Heath's friend Scott Campbell Inking Heath's Dragonfly

Heath's friend and favorite tattoo artist, Scott Campbell, of Williamsburg NY's Saved Tattoo inks Heath's dragonfly back in November 2007. Campbell, whom Heath picked to engrave the tables of his new restaurant, The Five Leaves, including the very personal chessboard table, also gave Heath's family members memorial tattoos.

This is a very beautiful photo. This isn't a movie star persona or Hollywood marketing . . . this is him. The man he was: quiet, thoughtful, in a relaxed personal setting. Here is Heath at his purest . . . the man we love.


I find myself clinging to the latest, most recent photos that were taken the last part of 2007 and anything in January 2008.
This is now my favorite.
It's so perfect.

I really love this photo! One of the most beautiful ones..
I was just going to comment about your avatar B E A U T I F U L
Im still thinking my tattoo options..

What a beautiful photo,thanks Phyllis!
Haha and theyre actually very look alike!

this is a picture that shows a private Heath , his real side ...you can see how he loved his tattoos in this picture

What a meaningful photo, just beautiful. I am heartened to see all of these photos from November that continue to trickle out. Heath looks so relaxed, confident and healthy. I am bothered by the ones from Jan. (mostly Parnassus set) because it is clear to me that he was battling pneumonia. Every photo from that set, whether it be Heath, Lily Cole or another-the actors look terribly uncomfortable.

He was. Whenever Heath got inked, it was to signify something meaningful in his life, his own personal spiritual reminder from which he drew strength. In November, he was turning a corner, and he was celebrating it by getting it permanently memorialized...

This is a very special photo showing that. I love it...

What a beautiful photo, thank you so much for posting this!
I was gonna ask you where the photo was from when I saw your avatar in a different topic, hadn't quite reached this one yet!


Also on Scott Campbell's website is a photo of Lily Coles tattoo of the heart on her wrist!

OMG ur avatar phylis
calls the graphic squad

awww he looks so relaxed i want the sun moon and stars done on the same arm as heath had his
trouble is im scared of needles and my bro had a tarantula done on his stomach and he said it hurt

i heard colour dont hurt but black and white does

im a wimp

It's a beautiful picture and it's nice to see a picture from him like this. I don't know why but it gives me a good feeling seeing him like this. So relax, so free, so him.

How Beautiful Phyllis. Scott must miss Heath SO much (he certainly gave him plenty of business). I wonder what his Tattoos meant to him (Heath I mean) What the dragonfly meant

thanks for sharing

I've never had any color done; both mine are tribal. But I don't see why the ink color would make a difference.

Missy, remember that the stomach is completely different from the upper arm/shoulder area. Your stomach would be more sensitive, I think . . . but your upper arm is fairly thick skinned. I'm sure it probably hurts less on the upper arm than my two on the wrist and hands . . .

I wasn't thrilled about the idea of needles, either . . . but really, not too bad at all. It's funny, everyone's always worried about the needles, and they just don't seem to believe that it's really not that bad until they get it done themselves. LOL

If it means something sacred and meaningful to you, do it... I would never have, except for Heath... but these mean more than I can express...and so did he.


Me, too, Jess. It was hard for me to explain, but yes . . . that's it, exactly.

Beautiful. Don't have any other words.

Yep...Phyllis...this photo replaces my desktop background (you know what I had changed it too...that I was trying to 'move on'...and found SOMETHING meaningful to me besides Heath)

Well, I reverted back to Heath for this photo.

Happy about it too.

thx phylis thinks about gettin it done for xmas

please bring the hammer ill need it

Wow that photo is so sweet, i love to see him so relax. I just can't stop to see it. I love it.

Phyllis i love you new avatar!

Awwww....I saw this photo here in someone's siggy, but then I never saw it again. I LOVE this pic. Thanks for posting it, Phyllis.

I always love to see these types of pics, him looking relaxed and in his element. As time went on, you didn't see too many photos like this one. That really made it special when we did see one of him where he was just being Heath.

