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Kyle Brandie has spent 301 hours and more than $36,000 on tattoos in the past five years.
The 23-year-old’s body is almost completely covered in artwork, with a few exceptions.
He has decided not to get inked from the collar up, or on his hands or wrists, so he can cover his tattoos when needed.
“It think it looks more respectful,” he said.
With two more sitting hours until the collection of images is complete, the Bendigo man reflected on their significance.
“Every picture tells a story,” Mr Brandie said.
Those on his arms represent the human condition. On his left arm are ‘bad’ symbols, including a demon. On Mr Brandie’s right arm is imagery associated with goodness.
“The concept was that everyone’s got a good and a bad side,” he said.
Mythology and fantasy have inspired the designs on his legs and feet. While his back is devoted to artwork from Assassin’s Creed, the front of his torso features a tiger.
Every detail, down to the lack of colour ink, has been carefully considered.
“I’m always outside so they’re going to fade, but not as much as colour,” Mr Brandie said.
He also selected artists whose style he admired – Adam Beattie in Bendigo, for the most part, except for one leg that was tattooed by his friend Corey M’Ormond.
“Everything that’s on me I love and I wouldn’t change,” Mr Brandie said.
Not everyone he encounters is as appreciative of the artwork on his skin as he is.
“Everyone’s got an opinion on tattoos,” Mr Brandie said.
Some people have told him he has wasted his money. Others, particularly those with tattoos, have complimented him.
Mr Brandie said he had been stopped by people years older than himself who said they liked the work he’d had done, and who had stopped to show him theirs.
“It spins me out,” he said.
The weekend will present him with an opportunity to have his tattoos exposed to a broader audience.
Simon Wooldridge and Chelsea Koetsveld are creating a series of books celebrating Greater Bendigo’s residents, landscapes and attractions.
Having noticed the prevalence of tattoos in the community, they decided to make them the topic of their first book.
Best of Bendigo: Tattoos is to be published mid year.
A photoshoot has been arranged for Saturday, March 4, from 11am – 12.30pm. People keen to have their tattoos photographed are encouraged to meet at the base of the poppet head in Rosalind Park.
About 33,000 people responded to social media posts advertising the book’s theme.