Three Tattoo Artists Hit the Road Through London, Dublin and Glasgow

Contemporary tattooers Jonah Slater, Ronan Mal and James Goh are accustomed to relocating for professional engagements, frequently visiting different cities around the world for temporary residencies. However, earlier in the year, the three collaborators opted for an alternative approach. Through their initiative called Markings, they journeyed collectively across their respective home regions of London, Dublin and Glasgow, with photographer Rei Delos-Reyes documenting their expedition throughout the endeavor.

The group loaded all necessary tattooing supplies into a single vehicle and departed from Slater's studio in East London, Church of England. The journey continued by ferry to Dublin, where they unloaded furnishings, gear and materials into a vacant creative space in Dublin's downtown area. Following three days of client sessions, they ventured deeper into rural Ireland before making another water crossing and eventually arriving at Goh's establishment in Glasgow.

Each practitioner took a distinct approach to their body art creations during the journey. Mal developed imagery drawing inspiration from the destinations they encountered, while Slater maintained his signature custom approach, emphasizing substantial works requiring extended appointment times. According to Slater, "There were a couple of clients who got tattooed by all three of us along the way, which was cool. And it was the first time I think the three of us had actually spent that much time tattooing simultaneously."

The venture represented an opportunity for each artist to introduce their peers to locations of personal significance and cultural resonance that continues shaping their artistic direction. As Slater notes, "We all identify quite strongly with where we're from, and you can see those influences bleeding into our work." Though their individual artistic expressions differ substantially, the three maintain common interests in medieval design traditions, ecclesiastical symbolism and macabre historical themes. "I think there's a shared language between us," Slater elaborates. "Similar interests, similar references, similar ideas, but we speak that language very differently."

Their collective creative sensibilities converged notably at Glasgow's Necropolis, an antique burial ground commanding views across the city landscape, decorated with aged grave markers and crumbling stone constructions. Goh observes, "Ronan's work uses a lot of Celtic motifs such as crosses and religious imagery, so he would have been like a kid in a candy shop in the necropolis." Slater adds perspective on their varied interpretations: "All three of us can look at the same thing and take something from it, but what comes out the other end looks completely different."

In Dublin, Mal reconnected with his initial exposure to tattoo culture, recalling his discovery of antiquarian tattoo periodicals and catalogs at secondhand markets and his childhood observations of display windows at Shamrock Tattoo on Crow Street. For this artist, the expedition represented "connecting with the roots." He explains his perspective: "So many aspects of modern life pull us away from that, and I think everyone is noticing the profound loss that is coming with it. Tattooing is no different."

While traveling through Wexford, they made a visit to Mal's acquaintance and tattooing professional Ste Murdoch alongside his spouse Molly Mahoney, residing on a rural property with livestock in the Irish hinterland. Murdoch operates his tattooing business from a mobile unit positioned adjacent to horse facilities, which Slater characterizes as a "proper little tattoo studio inside", featuring decorative designs and professional materials covering its interior surfaces. Slater reflects on the experience: "There was something incredibly grounded about what Ste and Molly have built. It felt like tattooing for the sake of tattooing: giving people good tattoos, looking after people and being part of a community."

This community dimension was notably evident throughout the journey, captured most effectively in the accompanying documentary work created by Rei Delos-Reyes. Though the three collaborators had previously engaged in shared work, the intensity and duration of this engagement was unprecedented. Goh observes, "They work extremely hard, and being around them every day and seeing how they approach work was a masterclass on how to get stuff done. It's usually the sweetest people making the most brutal work." AM