If you didn’t see enough of your relatives over the holidays, Tomas Rodriguez, 33, has a way to keep them with you forever. He can tattoo them on the body part of your choice.
That’s the most popular request around the holidays at his tattoo studio called Believink at 401 E 10 St near the old Super Taqueria—people want the names and portraits of their loved ones to live on and on, on them.
Then, there are the garlic cloves, which have become a favorite for Rodriguez’s customers.
He’s done at least 15 colorful cloves for Gilroyans over the past three years. He’s been tattooing in town for a decade and has grown a national following because of his detailed and imaginative art.
Christmas is a good season for him, because people want to give presents and have days off to get his art stamped on them in a process than can feel like an eternity and will last longer.
Halloween and Friday the 13ths are also popular. People get the number 13 stamped on them for luck. Some prefer Freddy Krueger masks. The strangest tattoo Rodriguez has done was a huge “I’m Sorry” across a man’s stomach. The man was trying to appease his wife and keep their marriage together. It didn’t work.
Sergio Pinal, 34, a house painter from Los Banos was celebrating the holidays this week by adding tattoos of his children on his arm. He sat for three hours while Rodriguez emblazoned a drawing of his daughter Stacey, 11, to go with ones of Stephanie, 18, and his son, Samuel, 9. He still has to do one for Junior, 14.
“I did it to honor my family,” he said. “On one arm I had evil stuff, like ghouls. I wanted the other to be my kids.”
Did it hurt? “!&^% ya,” he said, although he sat stoically as Rodriguez punched the ink into his arm for the $300 artwork, discounted because he’d been coming to Rodriguez for a decade.
Rodriguez has a spiritual feel for the work of the tattoo artist.
“The mark you leave on someone’s body is permanent, and meaningful for people, and I approach every tattoo with the same mentality,” Rodriguez said. “I do my prayers behind scenes, and honor my ancestors. And, I strongly believe people feel the positive vibes. They love it and keep coming back. Now, I have the fortune of having people come from all over the U.S. to get tattooed by me, and that to me—it’s a big honor.”
The name of the studio was a random play of words he liked: believe and ink. It had no religious connotation, but he sees tattooing as a spiritual thing.
A former Gilroy resident visited the studio from his new home in Washington, and for the sake of Gilroy pride—chose to get a garlic tribute tattooed on his body. Others followed suit.
It is something residents take pride in, he said, “lots of people recognize Gilroy for our garlic, and are proud to wear it on their bodies.”
Believink’s hourly rate is $150. Rodriguez has a long waiting list; however, there are two other in-house artists who takes walk-ins.
A Yelp review of Believink, by Holly W. said, “Great artist. Awesome portraits—went to Tomas to have a portrait done for my daughter who passed away. He took the time to understand what I wanted, and the tattoo turned out better than I wanted. He is detailed and his work is amazing! Highly recommend his work and I will definitely be going back to him.”
It’s all about expression, said Rodriguez.
“We all have different ways to see and express art,” he said. “Lots of people do it by painting, dancing, singing, sculpting etc. Me, I choose tattooing. Nothing better than the feeling you get after you connect someone with a memory of a passed loved one, or reconnect people with their roots, whatever the case is they decided to adorn their bodies with a meaningful piece.”
