Wellington Tattoist Rose Hu in action Photo: Zala Habib
Tucked away in the armpit of Cuba Street is Buttercat Tattoo, a collective of six artists dedicated to elevating each other's work and exploring a broad range of tattoo designs and techniques.
Artists Rose Hu and Tim Gadia (who goes by the name Smushed Avocado) have carved out unique careers that satisfy their artistic passions.
Hu is drawn to colour, designing abstract pieces that are often customised to the client's body.
The tattoo below was entirely her design and took Hu 10 hours to create using red ink.
Red ink tattoo which took tattoo artist Rose Hu 10 hours to create Photo: Supplied
Gadia studied illustration at university before interning with a tattooist and falling in love with the craft.
His favourite style is blackwork tattooing, which emphasises bold black ink designs and shadowing.
The design below was inspired by a client's request for a sword like Anduril, the sword of Aragorn from the Lord of the Rings series.
Gadia was eager to create the design, saying it "aligns with his interests."
Wellington tattooist Tim Gadia (Smushed Avocado) Photo: Supplied
Many practitioners in Aotearoa specialising in traditional Polynesian tattooing are travelling to Australia to tattoo expats.
While this isn't something Gadia or Hu have pursued, they admit that sharing their work overseas is a desired next step.
Gadia says that working at Buttercat Tattoo pushes him to improve because he is surrounded by professional artists and it also offers a sense of local community.
Tim Gadia (Smushed Avocado) and Rose Hu (Rose Hu tattoos) can be found online.
Buttercat Tattoo Studio is based on Wellingtons Left Bank.
