Suluape Keone Nunes
Traditional Tattooist
It’s 2 a.m. on Oʻahu’s breathtaking, Waiʻanae coast. At this hour, the connection between the physical and the spiritual world intermingles. In the shore break, Keone Nunes is waking up his tools for Kahekili, the god of tattooing. He does a prayer and dips his tattooing tools into the water to make them aware they’ll be doing sacred work today. It's a fairly simple ceremony, but it's embedded in thousands of years of culture.
Nunes, considers himself more of a practitioner than a tattooist. He brought back the art of traditional tattooing to Hawaiʻi in the 90’s, learning from the Samoan kākau (tattoo) master, Sua Suluape Paulo. It’s an art form that doesn’t use machinery, just traditional, handmade tools — made of whale bone, wood and fibers — to tap natural ink into the skin.
In a small hale (house) in the back of Nunes home in Waiʻanae, he prepares for his next subject. The designs he creates relate to genealogies, protection or ʻaumakua (family gods), and the kuleana (responsibility) that goes with them. Nunes says a prayer so that the ink and the tools will work hand in hand to create something that will give mana (spiritual power) to the individual. It’s a special ceremony to witness, but it’s an art form that was almost lost to time.
Nunes, considers himself more of a practitioner than a tattooist. He brought back the art of traditional tattooing to Hawaiʻi in the 90’s, learning from the Samoan kākau (tattoo) master, Sua Suluape Paulo. It’s an art form that doesn’t use machinery, just traditional, handmade tools — made of whale bone, wood and fibers — to tap natural ink into the skin.
In a small hale (house) in the back of Nunes home in Waiʻanae, he prepares for his next subject. The designs he creates relate to genealogies, protection or ʻaumakua (family gods), and the kuleana (responsibility) that goes with them. Nunes says a prayer so that the ink and the tools will work hand in hand to create something that will give mana (spiritual power) to the individual. It’s a special ceremony to witness, but it’s an art form that was almost lost to time.
“When you receive a tattoo, you not only change physically, but oftentimes, there is a deeper change within you.”
Where does the word tattoo come from?
The word "tatau" or "kākau" in actuality means to be placed upon and struck, and that's what we're doing, where "ka" means "to strike," "kau" is "upon," to strike upon the skin. The word "tattoo" comes from the root word "tatau." And it was taken by European sailors and brought back to Europe. And instead of saying "tatau," they called it tattoo.
Tell us about the importance of your tools.
The tools are the conduit of the work. That's why the genealogy of the tools is very, very important. I was very fortunate to have been taught by Sua Suluape Paulo, arguably the best traditional tattooist in the world. In '98, he came over to Hawaiʻi, and he wanted to watch me tattoo. He presented me with some tools and said, "This is for you to reintroduce back to Hawaiʻi." At that time, no one was tattooing like that in Hawaiʻi. I realized that I had a responsibility that I couldn't back away from. It's the tools that choose you, it's not you that chooses the tools.
What was it like getting your first traditional tattoo?
It was just amazing, because to lie there and understand that what you're feeling is exactly what your ancestors felt 1,000, 2,000 years ago is amazing. We're not afforded that opportunity to truly understand how our ancestors felt, because we live in such a contemporary world now. And for me, it was profound.“It should be taken for its root value, getting back to the basics of who we are as a people.”