LOWDOWN TATTOO
Commercial
70’S HUMANISIM
ELEVATION
SLOW EMBRACE
BROOKLYN, NY
2023
PHOTOGRAPHY
2023
PHOTOGRAPHY
Jospeh Kramm
STYLING
Anthony Amiano
Lowdown Tattoo Studio in Greenpoint, Brooklyn recontextualizes the historical ephemera of a tattoo parlor through a warm, elevated lens, inspired principally by the 1976 Boz Scaggs song of the same name. While the below-grade location could be perceived as a constraint, it allowed us to play into period references by leaning into the archetype of a 1970s rec room. The project began with a reskinning of the walls with floor-to-ceiling cherry paneling to carry a sense of lived-in warmth. The reception area is encompassed by a custom serpentine banquette in pumpkin-toned velvet and wool. A bronze-tinted mirror-backed bookcase acts as the partition between the artist stations and the reception area. The soft edges and rounded corners articulated throughout the millwork reference the same freeform curves as Lowdown’s graphic art. Upon entry, clients are greeted with a custom cherry desk inlaid with an olive linoleum top. In the corner, a George Nelson bubble lamp creates a sense of elegant intimacy. A vintage senufo stool and mid-century coffee table sit below the custom “flash” wall where tattoo artists display their designs. The tattoo stations are all equipped with custom mint green furniture and caramel-toned upholstery. This project helped MOA re-examine our inherent assumptions of these spatial typologies while challenging them to become something greater.