SAN ANGELO, TX — When brothers Alex and Aubrey Trufant announced they wanted to hold a tattoo convention in 2008, no one took them seriously. The first tattoo convention, held in March 2009, was a hit, despite what skeptics believed. This year is the West Texas Tattoo Convention’s 10th anniversary. Alex said he expects 2,500 to 3,000 people will attend the three-day event in San Angelo.
Alex said after the first couple of successful years, the City of San Angelo wanted to explore holding the convention twice a year. The brothers have declined, however, concentrating instead on increasing the quality of artists and format for patrons at the annual show year over year.
The San Angelo tattoo show is a smaller version of the shows in major NFL cities. The Trufants claim the quality is higher here because they can be more selective about what artists they invite with more limited space. That increases interest in the San Angelo event from all over the nation, Alex said.
The core of the tattoo convention is the exhibit hall full of artists’ booths inside the McNease Convention Center on Rio Concho Drive. A renowned tattoo artist mans each booth.
“We expect a high caliber from our artists,” Alex explained. “It will be an all-star weekend.”
Tattoo enthusiasts can choose from a wide selection of well-known artists and get their tattoo created at the convention center.
“All under one roof,” Alex said.
Noted artists who are coming this year include Freddie Corbin of Temple Tattoo in Oakland, California. He’s known as the nicest man in the tattoo industry and world-renown. He was featured on Vice several times, like this:
WATCH: Freddie Corbin
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Steve Byrne will exhibit this year. He spent 12 years in England learning the craft of tattoo artistry before settling on Lamar Street in Austin, founding Rock of Ages Tattoo.
Also expected to attend will be Byrne’s colleague from Austin, Tony Hundahl.
Dan Sinnes from Luxembourg in Europe is also coming, as is Tommy Montoya out of Covina, California. Montoya is known for old school black and grey realism and is respected globally.
Because of the caliber of the artists attending, around 60 in all, the convention is billed as “All killer, no filler.” The Trufants promise quality over quantity.
Alex said what makes a great tattoo artist is a natural ability to visualize and create graphic arts and mentorship.
“I started tattooing at 15 years old,” said Alex. He found so much enjoyment in it that he convinced his older brother Aubrey to try it out, too.
“Aubrey can draw,” Alex said.
The brothers arrived in San Angelo as the dependent children of a military family at Goodfellow Air Force Base. Following the footsteps of their father, Aubrey Trufant, Sr., both brothers enlisted in the U.S. Air Force after graduating from Central High School.
Aubrey joined first and served as an HVAC mechanic. Alex soon joined too, and served as a jet engine mechanic.
By the mid-2000s, Aubrey decided to separate from the service and dad set him up in his own shop. Aubrey said he was already making a name for himself in the service as a tattoo artist. One bedroom of his cramped base housing was his studio.
“We had to convince Alex to quit and join us, too,” Aubrey said. The Air Force was going through a drawdown at the time. The shop, Bulletproof Tattoo, opened on August 15, 2005 and Alex soon joined his brother. Today, the business has grown considerably. Renamed Trufant Brothers, the shop now has a prominent downtown San Angelo location at 227 S. Chadbourne St.
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Above: Trufant Brothers Tattoo at 227 S. Chadbourne St. in San Angelo. (LIVE! Photo/Joe Hyde)
To be a great tattoo artist, Alex stresses mentorship by senior masters of the art.
“You have to travel the world seeking out the guys you respect and admire. Get a tattoo from them. Learn their techniques,” he said.
As the brothers’ reputation grew across the nation, other tattoo artists began to seek out the Trufants. Called guest tattoo artists, “Quite a few come through here and our shop,” Alex said. This set the stage for learning from one another.
The Trufants were lucky to visualize and then get on the wave of the rising popularity of tattoos. It wasn’t always that way. Aubrey mentioned the late August “Cap” Coleman, the tattoo artist who set up shop near the large U.S. Navy base in Norfolk, Virginia. Coleman, who died in 1973, designed a more simple form of tattoo.
Today, the designs and techniques have matured and the patrons of tattoos aren’t just midshipmen in the Navy.
Alex grimaces when he hears tattoos are against Christianity. Often quoted is 1 Corinthians 6:19-20.
“Do you not know that your bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your bodies,” states Paul in the Bible.
To the Trufants, tattoos beautify the body and honor God’s temple. Nothing is wrong with artwork. “Why is stained glass in a Cathedral so beautiful?” Alex asked.
Preferences of tattoo art vary among the sexes, Alex said. Women generally seek images that make them feel more attractive and sexy. Another trend is for women to request images that display strength.
Men, too, seek images displaying strength, but at the same time, display their goodness.
Both men and women project their realization of their own mortality with images such as skulls.
“To remind us all that we are not immortal,” Alex said.
Overall, a tattoo has to mean something. To many who have tattoos, the meaning is deep-rooted. Names or images of one’s children are a recurring theme.
The art displayed at the tattoo convention doesn’t necessarily have to be on the body, however. You can view and purchase prints from many of the artists as well.
The West Texas Tattoo Convention at San Angelo's McNease Convention Center, 501 Rio Concho Dr., is Friday, March 1 from 2 p.m. until 10 p.m.; Saturday, March 2, from noon until 10 p.m.; and Sunday, March 3 from 12 p.m. until 8 p.m. Tickets for each day are $15. A weekend pass to all three days is $30. Advance tickets are available on Stubwire and at Blair's Western Wear on Sherwood Way.
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