Gianfranco Tripodo: Wat Bang Phra

I saw the work of Gianfranco Tripodo mentioned in a Lightstalkers forum discussion, and noticed he documented the ritualistic tattooing at the Thai temple of Wat Bang Phra, near Bangkok as I did a couple of years ago. His gallery is titled Sak Yant: Thai Magical Tattoo.

Gianfranco Tripodo is a photojournalist currently based in Madrid, Spain, and is a member of Cesuralab Agency, an Italian photo collective under the artistic direction of Alex Majoli, Magnum Photos. He was published in L’Espresso, IoDonna, El Pais and worked with PhotoEspaña Festival.

I've already posted a number of posts on Wat Bang Phra and its tattooing monks here. It's worth casting an eye on the posts to understand the importance of these religious (or "magical") tattoos to the Thais.

My own gallery The Tattooing Monks of Wat Bang Phra is on my website, and I noticed that one of the tattooing monks appears in both Gianfranco's gallery and mine.

Tattooing Monks of Thailand

Photograph © Tewfic El-Sawy-All Rights Reserved
I recently updated a photo essay entitled The Tattooing Monks of Wat Bang Phra, and revamped the photo gallery by using Adobe Lightroom's Flash gallery capabilities. Nothing could have been simpler.

The National Geographic's All Terrain blog has a new post on Thailand's tattooing monks, and I wrote on the same subject a few months ago on TTP, and linked to an identical project which had appeared on NPR

The monks at Wat Bang Phro near Bangkok are reputed to be among the best tattooists in Asia. They use a long metal rod, sharpened to a fine point, and have uncanny precision in their work. Here, antiseptics range from regular rubbing alcohol to a local rice wine, and toilet paper paper to blot any blood. I was told that the ink is made from snake venom, herbs, and cigarette ashes. The monks' talents as tattoo artists are available for little remuneration: an offering of orchids, a carton of Thai cigarettes (preferably menthol-flavored) or a few Bhats towards the upkeep of the Wat.

Beyond The Frame: Tattooing Monks

From The Tattooing Monks of Wat Bang Phro-Copyright 2005 Tewfic El-Sawy
For this week's Beyond The Frame feature, I chose my image of a Thai being tattooed, his skin being pulled tautly by his friends.

I had heard of a monastery not far from Bangkok that specialized that had the best tattooing artists in Thailand. These artists were Buddhist monks who worked virtually around the clock, tattooing religious designs on Thais and the occasional foreigner.

With a taxi driver who seemed to know how to get to Wat Bang Phro, and about half an hour of frenetic driving, we got to the monastery. Before allowed in, I was first interviewed by a senior monk who wanted to be reassured that I did not intend to defame the practice in any way. Allowed then to photograph as I pleased, I walked in a room where two monks were busy. They used long metal rods, sharpened to a fine point, and had uncanny precision in their work. I watched in disbelief how fast the monk's hand moved...it was just a blur. Here, antiseptics range from regular rubbing alcohol to a local rice wine, and toilet paper paper to blot any blood. I was told that the ink was made from snake venom, herbs, and cigarette ashes. The monks' talents as tattoo artists are available for an offering of orchids, a carton of Thai cigarettes (preferably menthol-flavored) or perhaps a few Bhats towards the upkeep of the Wat.

The tattoos, as inscribed by these Buddhist monks, are defensive in purpose since they are to protect the wearer from any harm. Here in Thailand, tattoos are considered by many to have powerful powers, and to prevent bad luck in general.

It was quite difficult to find a good spot to photograph in this room. The sunlight came through two windows, but the corners of the room were dark, and I couldn't ask the monks and their 'clients' to hold a pose. This was purely a situation where one photographs as one can, irrespective of angles. I was on top of them, to their side...anywhere I could find some space.

EXIF: shutter speed 1/13 sec.- fstop 5.6 - iso 200 - focal length 28mm - no flash fired.

Cedric Arnold: Sacred Ink

Photo © Cedric Arnold-All Rights Reserved

Having just spent some 10 days in Chiang Mai, I'm glad to have found Sacred Ink, the impressive work of photographer Cedric Arnold featuring the tattooing culture in Thailand.

The sacred tattoos in Thailand are much more than just an art form, and with a culture deeply rooted in superstition and spirituality, such tattoos are believed to have magical and healing powers. Thai men and also women have their sacred tattoos done at Buddhist temples, for protection against evil spirits, and as good luck charms.

Cedric Arnold's website tells us that these sacred tattoos can be scripts based on ancient Khmer, and the original Buddhist Pali, along with figures and mythical creatures. Using large-format and Polaroid cameras, formal black-and-white portraits were made of boxers, monks, construction workers, policemen, soldiers, taxi drivers, shipyards workers, a shaman, and tattoo masters.

A few years ago, I photographed at Wat Bang Phra, a Buddhist temple about half an hour's drive from Bangkok. It is here that every March 30 thousands of Thais and foreigners gather to watch or participate in the 'Sak Yant' festival. Sak means "tap tattoo" while Yant translates into "sacred design". 

