In a new exhibition at 111 Minna Gallery, tattooing legend and artist Ed Hardy offers works created within the past decade, featuring his signature blend of Asian influences, Californian vibes, and an ink aesthetic he forged throughout the previous century. “Marks, Scars, or Tattoos,” named from the old “Wanted” posters that carried that line item, kicks off on Friday, Oct. 7, at the space.
The earliest work in the show is from 2007, when Hardy stopped tattooing. “Marks, Scars, or Tattoos was a descriptive category of suspects on 1950s police Wanted posters,” the gallery says. “From ages 10 to 12, Hardy would peruse these at the local post office for tattoo design ideas.”
The artist’s fine art background is extensive, as the 71-year-old graduated with a B.F.A. from the San Francisco Art Institute while working as a tattoo apprentice. During those years re-envisioning the occupation of tattoo artist, Hardy created and curated work outside of that medium. The works in this 111 Minna Gallery display how Hardy’s style translates between sizes and formats, from the canvas to tapestries (and most famously, the human body as a canvas). Mediums include inks, acrylics, oils, and more.
Denmark based artist 
Korean tattoo artist 
Rendered just in black inks, Pony Reinhardt’s are riveting tethers to the natural world. The tattoo artist and owner of Portland’s Tenderfoot Studios describes herself as “an astral ruffian, thriving in the wilderness of the lost and found nebulae and dripping carbon monoxide” and her “art is a cosmic cataclysm of the Ghastly Phantastic.” That celestial quality does carry through to the recent works shown below.