Szene-Urgestein und -Promoter Miki Vialetto versammelt bereits im dritten Jahr in Folge die Crème de la Crème der Körperschmuck-Welt in Frankfurt. Das Erfolgsgeheimnis der national und international einzigartigen Gods of Ink Tattoo Convention, die neuesten Trends und das ein oder andere Messe-Secret verrät uns Organisator Miki Vialetto im Interview…
1) How did the idea for the Gods of Ink Tattoo Convention came about? Was there a specific moment of inspiration that sparked it?
I am in the tattoo world since 1993 when I published my first issue of an international tattoo magazine called Tattoo Life. I devoted my life to promote the art of tattooing and 2003 I organized my first tattoo convention in Milan and I organized 10 editions till 2013.In 2006 I started also the London Tattoo Convention that was considered the best tattoo Convention in the world for 15 years. But 3 things made me stop London: the brexit, the pandemic of Covid and the death of my business partner in London. So I was looking for a new central location in Europe and when I got an offer to organize my concept of show in Frankfurt I was very happy to jump in this new adventure that gave me so far so many satisfactions.
2) The tattoo world is constantly evolving – what has been your personal highlight in the history of Gods of Ink?
You can buy a place in almost every tattoo convention in the world, but it is impossible to do so in my shows. Every single artist is personally invited by me, and I am so happy that all the tattooers understood this. Every artist knows that if they are invited at Gods of Ink it means they are part of the real gotha of tattooing, and this is understood also by the community of tattoo lovers all around the world. So far we did two editions and in the last one over 5.000 visitors came from all over Europe, Brazil, Usa, Canada, China, Japan. They came from all over the world to visit this extraordinary show, and this makes me so proud.
3) What make the Gods of Ink Convention unique compared to other tattoo event worldwide?
I travelled all over the world from french Polynesia to Japan, from Russia to South America to meet and talk with the best tattoo artists in the world and I study so much to understand what a good tattoo is, how to recognise how it will look in time etc. My goal is that even if you don’t understand anything about tattooing, after three days of Gods of Ink anybody can understand where is the level of tattooing now, because there are the best tattoo artists in every style and in every technique from all around the world.
4) How do you choose the tattoo artists who participate in the convention? Are there specific criteria?
Yes. first of all I invite the tattoo legends: Tattoo artists that since 30 plus year gave a huge impact into tattoo artistry. They are are the ones that invented different style that are still in use these days.
I invite all artists who are not only creating great tattoos but also those who are innovating new styles, presenting something completely original, and executing it perfectly.
I invite all artists who are not only creating great tattoos but also those who are innovating new styles, presenting something completely original, and executing it perfectly.
5) What is the craziest or most impressive tattoo story you’ve experienced at a convention?
It was one of the first London tattoo convention. 8 famous tattoo artists decide to do a specific performance to tattoo a full back in 3 days. When I realize what they were doing I asked them to stop it, because it could be very dangerous for the client. At Gods of Ink these practices are totally forbidden, and hopefully soon also in the rest of the world.
6) Is there a tattoo trend you totally embraced – and one that made you think: Oh no please no.
I totally embraced the real tattooing doesn’t matter in what style: A real tattoo should last 15 days after rigor mortis, doesn’t matter if is done in Japanese or traditional style or tribal or realistic. But unfortunately so many tattoo artists use filters to post their photos these days and many times what I see it is totally unreal. Or even if it’s done perfectly the skin is not paper and because of this so many amazing work will disappear in less than two years.
7) What can visitors expect from the 2025 convention? Are there any surprise?
Every year I try to propose something new. This year there will be lots of amazing artists from Asia, especially China, where the tattooing is expanding so much there and there are amazing talents that will be in europe for the first time. We are also building a cinema inside the convention to show a documentary about the life of Felix Leu, the godfather of european tatoo artistry. We will also have the queen star of the pin up Sabina Kelly from Las Vegas that will teach how to model. We will have lots of entertainment on stage, we will have different exhibitions from very rare photos of Japanese body suit done in the ’60s to different paintings exhibition that will show the artistic quality of extraordinary tattooers. As I mentioned before, anyone who visits Gods of Ink will be able to appreciate the highest level of tattoo artistry worldwide.
Du kannst es kaum erwarten, deine absoluten Lieblings-Artists zu treffen und die neuesten Szene-Trends zu erfahren? Dann schau am besten direkt auf dem Reservix-Portal vorbei. Alle wichtigen Informationen und Hintergründe zur Gods of Ink 2025 erhältst du hier. Für mehr News zu den neuesten Messen, Shows oder Konzerten folge uns unbedingt auf Instagram, TikTok oder Facebook!
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