Tattoo You! Visionary Tattoo Arts Festival, Asbury Park – Photos and Review

by Jessie Wickliffe • August 6, 2011 • Entertainment, Events, Monmouth • Comments (0) • 3569

Asbury Park held its second annual Visionary Tattoo Expo at the Convention Center on the boardwalk July 29-31. The main floor was filled with tattoo artist mainly from the NY/NJ/PA area, but some came from as far away as California giving attendees from the Garden State a chance to get inked by an artist they might not otherwise get to meet.

The upstairs halls were lined with painters, graffiti artists and vendors selling their wares. Several exhibition shows graced the stage throughout the weekend including burlesque acts, suspension shows, an arielist and a demonstration of parkour, which is the sport of running and performing gymnastic manouvers over and on buildings and walls. The Show Devils, who are the infamous Enigma and his partner Serana Rose, put on a wild show that included a chainsaw, nails and lots of sparks! Artist Chet Zar, famous for his work with the band Tool and the movie Hell Boy 2, hosted Visionary Primitive, a live painting event. Ramps were set up for the skateboard exhibitions and of course there were several tattoo contests throughout the weekend.

The crowd was definitely eclectic ranging from the expected rockers and bikers to preppy/corporate types and families proving just how mainstream tattoos have become these days! I had the pleasure of getting my 9^th tattoo courtesy of Russell Kelley from Silk City Tattoo in Hawthorne, NJ. True, I didn’t have to travel to the shore to get my newest addition, but there’s something exciting about getting a tattoo while at a tattoo convention!

Check out our pictures from the festival: