Why a Queer Tattoo Convention?
We think it’s important to create a place where the queer tattoo community can come together to share, learn from and with each other, create and or maintain new or old connections, and of course, strengthen the visibility of their practice in the tattoo industry.
The industry is very cis-male dominated – like many other industries. Therefor it’s important to claim these spaces and make them as safe as possible.
Community building within its own community. Yes, yes yes!
When is it this year?
This year we will celebrate within Pride months. There will be over 60 tattoo artists from all over the world gathering and offering their trade.
With a huge side program of Performances, Djs, Live-Acts, Workshops, Vendors, Astrology Chart Reading, Poetry, Live Painting we’re celebrating not only tattooing but the community coming together and finding strength with one another.
Safe Spaces at a tattoo appointment
Getting a tattoo is a very intimate process and body closeness is inevitable. No matter for what reason a person decides to get a tattoo, experience shows that it is very important to create a safe and trusting environment for a person to feel comfortable.
Very often, for queer/non-binary/trans people, a tattoo is a feeling of empowerment. Many are discriminated against and excluded because of their body, non-binary, gender, queer and/or trans. Too often, especially in the tattoo world, there are stories of power exploitation.
We have already created safe, trustworthy spaces with our numerous studios in and outside Berlin. The Queer Tattoo Convention in Berlin would like to be a link for this.
Safe Spaces are inevitable for queer and marginalized people. We know, we can’t promise to make it safe just by putting that label on the event but we try our best to create a space where everyone feels safe.
It’s important to us, to stay open and receive constructive criticism especially due to our perspective being both white cis-gendered queer/lesbian human beings.
Retrospective
1st QUEER TATTOO CONVENTION 2019
Sunday, 8th of September 2019
For the first time we held space for Queer Tattooers to unite and gather together at SO36, Berlin at a Convention. It was a blissful day of over 20 tattooers coming from Berlin and all over Europe.
We had performances, readings, djs, vendors and astrology chart reading. With over 600 visitors on a Sunday it was an amazing event while people got their first tattoos and were overly happy to be there.
From a perspective of only having 2 months to organize this it was a super successful and well received event.