Paul's Tattoo is based on the Windows 98 error code, which is what you see when your pc is fucked.


Part of what I love about this tattoo is its placement, it's a half sleeve, but instead of being half of his arm horizontally, it's cut vertically. It runs the entire length of Paul's inner arm, starting at a height where his watch can sit without obscuring it, and ends just before his armpit, leaving Paul with another full arms length of tattoo space (for which he already has plans).

When Paul's arm is down you cant hardly see he has it at all, when he holds his arm out crucifixion style, the text is perfectly aligned, and when he turns his wrist the words twist with his skin, which makes Paul's own placement just as important as the tattoo's.

The contrast of something so ridged as pixelated text on a computer screen being translated into something so organic as living human skin invokes a characteristic I so love in art; irony. The tattoo asks you to press any key to continue, an impossible task.

Its 1x1mm black pixels mark such words as 'fatal', 'terminate', and 'you will lose'. Tough words and statements much like what many would expect a tattoo to have. Fulfilling the assumption that that's what tattoos are for; to look tough, and hopefully get chicks. Irony strikes again in the geekyness of the words background juxtaposed with this assumed intent of the tattoo.

What Paul loves most is the idea of explaining this tattoo to his grandkids, when Windows 98 is so outdated as to be completely obsolete. The knowledge that this tattoo's subject will certainly become outdated was key to inspiring Paul's decision to make something so indefinitely fleeting so indelible. As was the idea of taking something so mundane and using it in such a way usually reserved for subjects the wearer deems important. Truth is Paul doesn't love Windows 98, and Paul doesn't hate Windows 98, Paul doesn't really give a fuck about Windows 98 one way or another.

The guts of it is; Paul wanted this Tattoo because it goes against the norm, it is not an image that one would see and instantly consider appropriating as a tattoo. It encourages people to think and ask questions, not necessarily ask Paul questions, but question what they currently think or know about Tattoos. That's what good art does; it stirs conversation within the audience. The same goes for all other art forms, painting, film, music... You may not like it, you may not understand it, the important thing is that you're thinking about it, you're not just a passive viewer. All art has an intended audience, its very possible that what you are looking at, watching, or listening to …wasn't made for you.