Too young for a tattoo

Today, on my lunch break walk I overhead a conversation between a man and his son. Both of them had stopped to look at a sidewalk artist and as they walked away I heard snippets of their conversation.


Father: You know, I am an artist.
Son: You aren't an artist you just do tattoos
Father: Before I was a tattooer, I painted. Tattoo is an art form
Son: If it is art, can I have a tattoo
Me: Laughing
Father: Your too young, maybe when you are an adult
Son: you aren't an artist, if you were you would want to tattoo me

I walked away laughing to myself. I love this conversation, maybe because it is about tattoos but mostly because it reaffirms my belief in the artistic merit of beautifully done tattoos and justifies me gawking at people to see their body art.