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Renée Barasch
235 Plays3 years ago
Episode 149 is a conversation with Renée Barasch about tattooes, art, environment, Oregon and what is important in life.
"Tattooer, adventure prone, simple moments, glorious mess”
Renée was born and raised in Portland, Oregon.
She began tattooing in 2016.
Her studio in Astoria, Simply Human Art, opened summer of 2019.
Renée also tattoos with Hidden Rose tattoo in Northwest Portland.
For look at Renée’s work and to inquire about booking, visit her website
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Transcript
Introduction and Guest Overview
00:00:02
Speaker
You are listening to something rather than nothing. Creator and host Ken Zalante. Editor and producer Peter Bauer.
00:00:18
Speaker
This is Ken Vellante with the Something Rather Than Nothing podcast, and we have tattoo artist, thinker, and artist extraordinaire, Renee Barish, reaching her from the lovely, lovely community of Astoria, Oregon. Renee, welcome on to Something Rather Than Nothing.
00:00:38
Speaker
Hi, thank you for having me. Yeah, really excited to talk to you about what you create and what you do in the art that you create. Starting from the beginning though, hearing a bit more about you and where you come from is a question about you as an artist in your propensity to being an artist.
00:01:08
Speaker
When you were born, when you were younger, were you an artist? Did you identify yourself as an artist or a creator? Yeah, I would say so. It's interesting. I kind of heard two questions there. There's the question of were you born an artist or creator? And then did you identify as an artist? Yeah.
00:01:32
Speaker
You know, first I wanna say I think everybody is born an artist. You know, I really believe that as we live our lives in the best way we can to stay true to ourselves, like that is our art. And so everybody is born an opportunity to live their art and to embody their art and whatever falls to them. So I'll say that first. And then for me, identifying as an artist,
00:01:59
Speaker
was kind of a default. My parents are both visual artists and I grew up in Portland very involved in a number of art communities and there's just always art in the home and art being created and
00:02:15
Speaker
So, so from a very young age, yes, there was this emphasis on, you know, whatever you do, your creative process and your creative vision comes first, whatever that looks like, if it's visual art, if it's music, if it's, you know, outward expression, like clothing or jewelry. And so, yeah, I would say artists was just kind of in my blood from the beginning.
Journey into Tattooing
00:02:41
Speaker
Yeah, and one of the things that brought me to ask you to come on to the show is your beautiful tattoo art that you create and that you have. And being a particular type of art form, of course, applied to the skin and the meaning that's around that, kind of like the transformation of the body.
00:03:09
Speaker
What, what, what led you to, to using that as a primary mode of expression and setting up shop as a tattoo artist.
00:03:23
Speaker
Well, I started getting tattooed very young and I loved everything about it. I loved how I felt in the process and how transformative it was and then how I felt, you know, carrying this tattoo around with me. And I would say that
00:03:46
Speaker
That is probably the biggest motivator that I had. How I felt with tattoos is really what pushed me to want to tattoo. Making art, growing up, I knew whatever I did. I needed to have that time and space for art. So getting tattooed young,
00:04:07
Speaker
I also had a relationship with a tattooer and and sort of had an inside look at the industry and really love the community, and I really loved the collaboration as well, and the way that artists and clients come together to create something that
00:04:25
Speaker
is just so unique and is such a transformative experience for for both parts. So those yeah those things all coupled I think they're what that drew me to it and then once I was in it and I started tattooing I mean it just sort of blew my mind with um no possibility is this like
00:04:47
Speaker
this whole world
Artistic Collaboration in Tattooing
00:04:49
Speaker
of meeting somebody with their fantasies, with their imagination, with whatever it is that has brought them to a place where they want to seek out, putting this image on their body. And I just feel so privileged to
00:05:06
Speaker
to help them with that and whatever that looks like. So, you know, I have work that is, you know, original, say like, original in quotes. I think at some point, you know, everything's been done in some way, shape, or form, but I have things that I've created that I will
00:05:24
Speaker
you know, make available to clients and maybe they book for that. And then I also do a lot of custom work where clients come to me with maybe a collection of images or an idea that they've had and then we'll work together to tailor the design to something that really feels right for them. So, you know, that piece too, again with the collaboration and
00:05:44
Speaker
um just I like I can't do it without my clients and when I first started getting tattooed I loved that connection with the artist that I was working with and that's let's just flip them I'm on the other side of it.
