“His role model is PT Barnum,” Ms. Sprinkle, who let him use her New York apartment for several years to get illegal tattoos, said in a phone interview. “He loves going to a show. He is definitely a provocateur. “
Though Spider didn’t win the court battle, he and the others eventually won the fight. In 1997, the city rescinded its ban, which has since become widespread. (Police officers are arguably some of the best customers of illegal tattoo parlors.) And Spider, who maintained one in Mount Vernon, NY, just outside city limits, and then There in Woodstock, NY and Connecticut, tattooed thousands of people, as well as published influential books, including “Pushing Ink: The Fine Art of Tattoo” in 1979.
In 2017, when the New-York Historical Society held an exhibition called “New York has tattoos” it recognized his role. Spider, it said in accompanying text, has “brought modern tattooing into art galleries and auction houses, combining tattooing with concept art in works like ‘X-1000’.” , in which he places a small X per 1,000 people, and then a 1,000 X per person. “
Sprinkle says that Spider is often the life of the parties at her “Sprinkle Salon” gatherings, and that he has worn many other hats, including that of a bartender for a band called Electric Crutch, in which he uses a guitar made from a crutch.
“He can’t really play the guitar,” she said, “but it makes some sound.” She is often one of the backup dancers for the band, Webbolettes.
