Mister Cartoon Marks Día de Los Muertos with Special Fan Memorial Tattoo Session With Him
Legendary Mexican-American celebrity tattoo artist Mister Cartoon, known for inking celebrities like Eminem, Beyonce, and more, is offering a tattoo experience of a lifetime to one lucky fan to honor Día de Los Muertos.
He teamed up with Modelo for “Raise One In Their Honor,” a digital, immersive experience where consumers who are age 21 or over can celebrate the lives of lost loved ones by creating a shareable living altar, or ofrenda. Fans can submit their ofrendas for a chance to win a tattoo of their loved one from Mister Cartoon.
Mister Cartoon spoke with Showbiz Cheat Sheet about memorial tattoos, what they mean to him, and the kind of vibe he likes to create in his studio for his clients.
Mister Cartoon acts as a ‘guide’ for his clients
Anyone who has gotten a tattoo knows that you can forge a strong bond with the artist, almost to the point where it becomes a little bit of an armchair therapy session. Mister Cartoon said he can’t proclaim to be a therapist, but “You do have to be a little bit of a guide,” he said. “I listen to many people’s emotions and life history, hearing them speak to their loved ones.”
“Personally, I have to be careful not to get emotional,” he admitted. “You know, I have children. My parents are still alive. So, yeah, it can be a very painful thing. And I want to guide that person to make a piece in honor of your loved one. And that’s going to be forever that you take with you into the box.”
Mister Cartoon tries to keep the mood on the lighter side during memorial ink sessions
Memorial tattoos can be pretty emotional, so Mister Cartoon tries to steer his clients to think of the good times and keep the environment positive. “So, it’s a heavy concept, but the vibe is really chill,” he said. “So we kick it and come up with a good idea. We’re not thinking about so much ourselves, you don’t have that loved one, but more celebrating that person’s good times. That’s what I tend to push the client to think about the good times and think about when everything was this great. Their sense of humor, their whole essence and vibe.”
He also revealed how he sets the mood with music. “Personally, I probably have some Motown classic soul going in the background,” he shared. “Sometimes chilling with the client, I’ll ask them what music makes them comfortable. But being that we’re having a convo, it’ll be chill or funk, or classical. So keep it going.”
This is the second year Mister Cartoon teamed up with Modelo for Día de Los Muertos
“It is a second-year celebration of our loved ones who are not here anymore,” Mister Cartoon said. “Instead of being down, of course, it can hurt very bad, the people that make you the most that aren’t here, it’s really a celebration of their life. As a kid, I started to look at death, differently. And this is a good time, within your family for the ones that are here.”
“Modelo has the pulse on the street,” he said. “They understand and they know we’re coming together to think about family and friends. I think about strangers I don’t know that are doing the same thing. And how could I encompass all that and put that into illustration and put inside these like liquor stores and crazy POP cutouts, cardboard cutouts of the stores. It’s really about connecting our culture and our favorite group together.”
Visit InTheirHonor.ModeloUSA.com for details and to create a sharable living altar in honor of your loved one. Mister Cartoon will select a winning digital altar and the winner will receive a two-hour tattoo session.