00:05:57
Speaker
Yeah, I like the I like the components of, you know, collaboration. I think it's always one of the things I try to do in podcast or I've discovered is, yeah, the questions are there, but there's so much of the interaction of artists with other artists and you working with your clients to
00:06:17
Speaker
you know, make, you know, a pretty, you know, permanent decision or like reflection outward, like representation or reflection of what they want. I just find that process, I know tattoo artists and they're kind of intimate connect. I think the best ones are, you know, just have that connection to how important it is and how they work with somebody.
Studios and Community Influence
00:06:42
Speaker
And I think that's such a powerful,
00:06:46
Speaker
not knowing as being a tattooer like yourself, but just that connection. Tell us about your tattoo shops. You're in Astoria and in Portland, and I adore both places, both very different places. Tell us a little bit about your practice.
00:07:09
Speaker
Sure. I moved to the North Oregon coast from Portland three years ago and opened the studio that I have here in Astoria. And I honestly, I did not move out to the coast planning to open a studio. I moved to small town and
00:07:33
Speaker
didn't really have a foot in the door with any of the shops here. And I ended up opening the studio more out of necessity. And I continued and still do tattoo with the shop in Portland that I tattooed with before I moved to the coast. It's a really, it's just a really strong
00:07:51
Speaker
family of artists and I feel very thankful to continue to be a part of that while also sort of paving my own way here. And so the studio that I opened here on the coast, it became what my clients
00:08:09
Speaker
asked for and what they were responding to. It's a basement space in a historic building in downtown Astoria. I'm part of the Astoria studio collective in the historic Van Dusen building and so the whole building is filled with
00:08:26
Speaker
artists and makers and writers and I really enjoy like plugging into an artist community that is is not part of the tattoo industry. I think that's been really inspiring and it's also been a real push for me in my visual arts as well like continue to make art as well as tattoo. And so the space
00:08:46
Speaker
you know, being in the basement, it feels very intimate. It's very warm. A lot of like lanterns and tapestries and painting the floor red, like the best thing that I ever did. It's like, it feels safe and it holds you and it's allowed for that connectivity, really. And I don't know if I would
00:09:11
Speaker
be developing the depth of connection that I am with my clients. If I were not in a private space, it just provides like a container for that. And I'm very process oriented as well. And so I really enjoy that when my clients come down to the studio, it's so one-on-one and it's you and it's your time. And my focus is 110% on you.
00:09:39
Speaker
you know I don't have people waiting in the lobby or other artists around and it means that your tattoo it will just it'll evolve in that process as well like we have our design ahead of time but if you come in and we have a three or four hour session booked you know probably ends up being like five hours because we're also just hanging out um
00:10:00
Speaker
But I want to get it right. And I want to get to know you. And as I know you and spend time with you in the studio, we will likely make changes to the piece that might not happen if we are in more of a rushed environment.
00:10:13
Speaker
Yeah, yeah. And it seems like I'm a little bit moved away from like a more of a transactional experience to one of, like, you know how important it is. And both for you as the artist, knowing how important it is. And rather than just the transaction, I could definitely see anytime artists or people who are working together, it evolves, right? Just like music or anything. It kind of develops on its own.
00:10:41
Speaker
Yeah, I love that you said music. I think about recording studios. Like if you're in a recording studio all night for a session and you take a break for snacks, you go back and you rerecord bits of the song or change up your lyrics. Like, yeah, absolutely. And just I had a couple of people say it feels like a living room. Like I feel like I'm just like in living room getting tattooed. And so there's that, too. It just it makes it accessible, which, yeah, which allows me to meet people in that in that place.
00:11:13
Speaker
I encountered your studio in a strange way. My son and I around in late December went out to Astoria and went to stay in a yurt during the snowstorm. It was a snowstorm in December in Astoria and we were looking up tattoo artists and like we didn't
00:11:35
Speaker
I don't think we got pastures, Renee, because we love the ethos and we love all the images and such. So I made a hard no in being like, OK, I'm going to have to follow up with Renee. It's snowing right here, right now, and things are closed. But so, yeah, that's how I ended up connecting. I did at least see the outside of the building, recognized it as kind of like a
00:12:04
Speaker
kind of like a artist grounds and way station. Yeah. Thank you for saying that. I'm so flattered. I also just make a little plug that I'm really happy you saw Astoria in the snow because that's so rare for us. And that snow storm was enchanting on every level. It just felt like it turned into this little Charles Dickens world out here.
