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Photographer Alan Powdrill has long been intrigued by tattoos and the idea that people would make permanent statements on their skin. For his project Covered, Powdrill shot portraits of heavily tattooed people in the UK both with and without clothes on.
To find his subjects, Powdrill visited tattoo fairs, scoured social media, and asked strangers he came across on the street. After making contact and having the subject agree to a shoot, Powdrill photographed them where they lived, sometimes traveling hundreds of miles around the UK for the portraits.
“They are beautiful and I’ll always feel the same. I love them.”
“They have given me confidence in life since my Crohn’s illness, I will love them in the future like I do now.”
“I don’t feel my opinion will change on my tattoos, I doubt I’ll have any regrets regardless of my age.”
“Me mum wasn’t happy at all about the swallow on my hand so I said ‘Look mum it’s not like I’m on the street doing heroin.”
“I’ve become less precious about tattoos the more I get them and the more tattooists I know. So hopefully I’ll only stop when I’m dead.”
“My tattoos are part of who I am and I’ll always love my bodysuit now and when I’m 80. The love I get for what I look like is what it’s all about.”
“I’m beyond the stopping point now. It f****** hurts like s*** man but I wouldn’t change my look for the world.”
“I was 15. My parents didn’t find out until I got my second at 18.”
“Can’t say what age I’ll stop. While there’s still space to fill, It’ll get filled. I don’t think my attitude will ever change.”
“I was 23 and got the wrestler CM Punk on my arm. My mum said ‘How could you deface the body I gave you?”
“I was 17. I hid the first few from my parents for many years and by the time they found out they knew this was going to be my life.”
Powdrill has just launched a Kickstarter campaign to publish a Covered photo book with a limited edition print run of only 500 copies. A pledge of £45 (~$61) or more will get you a signed copy of the book if the project successfully delivers in August 2018.
Image credits: Photographs by Alan Powdrill and used with permission
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