The National Tattoo Association is wrapping up their 34th annual convention in Rapid City today. I didn’t register for any of the events and I haven’t made a trip down to the Ramkota to take in the sights. Rapid City hosts a lot of conventions and gatherings and the Ramkota is a large convention center and hotel with plenty of meeting rooms and banquet halls to handle the convention. I’m sure that there are other unique conventions, but I confess that I haven’t given much thought to what a professional association of tattoo artists might be like. Scanning the convention agenda, it looks a lot like other conventions. There is a bus tour to Mt. Rushmore and Crazy Horse mountain carvings. There is a charity golf tournament. There are banquets and classes for professional development and discussions of business management practices. There is a silent auction and a raffle. There are lectures and seminars and an awards banquet.

A unique feature of the event, however, is that the convention features scores of tattoo booths set up in the convention center. If a person wanted to have a tattoo applied, this is the place. There are daily contests judging the best tattoo of the day and the artist bring out all of their best efforts in order to produce a winning tattoo. Judging from the pictures in the paper, it appears that a number of the new tattoos applied during the convention are applied to other tattoo artists, though I think that members of the general public are welcome to have some ink applied to their skin as well.

I don’t have any tattoos. I never felt a need to get one. I have good friends and relatives with tattoos and other than some discomfort during the process of having them applied, none of them seem to have had any ill effects from having a permanent decoration applied to their skin.

I have not, however, spent much time thinking about the business of running a tattoo . . . hmm . . . what do you call an establishment that applies tattoos? . . . parlor, studio, shop . . .? I don’t know what I thought. I suppose that I assumed that like many other art forms, it is hard to make a full-time living in the business of applying tattoos. Many artists have to have some other way of providing income to survive as they pursue their art. I assume that tattoo artists take a lot of photographs of their work so that they can build a portfolio to show potential customers.

There are probably tricks of the trade about how to market tattoos, where to get the best prices on supplies, how to keep people calm while the work is being done, and other aspects of the business.

Apparently there are enough topics for a five-day convention.

It does leave me with some unanswered questions: Does an insurance salesman at a tattoo convention have to have visible tattoos in order to be trusted? I’m pretty sure that you couldn’t get by with those cheap removable tattoos in this crowd. Are there special techniques for dealing with people who change their mind about having a tattoo applied just as the needle meets the skin for the first time? Are there professional tricks to getting people to have a tattoo applied? Does it pay to have discount coupons? Do tattoo parlors advertise by having their business name printed on pens?

OK, I’ve wasted enough words with idle speculation.

Rapid City seems like a natural place to host the National Tattoo Association. We are used to having lots of conventions. We are pretty good at extending hospitality to visitors. We have lots of nearby attractions for visitors to see and plenty of things to do for family members of convention goers. And we are right next door to Sturgis, home of the largest motorcycle convention each year. There is a long-standing connection between tattoos and motorcycles. In fact, it is possible that there are more tattoos in town during the motorcycle convention than during the tattoo convention. And there are certainly more people running around with sleeveless shirts and exposed skin during August than has been the case during our rather snowy April this year.

I’m sure that some of the participants in the Tattoo Association convention took some time to scout out their booth sites for this summer’s motorcycle rally. I’m thinking that part of the reason Rapid City was chosen for the convention is that there were already quite a few tattoo artists who are familiar with the area.

This Thursday I have an appointment to donate platelets. Each time I am screened before donating at the blood bank, they ask whether or not I have had a tattoo applied since my last donation. Each time the answer is “no.” Apparently there is an increased risk of getting a blood-borne disease such as hepatitis from having a tattoo applied by someone who is careless with the safety procedures and sterilization of equipment. On the other hand, I’m pretty sure that a reputation for safety and cleanliness is pretty much essential in order to succeed in the tattoo business. With the possible exception of a few drunken sailors in port (and perhaps a few drunken motorcycle rally participants), there aren’t many people asking “Bubba” to tattoo “Mom” on the bicep out back in the garage. And it isn’t likely that Bubba showed up for the convention and paid the fees to play in the golf tournament with the other tattoo artists. Still, it is reassuring to know that the people at the blood bank are being conservative and careful when screening potential donors. Each of us is just one accident away from needing a donation of blood.

So my answer to the question will be the same as it has been each time I’ve donated platelets or blood. “No,” I haven’t got any new tattoos. I don’t have any old tattoos, either. They never have caught on as a big fashion statement for those in my profession.

If I ever find myself selling insurance to tattoo parlors it might be a different story.

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