Interview with Polynesian tattoo artist Piri Huuti

Piri Huuti, a tattoo artist based in Sanary-sur-Mer in the Var department, answers our questions:

Ia Orana Piri, can you introduce yourself in a few words?

Ia orana, I'm Piri Huuti, I was born in Hakamaii, a village on the island of Ua Pou in the Marquesas Islands in French Polynesia. I grew up in the Marquesas. My family is made up of sculptors, tattoo artists, dancers... Marquesan culture is very important to us. I then moved to Tahiti, where my uncle and mother run a tattoo parlour, Efraima Tattoo, and I tattooed with them for 1 year. After that, I wanted to live my own experience. I put tattooing on hold and joined the navy, to try something else. I'd always liked the navy and the army - the warrior spirit, the travel - and I wanted to be independent. My sailor friends asked me a lot of questions about my tattoos, and I ended up tattooing them. I did it at home on weekends or when I wasn't on a mission. I tattooed sailors for 4 years, and at one point I had to choose between re-signing with the army or opening my own salon, and I chose.

Can you give us the definition of patutiki?

Patu means to write and tiki represents the sacred, the ancestors, the symbol, which is very present in our culture. I could translate patutiki as writing the symbol of the ancestors, writing about you, your history. In the Marquesas, we don't tattoo just any symbol in any place. Our tattoos represent our history, who we are. You can read the life of a Marquesan by reading his tattoos.

How long does it take to get a Marquesan tattoo?

It depends on the size of the tattoo, of course. It takes 1 to 2 hours for small tattoos and 2 days to tattoo a whole arm.

What are your most popular locations?

For men, it's often the arm, pecks or legs. For women, it's more often the foot, leg or ribs.

How best to heal after a tattoo?

You need to take care of your tattoo every day to ensure it heals properly. You have to avoid the sun and, above all, use cream. For me, the number 1 choice is the tamanu. This oil comes from Tahiti. For healing, it's the best. Otherwise, the best thing I tried here was Easy Tatoo cream. You really have to take care of your tattoo because it can get infected.

For those of you who don't live in the Var, where can you be found for a tattoo?

I do tattoo conventions, the next one will take place next to Paris in Ozoir-la-Ferrière on September 14 and 15, 2019. Le Fabulous Tiki week-end.

What are your upcoming projects?

I don't have any immediate plans. My cousins and I would like to start up a dance group again, but with everyone's busy lives and work, it's not going to happen right away. I'd also like to set up a tattoo parlour in Nice. I hesitated a lot when I opened my parlour, and it's true that I'd like to set up a Marquesan tattoo parlour in Nice.

Why did you settle in France rather than return to Tahiti?

There's less competition. In Tahiti, there are a lot of tattoo parlors. In France, there are fewer of us. I wanted to share my Marquesan culture and promote Maori tattooing. So I opened my salon in Sanary 2 years ago.

You go back to Ua Pau regularly, what's the 1st thing you do when you get home?

I eat! Local food and products are my first love. Even if you can find just about anything here, it doesn't taste the same. I've found Uru, the fruit of the breadfruit tree, a few times here, but it's not the same. So, yes, eating my own food is the first thing I do.

Thank you Piri

Nana

Toakiu Tattoo

1 Bis Rue Louis Blanc

83110 Sanary-sur-Mer 06 17 47 44 31

Find Piri on his facebook page