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Blood and Lightning
On Becoming a Tattooer
Dustin Kiskaddon’s memoir Blood and Lightning details the ins and outs of working in a tattoo shop.
The book covers every facet of being a tattoo artist, including the intimacy of the relationship between a tattooer and their client: the tattooer learns a client’s body, monitors their reactions, and asks for consent, all while they breathe the same air. Good artists, Kiskaddon says, can tell if a client is going to pass out based on the smell of their sweat.
Throughout the book are photographs of Kiskaddon’s work—a bumblebee riding a unicycle, cherubs holding machine guns, a traditional rose—as well as snippets from the field notes he kept during his apprenticeship. He also shares anecdotes about the ethical decisions tattoo artists face, like refusing to tattoo the word “heartbreak” on an eighteen-year-old’s forehead. Complex discussions about skin color, race, and sexualized body parts are also handled with grace: Kiskaddon considers whether his Instagram feed of mostly white skin alienates people with darker skin tones.
Blood and Lightning is an illuminating peek behind the doors of a tattoo shop, digging into the realities, ethics, and philosophy of altering the bodies of strangers.
Reviewed by
Ashley Holstrom
Disclosure: This article is not an endorsement, but a review. The publisher of this book provided free copies of the book to have their book reviewed by a professional reviewer. No fee was paid by the publisher for this review. Foreword Reviews only recommends books that we love. Foreword Magazine, Inc. is disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255.
