The young French tattooist LilB is not lacking in talent. After distinguishing himself in the fine line black and grey, which he learned by tattooing Chicano gang members in the red light districts of Los Angeles, California, and then evolving in a register closer to Fine Arts, he embarked on his last years in Japanese. At 31, the Bordeaux native now excels in both styles, even though they are poles apart, thus showing the full extent of his impeccable technique.
Before devoting yourself to Japanese tattooing you spent a lot of time doing fine line black and grey. Can you tell us about that life before?
It was very different. For seven years I lived in Southern California, in Los Angeles, and that's where I learned to tattoo. At the time, my friends were doing "chicano" and therefore fine line black and grey tattooing. When I started, I was mainly doing tattoos on gang members, but gradually my situation improved: I changed neighbourhoods and therefore also clientele. Then I was able to start doing things like fine arts, like statues, etc. It was always the same thing, but I was able to do a lot of tattoos on people. It was still the same technique and the same execution, but the subject matter had changed. My situation in the United States was still very precarious and I was living in a shared flat with my bro Sergio. It was tattoo morning, noon and night!
What did you do before the tattoo?
I've been drawing since I was a kid. I went through a long phase of tagging and graffiti before I finally got to tattooing. I've always been very attracted to art in general, but more to its margins and its "subculture". I used to look at trains as the ultimate medium because they moved, but one day I thought that humans were even more powerful because... they also had the ability to move and they were alive! (Laughs)
How did your experience in the US shape the tattooist you are today?
That's a good question, but a difficult one to answer. It seems to me that the overall standard of tattoo artists in the US is higher than in the rest of the world. When I started, there was also a very strong general tattoo craze that opened up more opportunities for those who wanted to do large pieces. Clients trust their tattoo artists more and the question of pain doesn't scare them, quite the contrary. So I found myself doing a lot of big projects but in a very short time frame, because American clients don't have the time. And, consequently, neither do the tattoo artists. What a contrast when I returned to France. I found their French counterparts very lazy or slow, and the clients more indecisive, wanting small tattoos in conventional styles rather than venereal pieces (laughs). Then I realised that it was ultimately a different approach to the business, with a different pace. But that experience in the US trained me to work fast and hard, the people I learned from worked like that. And thanks to the willingness and commitment of my clients, I was also able to develop artistically.
How did the transition to the Japanese style go and why?
I experienced it as a rebirth. Of course, it's a real challenge, but it's very rewarding. I have always been a fan of Japanese culture in general and Japanese tattooing fascinated me, but as I couldn't go to Japan and I didn't have anyone around me who was sufficiently aware of the subject, I preferred to wait. It was when I left the US that I started to read up on the Japanese style more seriously. For a few years I went back and forth to Japan, buying books, looking at the work of Japanese tattoo artists, before finally getting into it.
You went to live in Japan for two years, what did you learn from this experience?
I realised that living there was something very different from being there on holiday! (Laughs). Today my wife is half Japanese so I have a visa that allows me to go and live there, even now in this complicated period when the country's borders remain closed. That said, as much as I love Japan and am there very often, living there full time is pretty brutal. Anyway, I think it's necessary for a western tattooist who wants to do Japanese tattooing to go there as much as possible and even, if possible, to live there for at least a few years. This really allows to understand in depth the Japanese aestheticism and the Japanese way of doing things. It is in Japan that I learned the most and that I continue to do so. Knowledge that I apply when I return to France.
Compared to your very detailed fine line work, you favour a simple and readable approach to Japanese style compositions. How did it develop?
What I'm about to say may sound strange, but from my point of view, Japanese tattooing is a kind of graffiti. I like it when it's simple and direct. No fuss or mannerisms, you look at it and the design is instantly readable. You understand it and it provokes an emotion, a feeling. But it's also possible that this appreciation is a reaction to what I do in fine line with super complex compositions and designs. Maybe it's a manifestation of my desire to get back to the roots of simpler, more raw work.
Concerning your inspiration, are you more ukiyo-e or Japanese folklore (I mean Otsu-e, kites, etc.)?
I would say both.
Switching to Japanese forced you to work with colours, how did you build up your palette?
I had never done colour before and I must say that when I started I found it very difficult to apply the colours correctly. It's almost as if I had to start from scratch, that I had to learn how to tattoo again. But, as far as the palette is concerned, I want to keep it quite limited, and for that I copy the colours of some Japanese tattoo masters whose work I appreciate very much.
Which ones?
There are many, I always come back to Horiyoshi II, Horitsune II, Horikyo, Bunshin Horitoshi, Bunshin Horiyen, Horimomo, Sandaime Hori Fuji, Horiken of Shibuya and Horiuno.
And in Japanese art in general?
There are too many to mention but I would say that my biggest influences are Utagawa Kuniyoshi, Utagawa Yoshitsuya, Hokusai, Utagawa Kunisada and Yoshitoshi.
Would you say that you are looking for authenticity or rather for interpretation?
Both.
You are now living in Japan, I guess this is an opportunity for you to deepen your knowledge of traditional tattooing. How do you do it?
I live between France and Japan, so we go back and forth a lot with my wife. I always try to deepen my knowledge of traditional tattooing, in Japan and even in France. I do a lot of research. I am very lucky to have very good relations in the archipelago and to be tattooed by some Japanese masters who have accepted to share a lot of knowledge with me. Then I paint a lot, so I go to art shops a lot where I meet craftsmen who teach me a lot about Japanese painting, tools, papers etc. I'm always trying to find a way to make my own art. I'm always trying to improve myself through practice. Whether it's tattooing or drawing and painting.
Do you study the stories behind the images you tattoo?
Yes, but unfortunately I often forget them very quickly! (Laughs)
In Japan, how has the situation of tattoo artists changed in the last few years, from what you have observed?
Hmm... I don't really feel comfortable talking about the situation of tattoo artists in Japan. I just work in my friends' tattoo studios.
You have always worked in a private studio, a way of doing things that the Japanese are very familiar with. What are the advantages of working like that?
Yes it's true, my whole career has been in a private studio, although a year ago I opened my first studio with a friend. But even then I have my own private room to tattoo in. I see tattooing as something intimate. It's an experience that goes beyond the act of getting tattooed (especially when the projects are big) and I feel more at peace when I work in a confidential way. On the plus side, I'd say there are fewer distractions and it's good for concentration. The one I give to the work but also to the client. It's easier to maintain the mood of the time spent together as there is no one else around to disturb the mood. On the downside, there is the fact that you are a bit more alone. Being surrounded by other tattooers is motivating and at the same time enriching. We can learn from each other but also share knowledge, feelings etc. So, I find that working in a semi-private way is a good compromise. When I'm not tattooing, I go to the studio to paint, I spend time with other tattooers. But when I'm tattooing, I barricade myself in my room and isolate myself with my client.
You continue your work in black & grey in parallel, why?
I don't think I've reached my maximum potential in this branch of tattooing yet. Strangely enough, Japanese tattooing helps me to be better in my black and grey compositions and, in return, it helps me to be better in my application of tattooing in general. Finally, there is also the financial aspect. I am very lucky to be extremely well paid when it comes to black and grey tattooing. + IG japonais : @lilb_wabori IG fine line black & grey : @lilbtattoo Studio The Hive 36 cours Saint-Louis 33300 Bordeaux Tel : 05 54 79 88 32
