit and you’ll have an exact due date once you pay.
3. ACCEPTING / REFUSING PROJECTS
Please keep in mind that I’m not some corporate mass production entity. I love what I do, I draw and paint and write because I deeply believe in my art, and I have my personal principles, tastes and artistic directions as a person and as an artist.
If I feel that a project would go against my convictions or artistic taste, or if it just doesn’t fit into my portfolio right now, I’ll politely refuse it and often explain why.
4. RESELLING EXISTING WORKS
Each design I create is the expression of my reflection on a specific person’s story. I hence do not ever resell, redraw, recreate or redo any of my existing work. No exceptions. If you would like to have my art on your skin, please do make the effort of talking to me about your ideas, so I can make sure your design will as well be unique, just yours, and only on your skin.
5. FORMAT
All works are sent as high resolution [6469px by 6469px] jpgs as well as in some cases 3D models and renders of those models. I do not send physical copies of tattoo stencils.
6. ALTERATIONS
I’m often asked if I create several versions of a piece for you to choose from. As an artist, rather than a graphic designer, I don’t do that.
However, I will add small and specific changes to my work if you ask me to. Keep in mind these changes will be tweaks, rather than essential changes to the design and I add changes only if they don’t go against the art. So “hey, could you bend that Lamed up there a bit more to the right?” might be in, but “oh, actually I wanted a Mickey Mouse, created from Genesis 1:23” or any other request for changes in words or general form are out. The same goes for "I don't like this, could you send me something else?". In fact, that last question will quietly and automatically add your name to the Mossad’s hit list.
That’s why both David and I take a lot of time and effort up-front to conceptualise a coherent and valuable project, advise you on the wording and the possibilities of tattoos in general as well as calligraphy tattoos specifically. We will make sure I know exactly what you want before sharpening my pencil, mixing my ink and sitting down to draw. You'll notice.
7. PAYMENTS
All payments are upfront. No exceptions. I cannot “unsend” works once they’re sent, so I will not send anything before a work is fully paid.
You can pay by PayPal, Venmo, Apple Pay or Credit Card, all of them directly via our website, or alternatively by BTC or ETH. We’ll happily split any payment paid with a credit card into 4 equal, monthly, zero interest installments. Unfortunately, we can’t offer to split the payment if you choose PayPal, Venmo or Apple Pay. Not our choice. Please do write angry letters to those companies if you have the time and inclination.
8. PRICE OFFERS
All prices are in US Dollars and include all taxes and fees. Any price offer is good for 30 days.
The same goes for your place on my list. If I accepted a project, it means I agreed to create your art at this time. If you didn’t send payment within 30 days, no hard feelings. I will give your place on my list to someone else.
So please don’t mail me, saying “hey man I just paid this $25 invoice you sent me when you were 23. When’s the art ready?! I landed an appointment this afternoon!!”.
Nope, I did not just make this up. I do wish I had, though.
9. PRICING
As all of my art is commissioned, I price each piece individually. Prices could be anywhere between U$750 and several thousand U$D.
Very generally speaking, those prices reflect the complexity of your artwork. So a roaring lion, created from a whole bible chapter would be pricier than a straight 3 word line.
One thing that has no influence on the price is the size you envision the tattoo to be. It may have an influence on what your tattooist will charge, but not on the price of the art itself, which is easily scalable.
Another factor that has only an indirect influence is the number of letters/words I’ll draw.
Naturally, you don't commit to anything before you pay. The initial consultation with David is free of charge and he will be able to give you a general ballpark of the price within a few mails.
And one more thing: please do not try to bargain. Or, correctly spelled for the relevant audience: המחירים אינם נתונים למשא ומתן! יש?
10. DRAFTS/SKETCHES
I am aware of the fact that many artists send drafts for their clients to approve. I don’t.
There is something intimate about any artistic process. Having someone “look over my shoulder” would interfere with that intimacy. Even more so if that someone then inevitably weighs in with well meant suggestions. So I don’t ever send anything that isn’t a work I stand behind, 100%. In other words: the finished artwork. If you would then like to add some minor and specific changes, I’m sometimes open to it.
