I have always found the world of tattoos and tattoo-lovers to be strange but undeniably beguiling. Though I now inhabit that world (just barely, thanks to my crude — yet-tasteful flamingo tattoo) I still don’t quite understand it. People speak about their future tattoos as if they were talking about the names they might someday give their children. Tattoos can inexplicably inspire a kind of fervor and ritualism — I’ll never forget my friend telling me about the time his friend gave him a huge abdominal tattoo at home. To endure what was likely a very painful experience, my friend chugged several beers and clenched a rag between his teeth, all the while shouting at his friend to keep going.

And after all that, it still needed to be colored in.

Not to say this is a bad thing — the fervor and ritualism, I mean, not the homemade tattoos; those probably aren’t the best thing for you. What I mean is this kind of obsession is inherent in all art forms. However, tattoo artists and recipients take obsession to a new level. The big difference between tattooing and other forms of art is its physicality. No other art form involves the voluntary transformation of a person permanently into a canvas. There’s a huge amount of trust given to tattoo artists. How amazing is it that someone would so willingly give their body over to an artist?

The Tattoo Extravaganza, this Saturday at Hell’s Kitchen, is, perhaps more than an exhibition of the art form, a display of this strange relationship between artist and subject. Tattoo artists sign up for this competition and are judged based on numerous criteria and given awards in 12 categories, ranging from Best Overall to Best Sleeve to Best Black & Grey and even Worst Tattoo (more on that later). But instead of these artists arriving with a portfolio, they actually present to the judges the person whom they tattooed. It’s an indisputable mark of quality for these artists to be able to bring a client in and have them proudly display themselves in front of an audience, not only for observation but for scrutiny.

This Saturday’s show is the fifth year of Tattoo Extravaganza’s existence. “It was just an idea we had to get everyone together to show off each others’ work,” says Jayme Jack, a tattoo artist in her own right and a co-creator of the event. “Because usually, at the conventions we have in Seattle, it’s really critical. [Those conventions are] more just for tattoo artists. We’re doing this more for our clients.”

That sort of sentiment may sound disingenuous, but it’s absolutely true. This event is for the clients. Tattoo recipients never get a chance to hang on gallery walls.

Now, as with all art forms, taste varies wildly. Frankly, a lot of people couldn’t be happier with their tribal bands and Chinese characters. Those people won’t be on display on Saturday. True, the category of Worst Tattoo exists, but to obtain that title one must step up their game quite a bit.

“Worst Tattoo — that one’s always the most popular,” says Jack.

Example?

“Last year, [the winner] was a guy named Rob,” Jack offers. “There was an ‘R’ and a ‘B’ on either side of his butt crack.”

We can all guess where the “O” was.

After the contest, stick around and enjoy performances by punk rockers My Life in Black and White and the Mopars (whose frontwoman is also a former competitor in the Tattoo Extravaganza). The whole night is bound to be a spectacle and a whole lot of fun for everyone — regardless of how much ink is in your skin.

[Hell’s Kitchen, Fifth Annual Tattoo Extravaganza featuring My Life in Black and White, The Mopars, Saturday, Oct. 17, 9 p.m., 3829 Sixth Ave., Tacoma, 253.759.6003]