For a while now, the number of ink junkies crowding the door of Gakkin Tattoo Studio in Amsterdam has continued to increase. Causing this influx of patrons is not the growing worldwide reputation of Japanese tattoist Kenji Nishigaki’s designs, but the part-time presence of the youngest tattoo artist in the world: his 10-year-old daughter Noko. Although it may seem crazy to let yourself be permanently branded by a girl who has just completed her first decade of life, the truth is that just one look at her first works is enough to realize that, as those who have seen the little girl in action have said, the skill with which she handles the tattooing pen is that of someone “very special.” This was something that her father realized when Noko was just 6 years old, an age at which most children begin to read autonomously, pronounce words with clarity and write small stories. One day, the girl asked for a piece of synthetic skin to draw on. It would be her first tattoo. In the words of Noko, that first experience was so fun that, in the last four years, she has not stopped tattooing even for a single day, partly because it has become her favorite hobby, and partly because more and more customers are knocking on the door of Gakkin studio asking about her. As with her father, almost all the designs that flow from her hands are related to nature. Although she loves to draw cats and dogs, most of her drawings are birds inspired by the illustrations made by the American ornithologist and cartoonist John James Audubon in the early 19th century. Her obsession with these animals is so strong that, according to her father, in addition to having a little bird as a pet, Noko has a room full of drawings and stuffed birds. “Her drawings are simply lovely. I am surprised that she is able to tattoo as she does at her age. Her talent makes me feel tremendously proud, “ her father said. Talented Noko has developed her skills over the past few, short years, and she is now responsible for designing, practicing and executing her own ideas, often choosing to draw delicate birds and dream-catchers. The youngster takes around two hours to complete each piece and uses silicon, oranges and her father’s skin to practice tattooing her designs. Although the compliments haven’t stopped raining in, Noko is aware that, as it cannot be otherwise at her age, she still has much to learn. What challenges her the most, in her own words, is to work on contours: “I like doing shadows rather than contours. When I have to do one, I get very nervous because I know I can’t go wrong. That’s why when I get it right I get extremely happy.” Although there are those who see her as the next great tattooist, the goals that Noko has set for herself are much more modest and short-term. At the moment, she is satisfied with learning to make “a perfectly straight line.” The rest, for now, must wait. (SD-Agencies) | 