00:12:25
Speaker
It was quite beautiful and I didn't notice distinctly. I've visited Astoria a few times. I've lived in the area for about 11 years and one of the pieces about Astoria which really appeals to me and where I'm from, I'm from Rhode Island and what I saw in Astoria was kind of like this
00:12:46
Speaker
almost like historically like the seafaring fishermen, those who can deal with water in intense elements of the Columbia and the Pacific. So it led to like I think different settlement patterns and different immigration patterns that I would experience on the east coast as well. So I come from some Portuguese background and I started to think of like
00:13:09
Speaker
types of communities that know the waters and know fishing there. So I know like there was a large Finnish population. I knew there were some Portuguese and the immigration pattern of those who would be able to deal with the tempestuous waters there ended up being there. And I think that pattern for me felt different than other settlement patterns in Oregon. So I've always been attracted to a story because it feels familiar to me in that way.
00:13:38
Speaker
Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. First thing, and yeah, I understand that. Absolutely. It feels very edge of the world to me, too. Yep. Yep.
00:13:53
Speaker
Yeah, I love that so many people have been here for generations. And at the same time, there are many of us who chose this place. And at Mix, everybody who I've encountered here wants to be here, which is something too. The whole vibration of Astoria is like, there's this history, but there's also people who want to be here to contribute because we love this place. It also makes it very welcoming, yeah.
00:14:20
Speaker
Yeah, well, we share the story a lot. I find it to be a fascinating place and I love you have a tattoo shop there. Okay, Renee, we're talking some about art and creating things. I want to ask one of the big questions for you as a creator and artist. What is art? What is art? What is art for you?
Philosophy of Art and Tattooing
00:14:47
Speaker
Um, I think art is
00:14:51
Speaker
For me, it's an expression of the human experience. It's catharsis. Whatever we are moving through as human beings, art is a way to share and to try to process and make sense of it, especially for things that we don't have words for in our languages.
00:15:20
Speaker
you know, an image, a sound, a movement, you know, artists is so inclusive of so many things. And yeah, I would say art is an expression of us and what we are embodying and seeing and hearing and just downloading every day being on earth. Yeah, yeah.
00:15:46
Speaker
I think it's such an important question. Particularly when you ask artists, it's almost like, how do you live? Or what's your living like? Or what's it like to breathe? Because there's a strong drive to create. And I think having just thinking about,
00:16:07
Speaker
what it is, you know, when we call something, I've just been fascinated over the years by the variety of answers, whether it's something that seems ephemeral that might go away, like the way somebody dances, like it's being artistic, but it's in a moment. And I think a lot of times people think of art in a very limited way that kind of impures their ability to answer the question, like,
00:16:33
Speaker
I'm thinking Mona Lisa and that's all I'm thinking like that's what an artwork is and of course it's beautiful and it's a famous work of art but it can be limiting as far as you know what we perceive to be art and I know with with tattoos I mean tattoos are an evolving form been around for the the longest time but I think even in American let's say American culture
00:16:58
Speaker
there's a different feel about the acceptability, the recognition of tattoo artists as preeminent artists and those type of things. Is that a trend of maybe just the popularity of tattoos? Is that something you've seen in time and has that impacted kind of
00:17:20
Speaker
how you want to approach things. So for example, the dedicated time that you spend in creating that space, what are you observing within tattooing and how are you reacting to some of those elements?
00:17:44
Speaker
like how tattooing is like more mainstream. Yeah, that's probably just it right there. Yeah.
00:17:56
Speaker
I think it's great. I've definitely encountered and worked with tattooers who are very me against the world and have continued to hold that. And I think maybe they attract clients who are of a similar state of mind, which is a place. I'm glad they found each other. But I would say too that
00:18:17
Speaker
You know, more people than not in my experience are curious about tattoos, but have not felt comfortable or safe to ask questions to a tattooer or to go into a shop just to gather information, whether or not they want to commit to the appointment. And one of my goals too with this space has been for it to feel accessible and, you know,
00:18:43
Speaker
inclusive is really big. So I'd say it, you know, I really like that more people are having conversations about tattoos and there's not as much stigma around it. And I mean, like anything, you know, there's fear of the unknown and it's
00:19:04
Speaker
If I can be a resource for somebody to ask questions or to express an idea that they've had, I would, yeah, it's my pleasure. Of course I want that. Yeah, yeah. And thank you. And thank you for what you do. Renee, a big question here.
