EMU’s Campus Activities Council (CAC) is leaving students with more than an academic or social mark. On Tuesday, Feb. 17, Dreamland Tattoo, located in Harrisonburg, packed up shop and arrived at the Student Union, equipped with tattoo chairs, bright ring lights, and plenty of ink. Students were able to pick a tattoo design from flash sheets, a collection of ready-to-tattoo illustrations. For $20, students could select a flash tattoo, ranging from floral designs to the solar system, animals, and much more.
The event, titled “Tattoosday,” is in its second year after being positively received by many students. Atma Khalsa, Area Coordinator and the CAC Supervisor, stated that the goal for this event is to bring fun and engagement to students. As a part of Student Life, CAC attempts to tap into student interests when planning events. Events such as Tattoosday bring new opportunities and experiences to students in an accessible and affordable way. Khalsa recognizes the financial burden associated with tattoos that often keeps college students from being able to get them.
“Tattoos have such a cost barrier that often, for college-age students, it’s hard to get them,” said Khalsa, going on to acknowledge the excitement of the event for students. “It’s fun, it’s engaging, it’s choiceful, and it meets…up with student interest.” Not all students felt as if they were able to receive the tattoo that they wanted last year, so Dreamland was brought back with a wider selection.
Students poured into Common Grounds, excited for their affordable tattoo, a first for many. The process was simple; students showed up for their assigned time slot and, after paying, went to fill out their waiver and show a government ID, before picking out their design and being directed to one of the three artists. The artists came prepared, setting up makeshift stations complete with needles galore. Dreamland apprentice Tyler Vannest is a returning helper from last year. Vannest sees Tattoosday as a way to give students what they want in a time-efficient way while promoting the shop’s work. “Everybody’s…really friendly and nice,” said Vannest. “[EMU] is a good environment.”
This event spreads farther than just EMU’s campus. Tattoosday and similar gatherings help students and the wider community to reach out, build connections, and organize events that support one another. “I feel like it brings people that are not in the EMU community to us, and we get to learn about new things in the area,” said Gordon Martin, a first-year Computer Science major.
Self-expression is another important aspect of the event. Martin chose the triple moon design as their first tattoo to represent their practice of Paganism. The cost associated with the event was also important to Martin. “[Tattoosday] gives me an opportunity, because I’m broke,” said Martin, “Twenty bucks is better than a hundred that I don’t have.”