After being granted permission by a head monk, I photographed during a non-festival day, a couple of Buddhist monks were already busy tattooing Thais. The 'sak yant' is done with a 'mai sak'- a long bamboo stick sharpened to a point. The ink is said to be made from various ingredients including snake venom, herbs and cigarette ash. I was told these was no payment made nor expected, but that gifts of cigarettes and food were accepted by the tattooing monks.






The above short clip is also by Cedric Arnold and I believe must have been filmed during the annual Sak Yant festival at the Wat Bang Phra temple.

NPR: Thai Tattoo Tradition

Image Copyright © Tewfic El-Sawy-All Rights Reserved
In July 2005, I was traveling to Indonesia and stopped en route in Bangkok. It is there that I heard of the famous Wat Bang Phro monastery just outside the city's limits. It wasn't easy to find, but I found Bannasad "Nai" Radabutr, a taxi driver, who knew where it was and who also spoke some English. Through his intermediation, I photographed the tattooing monks at the monastery, and was quite pleased with the results. The resulting Tattooing Monks of Wat Bang Phro is probably one of my preferred documentary photo essays.

So imagine my pleasure at seeing that a similar photo-essay by Scott Carney was published by NPR's website less than two weeks ago, and doubly pleased to see that one of the photographs was almost identical to mine...in terms of subject, of composition and viewpoint. Here it is:

Image Copyright © Scott Carney/NPR-All Rights Reserved

The NPR article tells us that Thai soldiers have covered their bodies in protective tattoos called Sak Yant, and that the ancient ritual is increasingly popular in Thailand and beyond, and people are flocking to master artists to have the powerful designs inked on their bodies.

Naturally, I would've been happier had NPR chosen my photographs to publish in this feature, but that's how it is. It'll be for another time.

NPR's Photo Essay

NPR's Thai Tattoo Tradition

Cedric Arnold | Yantra: The Sacred Ink

I'm quite chuffed to have found a preview of Cedric Arnold's Yantra: The Sacred Ink documentary film which features the rituals and ceremonial processes accompanying the application of tattoos in Thailand.

Having photographed the application of tattooing Wat Bang Phra, a Buddhist temple about half an hour's drive from Bangkok, I know the utmost reverence with which Thais regard their sacred tattoos, which are applied by the monastery's monks. It is here at Wat Bang Phra that every March 30 thousands of Thais and foreigners gather to watch or participate in the 'Sak Yant' festival. Sak means "tap tattoo" while Yant translates into "sacred design".

The short documentary preview uses footage shot between 2008 and 2014, which shows the tattooing process and ceremonies attached to the tradition, as well as the state of trance, or “Khong Khuen”, tattooed devotees enter when “possessed” by the spirit of their tattoos.

Cedric's writes that "For centuries, Thai men have covered their bodies with protective tattoos. Old temple murals show epic scenes of swords breaking apart when hitting a tattooed soldier’s skin. The tradition was handed down by generations of both monks and laymen who create the talismanic, protective tattoos and empower them with prayers."

The sacred tattoos in Thailand are much more than just an art form, and with a culture deeply rooted in superstition and spirituality, such tattoos are believed to have magical and healing powers. Thai men and also women have their sacred tattoos done at many Buddhist temples, for protection against evil spirits, and as good luck charms.

Cedric Arnold is a photographer specializing in portraiture, travel, documentary & corporate photography, as well as movie stills. With over 15 years experience shooting all formats from 35mm digital to 4×5 large format film, he is equally at ease working alone in remote areas or with a team of creatives and a lighting crew. In his personal work, he is often drawn towards exploring the markings of time, this can be in the subject matter itself or expressed with the medium he uses: out of date film, old instant film, or even through chemically altering prints and emulsion.

This is the third time that I feature Cedric Arnold's work on this blog. Previous posts can be found here.

Tom Hoops: Wai Kru Ceremony

Photograph © Tom Hoops-All Rights Reserved
Tom Hoops' biography is sparse....very sparse. His website only says that he's a freelance photographer, based in Bangkok and available for worldwide assignments. That's it.

However, his work speaks for him. Mostly black & white, with a few in color, Hoops has a natural affinity for portraits...striking portraits. A few of his subjects display enormous magnetism, and his Heads gallery is a must-see on his website.

But the gallery I liked best is the Documentary one because Hoops displays his work on the annual Wai Kru (homage to the teacher) ceremony at Wat Bang Phra, a Buddhist monastery 25 miles west of Bangkok. It is here that thousands of laborers, taxi-drivers, truck drivers, mobsters, small time crooks arrive once a year at the temple to take part in ceremony known as wai kru. They receive new tattoos, refresh faded ones, and get high or drunk.

(Tom Hoops gallery via Penelope Gan's blog)

I'm very familar with Wat Bang Phra (or Phro) and its tattooing monks. I photographed the monks at the monastery, and have a blog post here.