Influences and Creativity
00:19:28
Speaker
It's just about influences. And answer it as you may and wish.
00:19:34
Speaker
What are who made you who you are? What are your influences? Well, first I would say, again, my parents, my mom and my dad, these incredible human beings who have stood strong in who they are as individuals as well as who they are as parents.
00:19:59
Speaker
and as spouses so you know that that was really big too to grow up in a home that said you know figure out what brings you joy and do that and we're just here to you know support you and and you know maybe tell you if there's one choice that might be a little bit more destructive than the other one but um
00:20:18
Speaker
Yeah, I'd say mom and dad, definitely. The environment of the Pacific Northwest, I think, too, like I grew up in Portland and we spent a lot of time throughout my childhood on the Oregon coast, south like Walport and Yahats and then in parks, like up in the gorge, too, hiking in the forest along the rivers. And so this wildness as well. And I think that
00:20:46
Speaker
being in nature as a child and having parents say, really get in touch with what is underneath this? What is the essence of you? It was a combination of this very primal state that I think a lot of us who live in the Pacific Northwest now, it's part of what calls us here is this connection that people have with these incredible old growth forests and the Pacific Ocean.
00:21:14
Speaker
So yeah, I would say that it's just, I guess just like truth, like saying true to me and true to my connection with the planet and human being, like in this body, in this human form. And tattooing is a way to express that, is a way to ornament that. I think it can be all encompassing of,
00:21:41
Speaker
just like sort of bringing together your spiritual essence and your physical essence and growing up in the Pacific Northwest really provided a place for that to happen for me.
00:21:53
Speaker
Yeah, it's it's a beautiful it's a beautiful environment I've I've adored organs and environment and it's the places, since, since I've lived here I wanted to ask you Renee about that you talked about, maybe how you know that tattoo can change your ideas and the art itself can evolve with your
00:22:16
Speaker
relation with the client. And you're talking about space, which I'm really picking up on what you're saying. I found that a place like Astoria for me is very influential on maybe how I think and how I create Portland has been both an artist that I've interviewed. I've spoken highly of the complicated place of Portland in the sense of I really do feel there
00:22:46
Speaker
For me, I'm a 49-year-old white male, but I feel that the artistic and expressive environment is open. It feels like a place compared to many other places where people can say, boom, this is me. And there's something there that I really like. What I wanted to ask you is,
00:23:14
Speaker
as far as not just the relationship you have with the client, but where you are in Astoria and in Portland. Do you find that there's certain things that come through you as a creative person that feel different in those little cows compared to others?
00:23:36
Speaker
That's an interesting question. I will say there's definitely a difference for me in an urban environment versus small town. There's a pay to the city. I mean, even Portland is slow compared to any big cities, especially if you go east. But yeah, there's definitely
00:23:58
Speaker
a pace that since moving to the coast, I've had to retrain myself. When I work in Portland, I enjoy moving at a faster speed. I tend to maybe miss details that here on the coast with clients, I'm just slower,
00:24:27
Speaker
I guess I recognize more. So when you talk about the evolution of that process too with editing or having the conversation about your piece when you come into the studio, it's easier for me to hold space for that on the coast. And in the city, it does feel rushed or it can feel rushed for me.
00:24:56
Speaker
Yeah, I guess that's kind of the best answer I have for that. I don't feel like in any way I am less of myself or have to prove
00:25:12
Speaker
anything and if that makes sense like I think for some people in urban environments it can definitely harden us you know there's along with that pace there's sort of like this expectation that you maybe will just
00:25:28
Speaker
like earn your space like if you if you don't want the safety of anonymity which you know so is very appealing to some people in a city as well um like if you're going to stand out and live loud and prove to us that you are worth doing that or like why are you doing that and
00:25:45
Speaker
And I don't feel that. And I especially don't feel that in Astoria where here, you know, again, people who are here want to be here. And so you also want to know your neighbor. Like if you chose this place, tell me why you chose it and what is it that you're doing here that inspires you to be here. So I definitely hold on to that and take that with me when I am in the city.
00:26:09
Speaker
Yeah, I enjoy, I mean, part of me asking too is, you know, with, I think with artists and their perceptions, it can really like, it can really inform like ways of thinking about space and like how we interact with humans and I just love what you had to say.
