Today we’d like to introduce you to Taiom da Silva.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
My earliest memory of tattoos was in the 90s when I saw a person with a sunset /palm tree/ seagull drawn on chest. I grew up drawing, so it really caught me as a child. At school, I was always sketching, and it didn’t take long to start to draw on myself. In high school, I found out about henna tattoos, so I started to do it on my classmates, and later someone told me that tattoos were made by poking a needle with ink into the skin, so I didn’t hesitate to experiment on my own at home. It quickly evolved to a homemade tattoo machine, and I started to try on myself and some very supportive friends! (thank you buds!).
Years later, I started my grade in Visual Arts and began in a tattoo studio, where I properly learned about techniques, history and culture, both in tattooing and fine arts, but the environment was quite averse to each other: professor said that tattoo are not art; and tattooers said that art is bullshit. So I did my way in between, finding a way to combine the things that I like, learning from the people around, traveling and experiencing.
Today, I view tattooing as a tool for self-exploration and understanding the connection between individuals and society. It is a visual and performance-based communication that can challenge our perceptions of humanity. The practice has a rich history of using the body to convey symbolic messages, and I am passionate about utilizing this medium to initiate new discussions and foster deeper connections among people.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Not smooth at all, but certainly, it was full of great moments. Back in the day, the lack of information available about tattooing was so hard, the wrong or manipulated information that in many cases was a just way to spread misogyny, racism, classicism and colonialism through tattooing. It still happens, but fortunately, it is possible to find accurate and trustable information about many different aspects involved in tattoo practice.
I’ve been in a battle with myself to find my own perspective on tattooing, not only as a style or aesthetic, but also as a philosophical approach to it, in a respectful and meaningful way, and after 20 years on that, I can finally see it more and more clearly.
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
My work is dedicated to contemporary tattooing/art, exploring drawing in an intimate and existential way, and how it connects and expands when in contact with other human beings. I like to think for and compose with the body, considered not as a “canva to support my art” but as a person it is, and how they can wear design for life. I’m very involved in researching large abstract pieces, trying to balance solid and simple shapes with chaotic gestural lines and textures. I’m also developing a series called ‘visagens’ with smaller sketch drawings, which started five years ago like a classic “flash tattoo sheet” and had mutated into some kind of experimental graphic novel, but still all “tattooable”, or at least as an inspiration to get some.
Do you have any memories from childhood that you can share with us?
I liked to remember my days skateboarding on the streets of Belém, a city in the north of Brazil where I grew up. A beautiful mix of Amazon nature and big-city chaos.
Contact Info:
- Website: http://www.taiom.org
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/taiomvct/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/taiomvct
