The All-American Tattoo Convention

The All-American Tattoo Convention

BY Patrick Gibney

The All-American Tattoo Convention is an annual event held at the Crown Expo Center, bringing together tattoo artists, vendors, and tattoo enthusiasts from across the world. This year’s event will take place from April 17th to the 19th.

The convention will feature over 300 artists tattooing on site, including several celebrity artists who have been featured on TV shows like Inkmaster, Tattoo Nightmares, and Tattoo Rescue. Over 30 specialty vendors will be present to showcase their products and offer insight and advice to artists and tattoo fans alike. This year’s event also includes approximately 50 different tattoo contests, the Miss All-American Pin-Up Pageant, a special area for kids and teenagers, a VIP meet and greet, a strongman competition, an MMA Knights Octagon demonstration, and a food truck rodeo.

For anyone considering getting a tattoo, the convention is a perfect introduction to the tattooing world. The numerous artists working at this event cover every conceivable tattooing style. All payments go directly to the artists, with most taking debit or credit cards. There will be ATMs on site, and military discounts will be offered directly at the box office.

I got my first tattoo at a famous tattoo shop in Dublin, Ireland, called Johnny Eagle’s. I was fourteen. It was a dagger on my right forearm with my nickname on it. Shortly thereafter, I ripped the scab off playing football, and it never healed properly, so it looked awful. I had it removed in the early nineties. Around this time, I met a young tattoo artist named Kerry Lawing. Eventually, his artwork ended up on both my arms and legs. We lost Kerry last year in a tragic motorcycle accident. May he rest in peace.

Visit allamericantattooconvention.com for all relevant information.