Our logo gets a rose tattoo for Transgender Awareness Month

Every month, we feature a new take on the CBC Arts logo created by a Canadian artist. Check out our previous logos!

For 26 years, Geri Kramer has been a tattooer, and as the owner of Tattoo Zoo — a long-running tattoo shop in downtown Victoria — she spends every workday making art. 

The job is just one of her creative pursuits, however. Kramer is also a podcaster, and she and her wife, Sarah, are the co-hosts of the Canadian Podcast Award-nominated series, Meet the Kramers, a show about their decades-long relationship and Kramer's coming-out journey as a trans woman. 

Greater awareness for trans stories and issues is of special significance every November; it's Transgender Awareness Month in Canada, a time to raise visibility of the trans community. And to mark the event, CBC Arts commissioned Kramer to create an original logo design. 

Her take on the CBC gem was rendered digitally, and it reflects the colours of the trans flag: pink, white and blue. Featuring a classic rose motif at its centre, the design references Kramer's history as a tattoo artist, but it's also telling a bigger story. Read on to learn more.

Name: Geri Kramer 

Age: 51

Homebase: Victoria

What does Transgender Awareness Month mean to you?

Trans Awareness Month is a mixed bag of feelings for me. It's important that there are more conversations surrounding transness, because normalizing the trans experience is crucial to all of us out here just trying to live our lives. But at the same time, I fear that as we see more awareness of trans lives in cis heteronormative society, it stokes more hate and anti-trans legislation. It's a bit of a double-edged sword, to be honest.

What inspired the concept of your logo design?

I wanted to do something that was a nod to my tattoo background. Roses have been an omnipresent design in the tattoo world since the early 1920s. Roses to me also convey an element of transition, growth and power, so it was a pretty easy decision to incorporate that into the CBC logo, which already looks to me like a flower blooming.

How did you become a tattoo artist?

I've always been an artist, and in the '90s, a couple of my friends started tattooing. It seemed very much like something I could do, coupled with the fact that it would keep me out of the corporate world. I had no idea how popular it was going to become!

Has a client ever asked you for a CBC tattoo?

I honestly can't recall, but I don't think so. You'd have to be a pretty big fan of something to want to put a corporate logo on your body.

What do you love about the job?

I love collaborating with clients and hearing their stories. There's a real connection that happens between us when we're working together. My work is about creating a relationship with my client, and trust is the building block for that.

By its very nature, tattooing is a traumatic experience; there is pain, blood and discomfort. Having the experience be as positive and tender as possible is impossible to do without trust. For me, there is no tattoo practice without those elements.

What are some of your favourite subjects to draw?

Right now, I'm especially interested in plants and animals, and especially fungi. There's just so much to draw from, and they're subjects that folks never seem to tire of.

What's the project you're most proud of?

I've recently completed a full chest piece based on turkey tail mushrooms that uses the texture of the caps to create the illusion of flattening out my client's chest. Helping someone reclaim their bodily presentation — through my tattooing — very much aligns with the work that I like to do.

Are there any arts events on your radar this fall? What are you excited to check out?

I'm taking part in an exhibit with some of my local Victoria peers. It's called Tender Touch and it opens at the Art Gallery of Greater Victoria in November. I'm really excited to see how everyoneapproaches the show — and interested to see what folks think of my contributions.

What's new in your world? What else are you working on at the moment?

I recently moved my shop (Tattoo Zoo) to a smaller, more intentional space, and I'm really excited to see how it realigns my tattoo practice. We've been in the new space now for a little over a month, and I'm already seeing a shift in my approach. I'm feeling much more relaxed and comfortable.

What's your favourite place to see art?

In person! Whether that's at a gallery or on a stage, in a theatre or in a coffee shop, I love seeing things up close. I'm chronically online, though, so I probably do see most art digitally.

Who's the last artist you discovered online?

Faith Alexandra Marie (@needle.imprints). I listened to their interview on the tattooing podcast The Teardown, and so much of what they spoke about really resonated with me. Plus, their work is excellent.

What work of art do you wish you owned?

What a difficult question! I've never really wished to own works of art. I feel like they are better in a gallery where everyone can appreciate them. But I guess, in a way, my body is truly a living gallery of many of the artists I've loved. 

If I could own something, it would probably have to be The Dinner Party by Judy Chicago. I saw it in 2019 at the Brooklyn Museum.

The feelings it evoked that day have become a strong core memory: the cool darkness of the room it was in, the incredible epic scale of the triangle table. Also, I remember the feeling of my wife's excitement at viewing it for the second time since she first saw it as a child. It could be linked to my then-closeted womanhood, but whatever it was, it really struck a chord with me. 

It's 48 feet long — on each side of the triangle. I definitely don't have room for it in my home. LOL.

Where can we see more from you?

On Instagram, my personal artist page is @gerikramertattoos, and my tattoo shop is @tattoozoodotnet.

And if someone wanted to learn more about my journey of transition, my wife and I have a podcast called Meet the Kramers (@meetthekramers) where we discuss our 25-plus year relationship, how I found the courage to be my authentic self, and what this meant for our relationship.

This conversation has been edited and condensed.