Asakusa Horikazu. This traditional tattoo master is the son of legendary Shodai Horikazu; I had the privilege of spending an afternoon in his private studio to watch and document his work.
This method of tattooing repeatedly taps hand-mixed ink into skin with handmade tools: varying numbers of needles bound together at the endpoint of a long handle.
It’s hypnotic to watch and, at its best, results in vibrant flesh tableaus akin to embroidered silk.
Horikazu works in a traditional Japanese den filled with art, and I mean ??????: masks, prints, and sculptures pervade every inch. The room where he works isn’t only home to tattooing supplies; besides sketches and framed photos of a young and strikingly inked Horikazu, this space contains an ornate tatami mat, a cool clock with its mechanism visible, and a portrait of Horikazu senior peering from the top of a beautiful antique cabinet among many other treasures. Horikazu’s tattoos stand out for their vibrance, detail, and chaotic harmony; his studio embodies this spirit.
On the day of my visit, there are two clients who happen to be brothers. The older brother’s entire bodysuit is being created by Horikazu: Heaven above, Hell below. On this occasion, the client is here to have a particularly delicate area worked on and is stoic throughout the ordeal. He’s gracious and patient as my lens flitters around him to capture details of the mesmerising design.
Most of the younger brother’s bodysuit is by another tattoo artist, and he’s having his leg worked on by Horikazu.
I’m surprised to learn that the delicate flower-adorned goddess is actually a cover-up.
When working, Horikazu is focused, calm, and cooler than cool, methodically dipping the needles in ink and driving them into skin, wiping, dipping, driving, dipping. He uses his entire upper body to enact this smooth, steady repetition. I spent the past ten years doing something similar with pointillism in my own work, to the point that my forearm tendons decree I can’t do it any longer. Watching him, I wish pens could be held and wielded the way these tools are.
I’m grateful to Horikazu for opening his doors to me, to his clients for allowing me to observe this intimate practice, and to Manami Okazaki for the introduction – buy her book “Tattoo in Japan: Traditional and Modern Styles” if you’re interested in this subject.
