Tattoo Convention in China: How We Brought Harry Potter to Beijing and Took Second Place
In 2016, I traveled to China for a major tattoo convention. It was held in Langfang, a city near Beijing. For this trip, I decided to bring one of my best models with me. At the time, she had one of my favorite pieces on her arm, a full-color sleeve inspired by Harry Potter.
The tattoo covered her entire arm. It was a realism piece featuring portraits and images of the main characters from the movies. The work was bright, colorful, detailed, and technically challenging, so of course we went there hoping to show a strong piece and compete for an award.
Ten Hours on a Small Plane
Our trip started in the summer of 2016.
We had a long flight to Beijing ahead of us. One of my first memories from that trip is actually pretty funny. The airplane felt very small for someone my height. I sat down and realized that my knees barely fit in front of me.
So for about ten hours on the way to Beijing, my legs kept reminding me that I'm a tall guy.
But the mood was great. I knew there was a huge group of tattoo artists traveling to the convention.
Our trip was sponsored by World Famous Tattoo Ink, the tattoo ink company I was working with at the time. They provided our booth, hotel, and participation in the convention.
There were around 50 of us altogether, including a lot of friends and fellow artists from different parts of Russia, Europe, and the United States. So the trip quickly became more than just a professional event. It was also a chance to meet old friends and colleagues again.
A Huge Convention That Looked Empty at First
By that point, I had already traveled to quite a few tattoo conventions, and I had started noticing a certain trend.
When I first began going to conventions, there were huge crowds of visitors. The venues would be packed with people who came specifically to see tattoos and watch artists work.
Over time, with the internet and social media becoming more popular, some conventions started getting quieter. You could walk into a huge venue and see half-empty booths.
When we arrived in China, the first thing that surprised me was the size of the place.
It was the biggest tattoo convention venue I had ever seen at that point.
I looked around and thought, this place is enormous. They're going to open the doors and half of it will probably stay empty.
I was completely wrong.
When the Doors Opened, We Were Hit by a Wave of People
As soon as the doors opened, a massive crowd came inside.
Not a few dozen people. It was a real wave moving through the entire venue.
I was standing near our booth when one young guy suddenly noticed my model, pointed in our direction, and shouted something to the people around him.
Then everybody rushed toward us.
Within seconds, there was a huge crowd around our booth.
I was shocked by how quickly we got that much attention. Of course, it felt great to hear compliments and see people interested in the work, but at some point it was honestly a little intimidating. We weren't prepared for that many people surrounding us.
My model handled it like a champ and kept trying to show the tattoo from every angle.
At one point she even had to sit down because people were trying to get as close as possible, look at every part of the sleeve, and photograph all the details. They were pulling at her arms and trying to turn her around just to get a better view of the tattoo.
Another thing that surprised me was how much camera equipment everyone seemed to have. It felt like every person had two or three cameras plus a video camera.
Everybody was shooting everything at once.
For probably 40 minutes, we just stood there posing, taking photos, and getting the kind of attention that, in some ways, is exactly why you travel to major international tattoo conventions.
More Than a Thousand Booths and Serious Competition
The convention itself was incredibly intense.
There were more than a thousand booths and a huge number of talented artists from all over the world. Naturally, there were especially many Chinese tattoo artists since the convention was happening in China.
And the level of the work was extremely high.
I walked around looking at these huge, complicated tattoos, and at some point I honestly started wondering how realistic it was for us to compete with work on that level.
But I still believed in our project.
I felt that we had brought something fresh, bright, and interesting. I wanted to show my own approach to realism and prove that our work deserved to stand next to some of the strongest tattoo artists at the convention.
And in the end, that's exactly what happened.
Second Place for a Large Color Tattoo
When we walked onto the stage, the judges spent a long time examining the work.
We showed them the tattoo from every angle, went through the competition judging, and in the end my model took second place in the Large Color Tattoo category.
That award became very special to me.
We had come all the way to China with one of my best pieces, competed among a huge number of talented artists, and managed to receive recognition at such a major international event.
It was an incredible feeling.
China Was About Much More Than the Tattoo Convention
Of course, the trip wasn't only about tattoos.
We went to restaurants, tried local food, explored the area, and climbed the Great Wall of China. We even rode down from the wall on a kind of alpine slide.
That was really cool.
China was very welcoming to us. The only thing that took some getting used to was the food. Our eating habits are pretty different, so at first it wasn't always easy. But we quickly found dishes that worked for us.
A Trip I Still Remember
I came away from China with really good memories.
What stayed with me most was the energy of the people and their genuine interest in tattooing. The convention brought together an incredible number of talented artists. It was fascinating to see so many different techniques, styles, and approaches in one place.
I was also really impressed by the organization of the convention and by how many regular visitors came to see it.
People were there simply because they were interested in tattoos. They wanted to meet international artists, photograph the work, and see everything happening at the convention.
We worked hard, traveled, had a great time, and showed what we could do.
I received an international award, met a lot of new people, and after the convention I gained quite a few followers and fans of my work in China.
And I think one day I'll go back.
Next time, I'll come with a new project, new ideas, and a new piece of work that I'll be excited to show people.
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