Sunday, October 26, 2014

High Voltage


Many of you probably already have heard the terrible news that my beautiful home away from home High Voltage Tattoo caught on fire at 4am on Thursday morning.  I had closed up the shop on Wed night around 10:30, turned off all the lights, had one last look then set the alarm and locked the door. All was peaceful and calm and, I assumed, I'd be back in the morning to do it all again.  That's not quite how it went down.  I had slept a little later than usual since I closed the night before and caught up on all my work so I thought I'd saunter in a tad later than usual.  When I woke up and checked my phone I had 14 missed calls from a bunch of my co-workers and I knew something was up.  When I got Adrienne on the phone she sounded very somber and said "you haven't heard?" what she said next floored me.  High Voltage had burned down.  Stunned.  Paralyzed.  In shock.
     I got up and went over there as fast as I could and it was all really happening, this was a nightmare that I couldn't wake up from.  The fire started in the back corner of Kat's beautiful office in an area that there really isn't much going on.  It had to be some kind of electrical thing but whatever it was the fire consumed the whole back wall of the shop and even burned a hole clean through the ceiling so you could see the sky from inside Kat's office.  The 1st thing I noticed when I entered the parking lot was the beautiful and charred frame of what was once a gorgeous Kevin Llewellyn painting - an piece of art that I looked at almost daily for many years and was so engrained in the visual landscape of the shop that I never in a million years would have thought it would be gone.  The silver lining here is that no one was hurt since it was 4am.  I absolutely have to look for positive things to grab onto like a giant bouquet of helium balloons that will lift me outta the charred remains of so much love and labour lost.
     I somberly walked through the darkened shop and it was eerie, depressing and felt like a toxic wasteland.  Everything was covered in soot and smoke damage, there were puddles on the floor and the outlines of all the art and guitars on the walls from where the fire fighters had removed them.  Kat's office is pretty much destroyed but the rest of the shop is structurally in tact albeit visually ruined.  It was both better and worse than I had imagined if that makes any sense.  When I heard that HVT had burned down I assumed the entire building was gone.  When I heard it was just the back I naively assumed that the main shop would be untouched - I hadn't accounted for all the water and soot.  Luckily, this is my 1st and hopefully last experience with fires.
     High Voltage has been much more than a job to me these past 6 + years.  The people I work with are much more than co-woekers, they are family.  We have all been so blessed to work and hang out in an environment that is so cool and unique.  Kat, no matter how the salacious media portrays her, is one of the most generous and talented people I have ever met in my life.  The shop is her baby, her life and you can tell when you walk in that all her blood, sweat, tears and love have gone into every piece of it.  The 1st comment most people make about the shop when they walk in is about how freaking beautiful it is and how different from a typical tattoo shop.  Kat sees things in a different way from most people - she is creativity incarnate and she gazes at the world with an artist's eye.  Even the way she takes an Instagram picture is on another level than most.  It is the most heartbreaking thinking about how she must feel during this ordeal.
     I never knew I'd end up working in a tattoo shop - especially one that was on TV.  When I walked into that door for the 1st time many years ago I felt pretty at home.  I had no idea what to expect the day I met Kat but stepping into her office for the 1st time I knew immediately that the person who created it was bad ass and that she was one of my peeps.  I also do not know what comes next.  I'm sure Kat will rebuild ASAP, could take weeks, could take months.  I'm still a bit in shock and on top of all that has gone down this week it is also my BDay today which, for me, is always a time of intense reelection.  Must be a scorpio thing.
     What I do know for sure is that these past years at High Voltage have been amazing and magical and I have made some of the greatest friends ever through working there.  I have made a big, extended family and for an only child that is kind of a big deal.  I certainly hope that HVT is back up and running really soon and is bolder and better than before.  Until then...?

















6 comments:

  1. Kat has had a massive impact on my life, once i heard the news i had to cry. she inspired me to risk everything for my dreams, i know, at this moment, no words matter. lots of love and support from Isle of Man x

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  2. I was in shock when I hears the news! I was in Hollywood in September and HVT was one of the first places to visit on my list. While I was there, Jeff did a tattoo for me. I was in awe of the shop. All the beautiful guitars, the decor and the very friendly staff, it was amazing! Jeff also bought me a tee shirt because it was my birthday the week before and I told him that HVT was on my list. A Phoenix will rise from the ashes and will be even better than before. Love to Kat and the HVT and Wonderland family xo

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  3. I would just like to say to Kat, I followed her here in France, and I have a lot of esteem for her ! I think being one of the first French has this terrible news, and I collapsed!
    Kat, I love you, I admire you and wish you all the courage in the world!
    If only I could do something to help...

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  4. G this is so well written! I loved every bit of it. You guys have put so much time and love into that place. And I have loved hanging out there. It's definitely unique and inspiring. You guys are in my thoughts! I hope everything gets fixed in due time!
    Love, Maggie.

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  5. Greg:

    The good news is indeed that no one was hurt and that the fire started in the early morning hours. And that no matter what, you will always and forever have the extended family you've come to know through working at HVT.

    When I heard the news, in my head I had an almost ghost image of sitting for 2 tattoos with Dan Smith. I could see all the loveliness in the shop and remember the sounds and the smells of those 2 days. Throughout the years, I have been in and out of HVT many times, usually while shopping at Wonderland and to imagine the damage is heartbreaking.

    Sometimes, the best things come through the worst things. Maybe this is the beginning of a new and good journey.

    Stay strong and keep doing what you do!

    xoxo
    Kim
    Gerushia's New World

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  6. I'm so sorry guys especially for kat,I sure you will be good,cuz you are a strong and wonderful woman.Wish you the best,Long Live to High Voltage Tattoo!! greetings from Peru

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