Salt Lake ink: Tattoo convention is part of growing $2.3B industry

Danny Tewell of Elko, Nev., only had one requirement for a new tattoo between his arm and hip: that it have laurel branches.

"I just kind of ran with it," said tattoo artist Joey Ortega, who lives near Austin, Texas, as he filled black, olive green, red and blue into Tewell's skin at this year's Salt Lake City International Tattoo Convention.

Tewell remained still on a table in the Salt Palace, and after three hours of pain — the area of the rib cage is sensitive, and so is the underarm — Ortega finished an elaborate inverted torch to remind Tewell of mortality.

The tattoo would have normally cost $500, but Tewell got it for free because he designed Ortega's Web site.

This year's convention, which runs through Sunday, is the fifth annual tattoo gathering in Utah. About 7,000 people are anticipated to attend, including health-department inspectors ensuring that the temporary booths meet code, and 300 tattoo artists from around the United States, as well as China, Japan, Sweden and Germany.

Jef Wright, from Grand Rapids, Mich., makes a living traveling across the United States giving tattoos at conventions.

"This is a good one," Wright said about the convention at the Salt Palace.

Wright was giving a tattoo to Richard Stell of Fine Line Tattoos in Dallas, who was chatting on his cell phone. Stell said he believes the popularity of the Salt Lake convention is "because of the repression of people here."

"People are looking for an outlet," he said. "I could see why people want to stand out."

Members of Utah's predominant faith are discouraged from tattooing their bodies, said Scott Trotter, spokesman for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. LDS leaders interpret Bible references to the body as a temple as an admonishment to refrain from tattooing. The church has not addressed the issue of church members who belong to cultures that tattoo as part of their traditions, such as Pacific Islanders.

Inc. Magazine recently estimated that there are 15,000 tattoo shops nationwide and that tattooing is a $2.3 billion industry. Once the mark of a rebel, shop owners say the mainstreaming of tattoos has been a boon for business — about 45 million Americans have received tattoos, including about 25 percent of people between ages 18-50, according to the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology.

Stell considers himself a "tattooer." Others call themselves "tattoo artists." Tattoo stores can be called studios or galleries, depending on the owner.