My friend Bear and I used to travel around trying to find tattoo shops. With no one to tattoo in 87-88 he would tattoo me and I would tattoo him, sitting on the corner of a bed.

On one of our outings in New Jersey I spotted a sign that read "Tattoo Supplies and Trading Cards", the beginning of a career, how I met Andy Keator, R.I.P.

He taught me how to make his Star machine, how to make needles, tubes, power supplies, and most of all, the tools and techniques to make them. Andy was a machinist retired who had partnered with Tony in the 80s. He made the equipment while Tony did  the sales, mixing ink, and traveling around selling their tattoo supplies out of the trunk of his car.

The second person that influenced my trajectory was Clayton Patterson and his NY Tattoo Society.  I still have my '88 membership card, but there was no membership as such, no dues, no rules of who could belong and who not, it was open to anyone who had an interest in tattoo (or not) to come. Meetings were held in CBGBs, The Pyramid Club and Chase that attracted everyone from NY and surrounding areas who wanted to talk about and share tattoo, complete with entertainment, guest speakers and witnessing-so-to-speak. Clayton's Tattoo Society was the glue that connected the North East.

My third person is actually all those I learned from, who gave me encouragement, and those I watched tattoo who came out of NYTS.  I started making stuff in my 6th floor walk-up on Ludlow Street in '88 after Andy Keator chance encounter; bought a small lathe and drill press which I dragged up there which quickly grew me right out of my apartment. It was an electric time, stimulating to grow, and we all shared the dynamic  through legalization in 1997. Like all of us in Tattoo it became all-encompassing. Tattoo people share that trait.

My fourth and fifth thank you's are the tattoo artists over the years who have helped us keep focused and improve and the great employees who work hard to bring you the next best idea. I am proud to still be pushing the limits and earn our daily bread from Tattoo.

Thank you from a Tattoo Heart.
Westley Wood

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Link to Picture of Wes upper left hand side of picture to help
"Save The Internet", NY City Hall Monday September 15, 2014
http://www.freepress.net/blog/2014/09/15/crowd-200-nyc-rallies-save-internet

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and at
People's Climate Match NYC Sunday September 21, 2014


My first was in 1975 as a member of Chelsea Coalition:
we chained ourselves inside the fence of
Shoreham Nuclear Power Plant on Long Island, NY
(We focused attention on it; the media picked it up; our action
likely helped because it was subsequently Never Put into Service!!)