Tattoo You

The artistic worth of tattoos has always been up for debate. While there are some people who don't even consider it a form of art, others think of it as the ultimate form of self-expression, both for the artist and the human canvas. There used to be a time when the only people you'd see with tattoos were retired military men, former cons and those sketchy-looking guys who lived on the fringe. These days, the taboo of tattoos is all but gone. With Miami Ink on the same network that brings us Trading Spaces and What Not To Wear and Britney Spears-like celebrities and athletes showing their own colorful skin with pride, tattoo culture is becoming a more and more mainstream part of society and pop culture. By taking the art off of the body and putting it onto canvases, Kettle Art, the not-quite-a-year-old art gallery in Deep Ellum, is going one step further. Beyond Skin Deep, an exhibition featuring the art of local tattoo artists such as Casey Corklic, Mark Merchant and Jon Chancey, will give people an opportunity to remove the flesh element of tattoos and focus on the image, showing us what these guys can really do with ink. The opening reception takes place at 7 p.m. Sunday at Kettle Art, 2714 Elm St. The show hangs through August 13 with gallery hours of 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. Thursday through Saturday. Admission is free. Call 214-573-7622 or visit kettleart.com.
Thursdays-Saturdays, 8-10 p.m. Starts: Aug. 3. Continues through Aug. 13