Mark Adams

Triangle Road, Massey, West Auckland.. Tattooing Tom Ah Fook.. Tufuga tatatau Sua Suluape Paulo II

Artwork Detail

A feature of Mark Adams’s tatau photographs is that they are frequently sited in the domestic context of the person who is being tattooed or has been tattooed. This provides each image with many personal details about the living environment, as well as their family and friends. This personalises the photographs so that people and their suburban location are intertwined.

The Tufuga tatau Sua Suluape Paulo II has two helpers – Arona (at centre) and Leo (at right) assisting as solo or skin stretchers. Tom Ah Fook was a Chinese Samoan wrestler and the portraits that Mark Adams made of them were done over 2 weekends.

Title: Triangle Road, Massey, West Auckland.. Tattooing Tom Ah Fook.. Tufuga tatatau Sua Suluape Paulo II
Artist/creator: Mark Adams
Production date: 1978
Medium: c type print on Fuji Crystal Archive Paper, from 4 x 5 inch Ektachrome transparency
Dimensions: 750 x 1000 mm
Credit line: Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki, gift of the artist through the Auckland Art Gallery Foundation, 2017
Accession no: 2017/21/1
Other ID: MA09
Copyright: Copying restrictions apply
Department: New Zealand Art
Display status: Not on display

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