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"Tattoo Safety" series - third episode: Latin America

The third episode of our “Tattoo Safety” series was produced with the Cheyenne artist Yomico Moreno, who was born in Venezuela and is currently working in New York. Yomico will tell you more about the challenge of being a tattoo artist in South America and his method of working when it comes to hygiene.

For Yomico tattooing is more than just art - we have to remember that tattoo artists are working with skin and body fluids like blood and we never know what is behind a client. That is why it is so important for tattoo artists to be very careful about every detail and have a hygiene routine - to protect themselves and their clients.

YOMICOS HYGIENE ROUTINE

A clean and sterile environment is the perfect foundation for safe working. That is why it is very important to clean everything, which is not disposable and can not be autoclaved or ultrasonic sterilized. Before starting a session and after finishing one, Yomico sterilizes his equipment - the working station, the lamps, chairs for him and the client - with liquid disinfectants. The same procedure also applies to the machine, the grips, the power supply and the cords, even if everything has been covered during the whole session.

The working station is one of the places, which has to be clean and well organized according to the highest standards. You can work much faster if you know where exactly to find the right tool. Yomico suggests to put the ink bottles aside and have them stored separately from your working station. This way you do not risk to accidentally grab the ink with your working gloves and contaminate the bottle.

An absolute no-go for Yomico is the way how many tattoo artists handle their smart devices. A lot of tattoo artists use computers or tablets to display their tattoo design or have to grab their phone at least once during a long session. But they forget to cover the device or take off their dirty gloves when touching the screen or handling the gadgets. Besides covering them and taking off the gloves, it is also important to disinfect their surfaces.

TATTOOING IN SOUTH AMERICA

In most of the countries in South America, there are no tattoo regulations and tattoo artists are not taken as a serious profession. The governments have a long way to go, to take tattooing more serious, recognize it as profession and implement laws, which would protect the tattoo artists and their clients.

Our video covers the following topics in detail:

  • Keeping your working station clean
  • Keeping your working environment clean
  • Covering your machine - SOL Nova
  • Safety of Cheyenne Cartridges
  • The situation of tattoo artists in South America