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Going Six Fathoms Deep in the depths of Bangkok

  • Tony Stokes
  • Oct 25, 2016
  • 6 min read

I remember surfing the net a few years ago and seeing a painting that grabbed my attention, immediately. A punk gothic goddess adorned the lid of a vertically standing coffin, in rich swathes of acrylic. Strong, tight lines painted with steady assurance gave the form a stunning quality; a distinctiveness that appeared to be strangely unique. Fast forward two years and I find myself exiting a taxi and handing the driver some baht, with a grin. Turning to walk down the soi to find the tattoo studio known as ‘Six Fathoms Deep’, we decide to take a momentary detour into the Indian temple. In the bustle of the holy business, ancient symbols and characters from the Hindu pantheon leap out in psychedelic strips of technicolor narrative… stacked skywards, and OM-ing with the incense smoke. Staying a minute to catch the vibe we then leave at the insistence of my friend, not wanting to be late for our morning appointment with Miss Ink & the 6 Fathoms crew – one of the resident tattooists at a multi-story building hidden somewhere along the shadowy depths of the soi.

A few minutes later we’re standing outside what looks like an old gin palace. Wooden double doors and decorative script engraved on glass are the front for what appears to be a museum of curiosities. Peering through the shutters we can make out a low lit main room filled with figurines and pictures. There’s some movement inside, and then the sound of the metal shutters being slammed aside. A tattooed young man with a baseball cap and T-shirt stumbles out onto the pavement and says “Hey”. His husky Californian accent and inebriated body language suggest he’s had a rather late night out in Bangers. We share our stories, briefly, and he says “Yeah guys, cool..the crew will be along soon. Come on inside.” We duck through the shutters and enter the tattoo temple, feeling a bit like Captain Nemo, who’s just double-dropped a couple of cheeky love pills after receiving a friendly visit from Charlie Brown. In the half-light vague forms start to morph into focus. There are sections dedicated to themes, and to working artists. A collage of cultural reference points animate the walls, ceiling and floor, and the entire scene takes on the appearance of a lush neo-gothic landscape that of underground artisans in unity.

Another heavily decorated young Californian walks into the room, and sits on an antique looking leather lounger. He’s mellow, like his buddy, easygoing and polite. Just as we’re placing down the kit, a large human form emerges from a back area, briefly silhouetted against the subtle lighting of the cavern. A big smiling man with a big energy reaches out his intricately tattooed arm: “Hi, I’m Nick…but you can call me Mudskipper ”. Somebody ups the lighting and we realize the extent of the décor. For all intents and purposes it could easily be a museum: there’s no mess, everything is where it should be, and Nick seems to be the driving force behind its expressive organization. One of the lads, a guest artist from LA, skips back through the shutters and lights up a cigarette. The tattooed disciple seems to be full of Bangkok beans, like many who drop by the land of smiles and get jiggy in da city. The smell of tobacco smoke hits us as the sun sends in a few rays through the decorative glass dancing off the interior’s s trippy icons.

Scanning the room like a pair of metropolitan meer-cats, our attention is grabbed by Nick – who then proceeds to give us the grand tour. He’s a genial host, and guides us through the cavern in his relaxed South African accent. We’re in the midst of re-acquainting ourselves with our childhood memories with a quick visit to Castle Greyskull and the He-Man odyssey, showcase that Nick has accessibled in his crazy hive of wonder. Looking at these crazy little figures one can't help but wonder at our inspirations growing up. He-Man and his crazy-ass crew all seemed to be on the same training routine and where all clearly "juicers", whilst the evil Skeletor the skull-headed pimp with his sexy, hot-blooded vixens on-heat & genetically deformed mutant mates at hand, who appropriately, also all looked like they where also members of the very same gym. Suddenly, there’s a commotion outside on the street and the shutters make a clanging. Miss Ink arrives with her boyfriend, and they share a laugh with their associate, who is now waving his cigarette around willy nilly, and grinning like a kid with a secret.

The couple then enter the studio whilst the elastic limed Californian continues to draw heavily on his Candlewell carrot styled toking stick. Recognizing ours faces from the virtual realms of ‘Cyber matrix’ Miss Ink approaches with grace and charm, smiling and wai-ing; telling me she’s feeling nervous about the interview. I assure her that it’ll be ‘sabai sabai’ and that we’re all in it together, and she says ‘thank you’ and then smiles again. We man the helm; click the kit together, and get ready to roll. The B-boi dudester returns and slams back down on the lounger, looking across to say something to his buddy, who’s all chained up in a dentist’s chair. Non-ordinary reality seems to be the order of the day at Six Fathoms Deep. We are ready to roll, and we ask Miss Ink about the highly personalized style of her artwork and tattooing: “What or who would you say is your main influence?” “I love Frida Khalo” she says. Suddenly, I can see the link between the verve of Miss Ink’s work, her colorfully defined personality - and the bold leap into the art world that made the Mexican artist so magically surreal and her appeal so broad.

Miss Ink is enthusiastic about the personal image that Khalo generated, as well as her kaleidoscopic, Aztec inspired imagery. The Bangkok fine arts graduate experimented with sculpture, and different types of painting and drawing; before settling on her acrylic portrait signature style - of gothic shamanistic dames affecting unusual and powerful poses. Her degree show garnered serious critical attention, and was so liked by one publication that they asked Miss Ink to design the front cover, and many of the pages of their arts magazine. Her creativity has also taken her into clothes design, where her distinctive style of bold lines, bright colors and gothic funk are instantly recognizable. As well as this, she seems to have been easily able to transfer her handiness with a brush and acrylic paint onto some of the walls of Bangkok; producing multicolored murals that hit the eyes with the intensity of their design. Certain symbols and motifs repeat themselves throughout her work.. flowers, roses, skulls, thorns, animals, and female faces harmonizing with the art-nouveaux-ish lines that swirl out of her gothic-surreal-mindscape.

It is by skilfully illustrating figures from this imaginative pantheon of personally inspired imagery that has made her such an in demand tattooist. Her style stands out, and is malleable so as to be able to multiply itself into singular images that make for some seriously eye-catching tattoos. Miss Ink is perpetually busy, with a regular base of clients who venture to Six Fathoms Deep to have themselves decorated with her icons. She’s an artist with a wide range of skills, who is following her muse with true passion and commitment.

If you get a chance take a trip down the rabbit hole that is Six Fathoms Deep and get involved with these amazing artists that dwell in this mysterious realm. Visit the mud-skipper crew and take a guided tour of the castle of Greyskull; meet He-Man and his super-juiced-jacked slippery deformed half-brothers and the rest of the little legends as you suck in the intramural overwhelming ambulance. Get inked-up; make a statement; enjoy the naturalist-trip that has no side-effects and feel like you just won the very last Willy Wonkers' golden ticket.

©All images & elements appearing on this web site are property of Tony Stokes Photography and are protected by international copyright laws. No images may be used in any form without written permission of ©Tony Stokes Photography and payment of required usage fees. To request permission and reproduction rights, contact Tony Stokes via the Hire Me section

 
 
 

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 All images appearing on this web site are property of ©TonyStokesPhotography2017 and are protected by international copyright laws. No images may be used in any form without written permission of ©TonyStokesPhotography2017 and payment of required usage fees. To request permission and reproduction rights, contact Mr. Stokes via the Hire Me section.
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