Issue link: https://digital.copcomm.com/i/11545
Speaking with a So Cal Ink Icon, Kari Barba By: Dan Albert The oldest tattoo shop in the countr y is right here in Long Beach and is owned by Outer Limits Tattoo's Kari Barba with whom LIVE sat with for a Q&A. LIVE: How long have you been tattooing and what was you biggest inspiration? KB: I've been tattooing 31 years, starting in 1979. My first shop in Anaheim opened in 1983, and is still in the same location on Beach and Ball. I now work in our Long Beach location, which is the oldest tattoo, shop in the country, second oldest in the world. We have a museum section and museum pieces through out the shop that all are welcome to come and view. We have added piercing into the shop, which it didn't have in the past. What inspires me each day are the people we work on, their dreams and their ideas. That's what keeps me going every day. LIVE: Is there a particular client that you are most proud of working on? KB: I could mention here the people we consider famous... but for me it's the people who allow me to put their loved ones on them--to honor someone they love. The people that allow me to cover their body with my art and my ideas--these are the people I am most proud to work on. LIVE: When not providing ink for someone, what do you do during your off time? KB: Well I do paint here and there. I draw shirt designs. I have a shirt line with my son, Jeremiah Barba... Barbas Series. I have designed shirts for Affliction/Sinful lines also. I love being outside, hiking, going to the beach, riding bikes, running, etc. I try to work out almost every day. I am usually rowing, although I am currently in a time off with that. I have a great family that I love to be with. I live in the local Long Beach area, so I am often just enjoying Long Beach, which I love. LIVE: Are you married and do you have any kids? KB: I am married... I was one of the few and fortunate to be married during the time when marriage was legal for same sex couples. I have two great adult kids. Jeremiah and Nakia. Jeremiah, you all know, also works in the Long Beach shop with me along with six other tattoo artists and two great piercers. Nakia, my daughter, is a hair stylist and works at Salon Soma on Glendora just off Second St—which is another long time business in Belmont shores. LIVE: How would you describe your style? Do you have a name for it? KB: I don't have just one style, although I do love Asian styles, I do a lot of dragons, Koi, things of that nature, also portraits, realistic color and black and gray. I try to be versatile, but I'm not good at tribal styles and graphic things of that nature. I love to be creative, and unique when the client allows me. LIVE: How do you feel about the direction the industry has gone in lately? KB: Well, the last couple of years have been hard for all, with the economy being bad, but we are now pulling out of that. The business in general is forever changing and growing. New styles, new artists, come and go. Tattooing always stays strong. People will always mark their bodies... for love, for memory, for art, for many reasons. It is an outlet that many love, and become addicted to. Television has become a huge part for many, watching tattooing shows on TV. They love to hear the stories and the love and pain of others. Its helps them to relate to their own lives, I believe. The shows have brought tattooing more into the open and into the public eye, making it "OK" for some, because its on TV. LIVE: Do you get requests for one particular type image more so than others? KB: Not so much any more, but things do go in waves... maybe it's Koi right now, and cherry blossoms. Those two themes have been very popular in the latest years. LIVE: How long have you been participating in the Ink and Iron Festival and how do you think it benefits an artist such as yourself? KB: I've been doing the Ink and Iron Festival since the beginning. We are just across the water from the ship, so, for us, it brings in lots of locals who don't know we are there yet. It's a chance for those people to see a lot of art in one spot, enjoy a day of play, tattooing, piercing and have a lot of fun. LIVE: If you had to make a prediction, where would you say this art form would be in the next five to ten years? KB: Even bigger than it is now for sure. Tattooing is always growing and changing. No one knows what will come next, but we know it will be great. 50 LIVEMAGS.NET JUNE>>10