Photo communications major Logan Garza traveled to Ireland this past summer knowing that was where he wanted to get his next tattoo.

It was an eight-day trip with his best friend and mentor Aaron Ivey, where he had a lot of time to sit, write and read. It was during those moments of reflection that the idea of his next tattoo came to him.

“I love to write and be creative,” Garza said.

He was in a park when he sketched the helm that now sits on his right bicep and represents the journey over to Ireland from his home in Austin, Texas. The eight stars within the helm stand for the eight days that they spent in Ireland. The centerpiece is a Jerusalem cross, which symbolizes the New Jerusalem which Garza connects to his time in Ireland since he feels that his trip is the closest thing to a utopia he will experience until the second coming of Jesus.

“Ireland was the most beautiful place I’d ever seen. It was the greenest: the people were the most friendly I’ve ever met: it was just the closet that I’ll get to that new earth until I actually get there,” he said.

Garza and his friend Ivey were driving around the coast until they came across the first tattoo shop in Ireland they had seen called “Zombie Dollz.” They decided that this was the place where they were going to get tattooed.

“It was a weird place,” Garza said, “with two crazy-looking women with pink hair, covered in tattoos.”

Garza feels like his tattoos are a “personal proclamation.” He views his tattoos as a reminder of where he has been and likes how it gives others a “window” into who he is.

“I love when people ask about it, because I know that they want to know me better, and I actually get to share who I am.”

Growing up in a musical family, Garza began singing and playing the guitar at a young age. He started writing music in middle school and now performs around Austin. Known as Logan Daniel Garza in the music realm, his album titled Alpine Summer came out in 2013 and can be found on Spotify and iTunes. Inspired by folk artists such as Gregory Alan Isakov and Noah Gunderson, Garza’s upcoming shows can be found on his Facebook page.

Garza doesn’t pay attention to those who view his tattoos as an act of rebellion. He views his body art as an opportunity to recall pieces of his past.

“That’s what [my tattoo] symbolizes to me: remembering Ireland as a place that was full of beauty and life and increasing joy.”