00:26:31
Speaker
on that. Renee, I have a big question of the show that I need to ask you by obligation. It's the type of questions philosophers have which make philosophers isolated historically and shunned
00:26:52
Speaker
But no, no, it's the big one. And it has to do with you being a creator as well. But why do you think there's something rather than nothing?
Existential Inquiry: Why Something Rather Than Nothing?
00:27:08
Speaker
Because if there was nothing, what are we doing?
00:27:12
Speaker
Like that's a void. And at the same time, you can't have an up without a down, so you can't have a something without a nothing. And so if you are a something, what is the alternative? Well, the alternative is nothing. I don't want that. That doesn't make it very fun. It's not like I'm going to learn or grow. So is there something, and the something can be whatever you,
00:27:38
Speaker
create it to be, whatever that needs to be for you. And hopefully you want to share it and to learn about the other person's something and you have more somethings, somethings plural. Yeah, yeah. The thing with the question too is I've always, I've asked artists and typically like,
00:28:04
Speaker
an academic question, but I very much tried to pose it to creatives like yourself as creatives, as creatives, you and yourself, and thinking about creation. And it's been such a wonderful way to get a lot of different responses, responses like the deeper meaning of like why we're
00:28:28
Speaker
you know like why we're trying this I think people hear the question is you know is there a god or why are there things around us or why are we doing this or you know and it's um there must be a reason that propels us you know I think uh is my just my general thought we've just kind of pushed pushed to something
00:28:48
Speaker
Yeah, push to something. I mean, by nature, we want to learn. You want to use your brain and use your body. And so that in itself is something, something tactile or something to input, something to output. Without that, you have, yeah, you have nothing without that.
00:29:14
Speaker
lethargy i don't know you have well you said and i what i like to say is your you know it's it's it's up here it's your it's your it's your brain and it's your body you feel it and you know you're doing it um all right renee so uh i want uh i've been able to encounter your art and have had the pleasure of uh
Conclusion and Contact Information
00:29:37
Speaker
speaking with you, but I want you to let the audience know of like, where do they check out your stuff, like anything that you create, where do they find you, all that type of stuff, because there'll be a few listeners who'll be pretty intrigued by what you have to say and want to know where you are. Oh, well, hi, hi, listeners. I guess I would do like a formal hello. Yeah, they'll love it.
00:30:06
Speaker
I'd love to hear from you. Yeah, so my studio in Astoria is Simply Human Art. And the website is www.simplyhumanart.com. And there's a contact page on the site that sends an email, which is the best way to get in touch with me if you were wanting to book a tattoo.
00:30:33
Speaker
You can also use that contact form if you would like to set up just a phone call or a FaceTime session. I have clients who are yet to book a session, like the tattoo itself, but we've had really wonderful phone chats about their thoughts and questions. So email is the best way for that. And in Portland, I tattoo with hidden rose tattoo.
00:31:03
Speaker
in Northwest Portland. And you can call the shop to book with me for an upcoming guest spot. I will say that getting in touch with me directly is the best way to do so. The days that I work in Portland vary from month to month. So the artists there may not necessarily have my exact scheduling.
00:31:33
Speaker
Thank you so much for letting us know where you are. I've had the great pleasure of talking with Renee Barish here and tattoo artist from the Pacific Northwest.
00:31:49
Speaker
working and inhabiting a lovely Astoria and in Portland. Renee, I just wanted to thank you personally for spending the time to come on to the show. I'm deeply fascinated by the beautiful art you create and create, you know, for others on others. And
00:32:11
Speaker
Really appreciate you taking the time to chat, tattooing some Pacific Northwest, what you're up to and just spending time on the show. So I wanted to give you a deep thanks for coming out to the show.
00:32:23
Speaker
Oh, thank you for having me. It was a joy. Yeah, I really appreciate the time. And your questions, you have great prompting questions too. So you're good at what you do. Thank you. Thank you kindly. Everybody, Renee Barish, check out her website, check out her tattoo art. And again, thanks Renee.
00:32:49
Speaker
I hope to chat with you soon and I hope to get my ninth tattoo from you, scheduled out properly when you have time and all that type of stuff with consultation in the living room, the living room-esque type atmosphere of your studio. So I'll certainly be in touch. Amazing. I look forward to it. Thank you. Thanks, Renee.