Darryl Gets INKED

[kiyakotari]

Darryl is back (or at least, Darryl's torso and left thigh are back) from a sojourn in Ireland with the inestimable hane, who made my descriptions of his dragon tattoo a vivid reality. His parts have actually been here for about a week, but I've been giving them a "no-chipping-or-wearing-off" treatment using painted-on coats of clear polyurethane resin (the same resin I use in making my eyes), so I haven't been able to assemble him until now. This tattoo is completely permanent. It will not wear off. In fact, all of the tattooed pieces have been sanded to remove (most of) the glossiness from the urethane coating, so that should give you an idea of just how durable it is. I may give them a hit of MSC or Zouk's spray in the future, just to matte up the parts where there are dips in the sculpt that were hard to sand and that still retain some shine, but I don't know if I'll bother. (I really hate the texture of spray coatings like MSC.)

So without further ado, I give you...Darryl's dragon tattoo.

Comments

[just_lori]

That is awesome. The workmanship is incredible. I never would have been so brave as to paint on a layer of clear urethane to seal the work, but it is brilliant.

Could you fix a scratched urethane eye with that stuff?

[kiyakotari]

Yes, I could fix a scratched eye. I'm guessing you're asking in reference to the Mako Eyes? The clear urethane they use is pretty weak. I'm not sure what brand/type it is, but it's not very good.

If I were doing something like that, it would probably be best if I coated both eyes, just to make sure the surfaces were even.

[just_lori]

I actually have a Dollshe eye that chipped right on the cornea.

That's awesome! :D

[kiyakotari]

A chip might take a bit more work than a scratch, but I could probably fix that.

[myliferedone.livejournal.com]

Hot damn, Kiya.

You know, if Darryl existed in the flesh, I'd want to pin him down (not literally) and ask him detailed questions about the process of getting this tattoo. I'd want to know the feelings behind it, the reasons, the sensation, and...

I think (because I'm curious) that that would be a really interesting point of view to examine as a story.

...

I'm stuck in counseling mindset mode, though, I know.

But as a very interested and inquiring mind, I simply have to know....

Please?

[kiyakotari]

He did not choose to get the tattoo himself. It was applied to him as part of his cover for his final pre-liberation mission, before Abigail stole him from the facility that constructed him. It would have been erased, but she took him before that could happen. He has no (intact) memory of the process of getting it.

[myliferedone.livejournal.com]

You have a fine way of always writing satisfying answers that still leave me with more itching questions.

The themes here are interesting. I'm trying to stop myself from analyzing it from a therapy perspective on the formation of his unique personality. You have certainly given him depth. <3

I do adore him. And the more you do and the more you write, he is -more- Darryl all the time.

[kiyakotari]

I like to think of it as him (as all of the dolls, really, as they're changed) "coming into focus." ^_~

[twigling.livejournal.com]

So beautiful, I can see why you were aching to put him back together!!!

If you run an air-compressor, you could get a little sand-blasting box to lightly spray any shiny areas to take of the gloss, should be more durable and less annoying than spraying MSC....

[kiyakotari]

Good idea! I'll keep the sand-blasting in mind! I have an air compressor (two actually - one in the house and one in the garage) already.

[nagasvoice]

If you want to leave the remaining spots of gloss, it could look like sweat. In these pix it looks like he's gleaming-sweaty from exercise.

[kiyakotari]

Yeah, that was kind of my feeling on the gloss. And it honestly doesn't bother me right now, but it might in the future, once my initial tattoo excitement wears off. So we'll see what happens.

[greenjudy]

I can't decide if I am made happier by the beauty of this tattoo, or by your ingenuity in making it really and truly permanent. (That's a service you might consider offering to other inked resin types, BTW...I can imagine a few people out there who would love something like this kind of protective coating...

The dragon is stunning...it's amazing to me to see Darryl now and reflect on all the ways he's appeared over time, the extraordinary continuities and the transformations. Refinement, I think, is the word I want. It's an amazing process when I look at it whole.

[kiyakotari]

^_______^ I'd hoped you would like it. I know we'd discussed having you do his dragon, and if you still want to at some point in the future, Kohya!Darryl still needs a dragon. But I don't want to pressure you. I know your life is crazy hectic nowadays.

I've thought of offering the sealing service, but I don't know if it would be fiscally reasonable. I'd have to charge $50+ for a project the size of this one, for example. And I would have to charge a similar amount for faceups, even though they're smaller, because they're harder to seal. I might put up a commission thread on DoA for tattoo sealing only, and see if I get any bites.

I need to do a "Darryl from the beginning to today" post at some point, and show pictures of every stage he's gone through, from the very first Kohya photos with his terrible faceup and my horrible camera and worse photography to his current form.