EG: Did you get traditional tattoo pieces from the countries you visited?
HS: Yes, part of the collection is on my skin. I got a couple of tattoos in Samoa in the 80s and from some of my Japanese friends in the 70s.

EG: I saw the post from Flea of The Red Hot Chilli Peppers commending you on your book. How did you come to meet them and tattoo them?
HS: In the early 80s Amsterdam was a very hot city. You know, it was known as the most liberal capital in the world. There were sex, drugs and rock’n’roll. So everybody who actually came to Amsterdam visited the red light district, and in those days I was smack in the middle of it.

I think it was Bob Roberts who called me and said, “I’ve got this band here, they want to come to Amsterdam, and they’d like to get tattooed, and they’re called The Red Hot Chilli Peppers.”

They were one of the only bands who were using tattoos as an image at that moment. They were so extremely young and they had small concerts with their own hardcore fans. They’d get paid, I don’t know, $50 a day, so they couldn’t even afford a decent place to sleep. So they would stay at my house on the floor, all of them, and they would do their laundry in our washing machine. So every time they were in Amsterdam, I had all these chilli peppers in my house [laughs]. These young kids walking around in their boxer shorts, doing their laundry.

EG: Can you talk about the process tattooing the band back then?
HS: At that time we would talk about tattoos and decide, “Okay, let’s make a tattoo that you can see from a distance because you guys are a band.” So the whole bird on the back [on Anthony Kiedis], which took more than one hour, developed that way.

EG: What is an average day like for you, before Covid? Are you still tattooing?
HS: I go everyday to the shop for a few hours. I do not tattoo every day. But pre-Covid, there would always be these, I call them pilgrims, like young tattooers from all over the world who will come by and want to get a little souvenir, and just want to hang out and talk with you a little bit, which is something I enjoy and like. I look at their work, I give comments, and they’ll buy a book or want to get a picture taken for Instagram, or I do a little tattoo. And that’s enough for me, because I’m also involved in all kinds of commercial activities. I always liked the idea of getting on the street and seeing all kinds of stuff I did everywhere in the windows, and all the bicycles and mothers with children with tattoos on their back or on their arms. So like that’s my gallery. Yeah, that is my museum.

EG: After things gets back to normal what are you most looking forward to?
HS: I would like to go out into the sun again. I love swimming. But I like swimming in the water when I can still see my fucking toes. We used to go to Koh Samet – I loved it in the early days and in the very early days Phuket, and Koh Samui, where all the water is really nice. I always liked Indochina and Indonesia, I enjoy the food there, the people, their happiness and their religion.

Levis 1960s Vintage Star Print Shirt: £145

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