Pierre Bong (Suriname): where craft meets art ( and the other way around).
Interview with PIERRE BONG in tothebonemag.com
TTB: Tell us about you, who is Pierre Bong?
PB: I’m just someone who loves the culture of tattooing. I also paint and build tattoomachines when I’m not into dealing with people.
TTB: How did you start building tattoo machines and why?
PB: My first machines were S&R Puma’s and they were good machines but I was having problems with them after a couple of years. I’m self taught in tattooing and a long time tuning a machine for me only meant turning the contact screw up or down. So it was only after careful observation and thinking about the different parts their relation to each other that I started experimenting with capacitors, armature bars and spring set-ups. And I guess it was a natural progress to build my own
machine frame at some point.
TTB: How is your machines building process? Completely manual?, time that took to build one entire machine, where do you work, what machines do you use, etc..
PB: For the machine building process I’ll use a hacksaw, files and ofcourse a drillpress…it usually takes me around three days to build a tattoomachine (frame, coils, armature bar, springs etc.). I’ve a set frame geometry I’m happy with but thinking about and envisioning the machine takes alot longer then building the actual thing!)
TTB: In your machines it´s striking the use of alternative materials as much as the combination with more classic materiales in different parts of them. Which is in your opinión the relationship between the materials, the structure and the tattoo machine function? It´s a complex question but you can take it wherever you want. The idea is that you could explain us the material selection criteria that you use when building the frames.
PB: . Why I use alot of different materials?!…it’s because I use what I have or find at that particular moment…from time to time I’ll also visit a good friend of mine who owns a metal-working company and just go through what he has laying around..and that includes alot of discarded material as well.
So in that sense I’m able and lucky to come up with frame styles that are a little different from the popular classics… well they are different but still the same, there’s nothing new under the sun!).
For me, when combining/using materials what’s most important is the machines weight and balance, personally I prefer a heavier machine for lining and a lighter one for shading.
TTB: In all your years as a tattoo artist and tattoo machines builder which machines were the ones that you most admire, for design or for the function?
PB: Paul Rogers’ “J-frame”, is in my opinion one of the coolest machines out there, his machines just look cool and quirky and none look excactly the same…true one off’s!!. So the very first machine I build was done on a milling machine (from a solid piece of bronze), it came out real nice but I just thought it was a waste of material (and time), so it wasn’t long after that I also started building these so called ‘pre-fab’ machines and the possibilities are endless! I like clean looking machines, but love industrial looking ones.
The placement of the bindingposts on Bill Jones’ “roundback/squareback” as well as Percy Waters’ “Sidewheeler” are very functional too me and that’s why I also use that in my own machines.
And last but in no way the least Milton Zeis, just smart and practical thinking.
TTB: Which characteristics regarding function does your machines have? (liners, shader or color, tell us about how do you like them to end up working.
PB: Lately I’ve been focusing on building an all-around machine (one that can do both lining and shading) by just turning the contact screw up or down, but realistically you’ll still need two..one for doing small- and one for doing large groupings.
TTB: What are your projects or goals for the next years?
PB: At the moment I have a couple of frame styles of my own that I’m happy with and I would like to build more of them, they’ll still be made one at a time, I also have some other idea’s for frames I would like to try out and also do some tribute machines of the ‘Old Masters’. I met a “high profile” builder this year and we had a little chat about building, tattooing etc. and he invited me to come build some machines with him so when the time is right I would definitely like to take him up on that.
So nothing new or revolutionary for me, just plain ol’ fun.
Thank you for this opportunity Juan,
Honor & Respect!! from Suriname
Pierre
