In the small village of the Hellfest festival in Clisson (Loire-Atlantique), dozens of festival-goers observe drawings displayed on the wall of one of the buildings. Inside, 22 tattoo artists work from 9 a.m. until 1 a.m. late at night to create tattoos and offer an unforgettable memory to all the bravest who want to keep track of their passage.
Exponential demand
Jérôme Pfeffeur has been in charge of the entire organization of this stand for 17 years. In recent years, he says that the number of tattoo requests has exploded to the point of having a 5 hour queue, before setting up an appointment. Most of the time, festival-goers ask to have the legendary H engraved on the body, the logo and first letter of the festival.
Matthieu Bonhoure
Inside the booth, dozens of tattoo tables are lined up, and the sound of needles who are moving almost covers the music of the scenes a few hundred meters away. “There are a lot of people who want the Hellfest tattoo, confirms Grem, tattoo artist. There are some who come every year, and who do one for each edition.”
Share memories
This is the case of Stéphane, in shorts, we can see the tattoo he just got for his second visit. A big H, red and black, next to another festival logo that he made during his first visit to Clisson. “It’s a bit of a metal Mecca, we have fun, so it’s tattooing until the end”adds this festival-goer who traveled from Lille.
Matthieu Bonhoure
There are also those who share their tattoo, like Mike and his daughter. They drew the same picture to mark the occasion for life. “A tattoo is not like a t-shirt”she explains. Her father is on his fourth, and is already thinking about the next time he will pass over a table to immortalize his visit to the festival once again.
