As the de Young museum in San Francisco prepares for the opening of Ed Hardy: Deeper than Skin with a special free public opening on July 11th, Juxtapoz is looking back at the influences and stories that makes Ed Hardy such a pivotal figure in Bay Area tattoo and art culture, but also his immense influence in contemporary art. This summer, we will be presenting stories and observations from tattoo and contemporary artists on Ed Hardy, as well as stories from our archives that share the sentiment of Hardy's creative reach. Today, we look at one of our all-time favorite artists, August 2010 cover artist, Dr. Lakra, and the story he told us in that cover story about a chance meeting with Mr. Hardy. Dr. Lakra has gone onto multiple international gallery shows, museum exhibitions and is long considered one of Mexico's great contemporary talents.
"I met Ed Hardy at a tattoo convention. I just went there and was looking at his stuff and he asked it I wanted to buy some t-shirts and I didn't have money. So I said I have some paintings and we can trade and I pulled out my portfolio and he was really surprised. He invited me to dinner. Right away he invited me to this show in Chicago... Then he did this exhibition at the Drawing Center on flash, one hundred years of flash. I met many people through that. I made a trade with Ed and he gave me a good (tattoo) machine. I think I gave him three or four paintings and he gave me three machines. . . That was important for me . . . this was in SF in 1992."
Ironically, Dr Lakra would go on to be in the first issue of Juxtapoz in 1994... on the recommendation of ... Ed Hardy. To read all of our coverage of the Ed Hardy: Deeper than Skin exhibition, including an interview with Mr. Hardy, click here.
Experience Ed Hardy: Deeper than Skin at the de Young museum, July 13–October 6. Got ink? Your tattoo gets you discounted tickets, for a limited time only. Learn more at deyoungmuseum.org.
