Though Avery said they always knew they wanted tattoos, the timing of their first one resulted from a spontaneous visit to local tattoo parlor Ink Empire with friends.

“I’ve always known that I wanted to get tattooed,” physics sophomore Avery said. “I want to be heavily tattooed. It (was) kind of up in the air what my first one was gonna be. But we started making plans and were like, ‘OK, let’s go.’”

Avery said they value the beauty and permanent aesthetics of the tattoo artform, and they seek out independent and local artists for their tattoos, including the elaborate, patterned dragon that dances over their collarbone.

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“I prefer seeking out the artist myself,” Avery said. “I’m now in a place where I see getting tattoos as collecting art from different people. I like looking for artists myself, seeing who I like and what they can give me.”

Avery’s dragon, one of their three animal-themed tattoos, represents their appreciation for both the natural world and aestheticism. After reconciling several reference photos, Avery and their friends walked into Ink Empire and “hoped for the best,” they said.

“I was like, ‘I think I’m going to do that,’ and then we just walked in,” Avery said. “Because it was my first experience, I was a little worried. But the guy was super nice and reassuring. It was a fun experience, especially since I was surrounded by friends.”

Avery got their second tattoo, a pair of intertwined cats with colorful butterfly wings under their left elbow, after their first organic chemistry midterm last semester. Additionally, Avery commissioned their third tattoo, a large, bolded snake encircling their left shoulder, from a visit with Los Angeles artist Chen Tatt. Avery said they plan for their next piece to be a ring of crows in a similarly traditional style. 

“I like a lot of different styles, but I think I’ve kind of fallen in love with heavy black linework,” Avery said. “I am the type who likes tattoos for aesthetic reasons rather than personal meaning. …  I feel like while eventually they might lose meaning to me, I still want them to look good. I still want to like them even after they don’t mean the same thing to me.”

Editor’s note: The article’s subject requested to be referred to by solely their first name.