#cris cleen

Cris Cleen | NYC

I first interviewed Cris Cleen back in 2012, and knowing little about him or his work prior to that, was initially intrigued by everything from his name, to his personal style in dress, paint and tattooing. His signature style, dominated by red-tinged allegories of temptation, sexuality and emotion remains largely and beautifully ineffable, shaped by a by-gone era of decadence and the artistic charms that it so beheld.

Where do you feel at home, in the world? I've been made to feel at home in so many places, I haven't had to pick just one! Do you have a vice? I don't smoke anymore but I've probably encrypted a darker one in there somewhere.  Do you live life by any motto? I can't pick a perfect mini calendar motto cause they're all so good. How many hours sleep, is enough (for you)? I like quality sleep over amount , it seems harder to come by! What is your most used machine? I've been using a shag rotary for shading forever. Never lets me down. Sometimes I let IT down ! How important are manners? I like manners and least trying to have them. They are easy for me , it's lasting connections that are tricky. What do you need the most, right now? What I need most is a plan! How do you take your coffee? I like my coffee with my girlfriend in the living room. How close are we to W.W.III? I feel like a war is always almost here and all I can do is try and live the way I can and appreciate it. What’s the best/worst thing about Instagram? The best thing about Instagram is that you can put out your work and message incredibly fast and people everywhere can see it and find you! The worst thing is that your basically asking people there opinions in a public forum which can always be dicey. How do you stay inspired? It's hard to stay inspired! I try and remember that things that got me fired up in the first place and try harder to pull them off now. Who or what has shaped your style? I mostly try and let the mixture of things I've always liked come through and make the work I've always wanted to do. Everyone I've ever worked with helps shape that too even if it's instances where a co worker says "oh, I wish I could just do work that I like" and I think , I owe it to my heart to do just that. If your work is honest, people will connect to it. What would you be doing, if you weren’t a tattooer? I can't imagine what I would be doing if I wasn't tattooing people. I've been lucky to have people come see me for what I do. What’s the last movie you watched? I watch a movie almost every day so I don't remember that last one. Every good cocktail should have _____ in it. I like cocktails with fernet! What has tattooing taught you? Tattooing people has taught most of what I know for better or worse. I've met beautiful, strange , terrible , and lovely people and all their stories are haunting me! Haha. Tattooing has most definitely taught me the importance of human connection. What don’t people realise about you? People don't realize that I'm not that different than them. I'm trying to make something beautiful and be happy in life just like every body else. 

Cris tattoos from Saved, New York.