11. PUBLISHING WORKS
The show must go on. And in order to keep my show going on, I continuously publish my work on social media, in blogs, in printed media etc.
If it is important enough to you to keep out of anyone’s sight [yepp, I’m looking at you, celebs and wanna-be celebs from LA and Manhattan!], I’m often happy to do so, but will always charge you a 50% fee for it. Actually, make that 200%, if you recently starred in a major Hollywood production or have more than a million followers on any social media platform.
However, if you would like me to not mention your [first] name on social media when publishing your piece, or if you would like to write the post yourself, please let me know. Your privacy is key, so I’m pretty flexible about everything.
12. TATTOOERS
I create art. Your tattooer will tattoo it. These are two separate processes. I’m very invested in finding the best possible tattooer for you and after 15 years of doing what I do, I have a looooong list of trusted tattooers in almost every major city in the western world, many working in some of the industry’s leading studios.
However, I am not associated with any of them. In no case and under no circumstance will I receive any kind of payment or commission for my recommendation. So you can be assured that if I recommend someone, the only thing guiding me is the quality of your tattoo. Always. No exceptions.
Obviously, I can’t take responsibility for any tattooer I don’t know or don’t recommend. So the best way to deal with this is to go for a tattooer I trust and have previously worked with, even if that means traveling to the next big city or saving up a few months longer than you initially intended. Guiding you towards your best options is part of what you’re paying me for and I highly recommend you take advantage of the experience I have [i.e.: come on, please do! I really like to see my art tattooed properly. You do see how we’re in the same boat, here, right?]
13. REFERENCES
We will often ask you for references from my own portfolio, in order to understand your preferences. Remember the point up there about not reselling existing works, though? I’m doing my best to not redraw existing work, neither. So your work will be different from any reference you’ll give us. Seriously. Please do not expect something to look “just like this other work, but with my wording”. No. It won’t.
And hey, I would be a horrible artist if it did.
14. SMALL TATTOO SIZES
Size is a complex issue. Just like any image you find on google, the scan I’ll send you doesn’t have a size. It’s a scan, and as such it’s simply as large as you display it, or print it out.
Your tattooer, on the other hand, can’t zoom in and out on your skin. So the tattooing is the moment at which the size of your tattoo will be determined. And there are quite a few variables determining the smallest possible size of a tattoo. Those are your age and skin type, the colors and the complexity of your work, your health and the placement you choose, but above all your tattooer’s skills and technique.
Naturally, this puts us in a place where the answer to the question so what’s the smallest I can tattoo this work is always quite vague. Much more so before I actually draw the work. We can often tell you what’s impossible and we definitely will, if needed.
But please do assume that if you’re looking for a small tattoo, we will give you a ballpark size and the exact size is something you’ll have to figure out with your tattooer.
15. Last not least: BE NICE
Just send us mails your mom would approve of.
Yes, we’re Israelis. And we know we live in fast times and you may be used to use emails the same way you’d be texting. But we’re not your annoying coworker or employee or ex or some random service provider [all of whom you should communicate respectfully with, of course!]. We’re two guys, doing our best to create beautiful stuff. In fact, you are here for us to create something beautiful for you! So if you could be bothered to reply in whole sentences, possibly with a “Hello David” or “Hi Gabriel” or “Hey Tamar” at the top of your email, you’d make everyone’s lives nicer.
More than that. You’d dramatically increase your chances of receiving a reply from “nope” to “yeah, probably”. A significant part of our work is communicating with you guys. And if that doesn’t make us happy even a little bit, we’d rather avoid it.
Extra points for smileys, questions regarding the well being of our kids and the weather [but only in summer. Winter is a touchy subject. I live in Berlin], book recommendations, revealing Banksy’s identity, recipes for your favorite cookies, as well as for correctly guessing our birthdays.
If you have any other questions, we will be happy to answer them. Just ask.