L'Italo-Americano

THURSDAY, MAY 2, 2019 www.italoamericano.org 20 L'Italo-Americano G ooking at the amaz- ing, unbelievably stunning work of Federico Costantini you actually feel like you're in the presence of a true and unique piece of art. The beauty and the perfection of his tattoos has brought him to currently be one of the most prominent and awarded Italian tattooers in the world. Some- how he definitely managed to bring an authentic touch of Italian class and culture to an ancient and tribal form of art. Born in Rome and raised in a troubled and difficult suburb of the Eternal City, once he com- pleted his studies of art (attending one of the most prestigious Insti- tutes) he promptly started working as an art restorer at the Vatican, in the very heart of the Roman Catholic Church. Between 1997 and 1998 he felt the necessity to change everything about his career: in the Vatican, he was undeniably surrounded by beauty, but he felt somehow suf- focated and without the chance of real, professional improvement. He then started studying the most ancient forms of art and he finally landed on the intriguing world of tattoos. His first job was as an appren- tice tattooer in a famous tattoo parlor in Rome, with his uncle giving him the money to buy his first professional equipment: he MAURIZIO RAMI Federico Costantini: the modern Michelangelo of tattoos is conquering the world of art right artist to create something permanent on their bodies. If you think about it, it's not an easy de- cision and it's all based on an in- stinctive mutual trust. Did you receive some offers to work in California? Right after my conventions, festivals and exhibitions in New York, Las Vegas and Los Ange- les, several American tattoo stu- dios contacted me and offered their sponsorship to help me work also in the USA. Of course it'd be a big change and my family and I are seriously considering that option: we'd love to embrace this new, amazing chapter of our lives and we're honestly glad and flattered by all the sincere love and professional appreciation we received in California. What's your most secret dream, your biggest desire as an artist? I'd love to create only beauty and to be recognized because of my uniqueness. I also love to make people's dreams come true: if I can help in some ways the ones I love, I do it! What professional and per- sonal advice would you give to a young artist who'd love to be a tattooer? Follow your passion, study a lot and know that lessons in life never end, don't accept compro- mises and keep your integrity. Usually nobody remembers how delicate and critical our job is: we do make something that'll stay on people's bodies forever. immediately discovered to have a passion and a true skill for it. A few years after, when he started developing his own style, his boss told him he would never become a great artist. And so, Federico decided to open his own tattoo place – very close to the one where he had trained: in seven months, his boss went out of business. Since then, Federico travelled a lot around the world, winning prizes and awards at almost every festival and competition he par- ticipated to. Like a real artist on a blank canvas, he creates amazing masterpieces on the human body: his parlor has, nowadays, a wait- ing list between 6 and 9 months, and even VIPs gladly wait to have the honor of getting tattooed by the "Michelangelo of tattoos." How did you manage to merge a tribal, ancient art like tattoos with the Italian tradi- tional ideal of classic beauty? The first tattooers in history were usually shamans and heal- ers: that's because tattoos in gen- eral were always seen as a sacred ritual, a divine sign made on our own bodies. Then, with the pass- ing of time, tattoos became asso- ciated with a stereotyped image of tough sailors, convicted crimi- nals and gang members proudly sporting ink on their body as a symbol of their eventful past. That is partially true, but noth- ing will ever steal the original, mystical meaning of tattoos away. Since I started tattooing, I have tried to bring together my sense of Beauty, which is typically Ital- ian, with the ancient and shamanic power of the original healers. Where do you take your in- spiration from? From studying paintings, like I did when I was attending the Art Institute, at the beginning of my career. Beside my job as a tattooer I still love to paint in a more tra- ditional way: on canvas, on wood and sometimes I do love to create shoes entirely painted by me. How and when did your in- ternational popularity started? I've always loved to travel and, while I was attending one of my first tattoos convention in New York, some people from the West Coast noticed me and pro- posed me to go there and see how I liked it. I immediately fell in love with the Californian lifestyle because I feel it's very close to mine. Tattooers are always seen as tough people, can you talk a lit- tle more about you? That's another cliché about the job that I'd love to fight. Behind the thick-skinned kind of person that everybody wants to see, I am an extremely sensitive and vul- nerable human being: my lovely wife Manu knows that very well and I can definitely say that she's my most powerful support. How would you define your style? I could define my style as a modern form of avant-garde. I am not a traditional tattooer and I do base myself very much on my personal reproduction of classic artworks. I am a very sentimental guy and all my tattoos usually ex- press a personal feeling, an inner emotion my client needed to rep- resent through my work. The nee- dle is my brush and my clients' skin is my canvas: I respect that and I always think of myself as someone who can't make the slightest mistake.There is no way back when you work on some- one's skin: the level of attention my job requires is enormous. What do you believe made you so popular all around the world? Well, first of all I only use top- notch equipment and materials: I want my clients to feel safe, pro- tected and cared for. I think they immediately feel that for me mak- ing a tattoo is not just a job, but a matter of spirituality, beauty, emotions and art. Since I started – when I won over my main com- petitors in Rome – I wanted to make clear that my professional skills are coming from an ancient place, from an old tradition and from a place of pure poetry, first and foremost. Did you reach your popular- ity in Italy very soon? I know this may sound cocky and I wanna stress that I am say- ing this with the utmost humble- ness, but since I started many VIPs and people from the show business decided that I was the Federico Costantini at work in his studio @ Federico Costantini LOS ANGELES ITALIAN COMMUNITY

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