This time last month we were onto the second stop of our ‘Lost Cause Flash Tattoo Tour’ and our first US tattoo studio. We’ve been meaning to check out The LA River Tattoo Company for a while, so when the opportunity arose to collaborate with such a badass brand we were gonna take it. Situated right in the centre of buzzing downtown LA, The Los Angeles River Co. is one of the coolest concept style shops we’ve come across- combining surf, apparel and tattoos in one space.
Artists: Stephen Carballo (@thelosangelesriver), @sweriet, & Doc Rosen (@grosstattoos) Lens: Kevin Coffey (@thecoffey)
The artists arrived early; donning their ‘Lost Cause' tees, to get the stations prepared & artwork up. Each artist had worked up a number of discounted flash pieces- collating minimal line-work, black work and more traditional styles. From about 1PM people had begun to queue up outside the door, so we knew it was time to get things, in the words of LA River Co. owner Stephen Carballo, ‘rocking & rolling.’
Aside from a quick chill hour around mid-afternoon, the constant flood of people wanting to hang out and get inked was crazy- with the artists working solid throughout the day. As the crowds grew the guys ordered in a few pizzas and got started on the beers. People were gathering outside; getting tipsy and having a good time, the atmosphere was insane.
The shenanigans continued well into the night, with the sign-up list being shut off and the last of the customers being tattooed right up until midnight. Everyone was stoked on the product we sent out from our Spring collection and we received some awesome feedback.
Thanks again to Stephen and all the other artist involved. Watch out for future collaborations with these guys!
Day 4-'Le Mausolee’ coverage coming soon.
Next stop Les Maux Bleus, Paris 17.05.18
See also ‘Vagabond Tattoo’ & ‘Lock & Key Tattoo Studio’