Welcome to the first installment of COLLINSPORT INK, a concept totally of my own invention and in no way suggested by and/or named by Will McKinley*. I've seen a lot of DARK SHADOWS tattoos over the years, almost all of them shared without any kind of sourcing. When a few popped up this week on Facebook, I asked the owners to share their art, as well as the stories behind them. This can be a lot more complicated than it sounds ... as a way to avoid being "randomly selected" for screening while traveling around Eastern Europe a few years ago, I took to covering the tattoos on my arm. There's a time and a place to share the story about how I came to have a Freman script tattoo, and the back room at a Romanian airport on my honeymoon qualified for neither. Suffice to say, it's a complicated tale.
Earlier this morning, I sent Jeff Kenny a few questions about his tattoo of Seaview Terrace. Here's what he had to say:
WHY COLLINWOOD? MORE SPECIFICALLY, WHY SEAVIEW TERRACE?
I have been in love with DARK SHADOWS since I was a child. I have been wanting to get a tattoo related to the show for quite some time now. The image of Seaview Terrace as "Collinwood" has been ingrained in my mind for 25 years now since I first discovered the show. It was used in all 1,225 episodes of the show, and next to the portrait of Barnabas Collins and the waves crashing on the rocks in the intro, would have to be one of the most iconic images related to the show. I have always been fascinated with the house and its history, and vowed that I would visit it someday. That dream came true in July of 2013 when I was finally able to visit the grounds of the house with two of my friends. Our first glimpse of the house was that iconic image of it from the show. It was simply breathtaking and a lot to take in, especially after being a fan for so long. It was Collinwood right in front of my eyes. It was then and there that I decided that the Dark Shadows related tattoo that I had been wanting for so long would be that iconic image that all of us fans of the show have come to love.
WHO IS THE ARTIST?
Chuck Iglinski, owner of Firehouse Tattoos in Crestwood, IL.
HOW LONG DID IT TAKE TO COMPLETE?
It was just under two hours which included the time it took the artist to trace the outline of the picture I gave him, apply the outline, then complete the entire tattoo.
WHAT KIND OF RESPONSE HAVE YOU HAD TO THE ART?
The piece is only a couple of days old, but everyone who has seen it in person has loved it and commented on its detail. When I posted the picture of it online I got a huge response. Pretty much everyone that has seen it so far has liked it, even if they have never heard of DARK SHADOWS. It will be making its debut at the 2014 Dark Shadows Festival in Tarrytown, NY. I can't wait to see what the response is going to be from everybody.
HOW DID YOU DISCOVER DARK SHADOWS?
One day when I was six years old back in 1989, my mom took me to our local video store. We were looking around for something to rent when she noticed a couple volumes of DARK SHADOWS on VHS. She was shocked when she saw them because she was such a big fan of the show when she was a kid. She used to watch it everyday with her mother and grandmother. She suggested that we rent some of the tapes to check it out. I was all for it. We got home and immediately put in the first of the four tapes that we had rented, Volume 17. The tape centered around David Collins getting locked in the mausoleum and the search for him. I was hooked from that very first tape. Back then, they were releasing the volumes four at a time, each tape containing five episodes. So every time the next four tapes would come out, we would rent all of them right away. The anticipation used to drive me nuts waiting for the next set. Those days would be the beginning of my lifelong fascination and love of DARK SHADOWS.
(*Okay ... this feature was Will's suggestion. Thank him by visiting his website.)
Earlier this morning, I sent Jeff Kenny a few questions about his tattoo of Seaview Terrace. Here's what he had to say:
WHY COLLINWOOD? MORE SPECIFICALLY, WHY SEAVIEW TERRACE?
I have been in love with DARK SHADOWS since I was a child. I have been wanting to get a tattoo related to the show for quite some time now. The image of Seaview Terrace as "Collinwood" has been ingrained in my mind for 25 years now since I first discovered the show. It was used in all 1,225 episodes of the show, and next to the portrait of Barnabas Collins and the waves crashing on the rocks in the intro, would have to be one of the most iconic images related to the show. I have always been fascinated with the house and its history, and vowed that I would visit it someday. That dream came true in July of 2013 when I was finally able to visit the grounds of the house with two of my friends. Our first glimpse of the house was that iconic image of it from the show. It was simply breathtaking and a lot to take in, especially after being a fan for so long. It was Collinwood right in front of my eyes. It was then and there that I decided that the Dark Shadows related tattoo that I had been wanting for so long would be that iconic image that all of us fans of the show have come to love.
WHO IS THE ARTIST?
Chuck Iglinski, owner of Firehouse Tattoos in Crestwood, IL.
 |
| Jeff Kenny |
It was just under two hours which included the time it took the artist to trace the outline of the picture I gave him, apply the outline, then complete the entire tattoo.
WHAT KIND OF RESPONSE HAVE YOU HAD TO THE ART?
The piece is only a couple of days old, but everyone who has seen it in person has loved it and commented on its detail. When I posted the picture of it online I got a huge response. Pretty much everyone that has seen it so far has liked it, even if they have never heard of DARK SHADOWS. It will be making its debut at the 2014 Dark Shadows Festival in Tarrytown, NY. I can't wait to see what the response is going to be from everybody.
HOW DID YOU DISCOVER DARK SHADOWS?
One day when I was six years old back in 1989, my mom took me to our local video store. We were looking around for something to rent when she noticed a couple volumes of DARK SHADOWS on VHS. She was shocked when she saw them because she was such a big fan of the show when she was a kid. She used to watch it everyday with her mother and grandmother. She suggested that we rent some of the tapes to check it out. I was all for it. We got home and immediately put in the first of the four tapes that we had rented, Volume 17. The tape centered around David Collins getting locked in the mausoleum and the search for him. I was hooked from that very first tape. Back then, they were releasing the volumes four at a time, each tape containing five episodes. So every time the next four tapes would come out, we would rent all of them right away. The anticipation used to drive me nuts waiting for the next set. Those days would be the beginning of my lifelong fascination and love of DARK SHADOWS.
(*Okay ... this feature was Will's suggestion. Thank him by visiting his website.)
Thanks, Wallace and Will :)
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