The tattoo, in its absolute sense, is the act of indelibly marking with ink the skin and the body. And such it is an artistic technique that is able to evolve and coexist with all other forms of art. Painting and art in general underwent, through the years, a formal development, both creative and conceptual, that is the result of an evolution that reflects how society progresses.
In much the same way tattoos have seen an artistic growth dictated by the need to develop and to impose itself as proper art form.
Modern tattoos are therefore a creative and dynamic art form whose results are proper artworks on skin, not just a skilful, hand-crafted reproduction.
Like the canvas for the painter, skin becomes the medium of choice for the tattoo artist. Tattooing becomes an happening and a form of body art: the unique artistic interpretation of a concept, thought or message.
Established in 2013, The white elephant is a private studio ran by Otto D'Ambra but it's also the scenario for a project that aims to eliminate the boundaries between tattoos and fine art. Every year Otto hosts a various number of worldwide artists such as Marco Galdo, Morg, Expanded Eye. It’s an art laboratory that acts as a meeting point where each and every artist involved share the same vision of avant-garde and artistic expression. A place where you can enjoy a good think, draw and tattoo, etch or paint a canvas, print a photo and photograph a tattoo, think a canvas, design a thought, think a tattoo and tattoo a photo, develop a project, tattoo a canvas, etch and paint a development, draw a thought and so on…