December 7, 2011
Meet the Artists: Robert Bonhomme
If you need to know one thing about me, it’s that I’m a stalker. Haha you think I’m joking? Just wait until I’m spamming your inbox and Facebook friending you until you have no choice to respond back to me. Robert Bonhomme, sick oil painter turned tattoo artist found that out the hard way.
Through a loop of random connections of coworkers, friends and friends of friends, I was able to connect with Robert one summer afternoon at Ground Support, a coffee shop in Soho. True to form, I overwhelmed him immediately with my crazy-eyed enthusiasm for this project, but like a champ, this guy sat there and kindly heard me out before graciously agreeing to be a part of it.
On our way back from Ground Support, Robert humbly shared his experience going back to Haiti with his dad to do community work when he was a little kid. His dad would bring supplies and go door to door teaching villagers how to filter and heat water and cook with solar energy. And as he grew up, Robert continued to go with his father, and on his own brought more and more supplies and his brother and sister’s clothes to give away. Giving back was in his blood and he shared his excitement to be able to get involved again.
Oh you thought my stalker-like tendencies ended there? Oh no, no. I fully stalked Robert’s entire portfolio, and he just blew me away with his obvious artistic talent and his ability to truly take on a multitude of forms and styles. The realism in his recreations of paintings and objects is staggering. I paired Robert with Miriam, a soft-spoken, sweet little girl constantly thinking of others before herself. She had a quiet power about her that reminded me of Robert, and his great Koi and Bloom tattoos were truly incredible expressions of her character and beauty.
Starting his tattoo career in 2003, Bonhomme’s deep artistic roots shine through in his stunningly realistic portraits, black and gray work, and Japanese/Asian-themed tattoos. Bonhomme’s work, while impressive in its own right, is truly staggering in terms of its depth and his chameleon-like ability to take on a multitude of styles and forms. Bonhomme splits his time between Brooklyn Tattoo in Cobble Hill and Invisible NYC in the Lower East Side.