I have both color and black & white. I can tell you it felt the exact same way both times. i got mine on my upper arm and it hurts no worse than getting blood drawn.

It's beautiful, but it's one of those things where I feel like I shouldn't be looking at it, but I also can't keep my eyes off it.. He looks very relaxed for getting a tattoo!

thankies sugar

thinks about booking it in and having it done

tells friend to bring the hammer

Is that the heart that Heath drew and Scott copied and tattoed on Heath's friends at the memorial in LA?

A year ago I would not have considered ever getting a tattoo... Now I might consider it if I'm inspired with something that feels right. It hasn't happened yet but I'm open to it...

I think Heath has given a whole new meaning to tattoos.

and a whole new meaning to hammer's im tellin ya ill have to be held down and be on a knockin out pill the whole way through

im dreading having mine done im so scared im such a wimp

its like the dentist

i bet heath will be lookin down on me laughing cuz there ill be out for the count

The thing is, he was always just being Heath. Sometimes he had to hide himself a bit to keep what was his own, but no matter what the degree, he was always just Heath.

That's part of what made him so special. His purity. (I have never used that word in my entire life to refer to anyone. Just him. Because truly, that's what he was , in his truest form. . . always pure.)


I understand perfectly, Tori... I have photos of Heath that I do not disseminate, because clearly they are private and do not belong to the public eyes... With this one, I did not hesitate because Heath clearly knew the photo was being taken; Scott was a close friend, and I know if Scott put it on his website, then he feels (or knows personally) that he has Heath's blessing. So with this photo, I'm certain that Heath is ok with it being seen...

The thing is, I believe that Heath was more comfortable with showing his personal vulnerability in November and December. He was ready, and allowed Vincent Fabruzzo to paint his portrait (a very revealing one), and I think he was comfortable with and allowed this photo with Scott, as well.


Linda, it is a copy of the heart Heath drew on the back of a sheet of notes that Terry Gilliam's daughter had given (she is a producer on Parnassus). His Parnassus cast-mates got that heart copied somewhere on their bodies, but as far as I know it was just the Parnassus bunch who got that particular design . . . their own private signifier.

I don't know where Scott inked them: if it was in LA or NY. or even if Scott did all of them (although he may have). I do know he did Heath's family, and one of Heath's sisters has the lariat wrist tattoo now...

I wish I could have had Scott do mine, as I know for sure he would have understood the import and sacredness in a way that my original artist completely did not get (and even scoffed at/ my artist told me "Most people get inked to be cool like everyone else". ) No, he did not get it at all.
But I couldn't in all good conscience bother Scott at that time. He was probably inundated with people calling him, and people don't realize that this is intrusive and hurtful when you've lost someone you love. Scott is a friend of Heath's . . . this is not something he's doing lightly: it's with passion, love and emotion . . . and being hounded by fans, even those with good intentions, is not helpful but painful, even though the fans don't mean it to be.

He may feel that we have no right to have Heath's ink. Or to intrude on the mourning of Heath's loved ones. That's the reason I never contacted Scott, even after my original artist botched my lariat and I was hoping someone could correct it and make it right... My heart wanted Scott to do it, because I had been so disappointed in the lack of depth and understanding my artist had and I knew Scott could feel it . . . But I did not want to intrude on his grief or insinuate myself in a place I had no right to be.


I had toyed with the idea for years. But I didn't want something trite and meaningless just to have one. It had to be "right". And it never was. There was never anything that really represented my real soul; no rose, heart, celtic symbol, butterfly or even cat, was really significant. I wish I could explain more what "right" means, but it's complicated to try to express...

After Heath passed I knew... I didn't actually even have a choice. I HAD to. I had to have the lariat and carry Heath with me, a daily reminder for the rest of my life. It wasn't about being "cool" or edgy, or what it showed or represented to anyone else. It was about holding on to someone, love, memory, permanence, and catharsis . . . and it was about so much more that I really can't express adequately.

Not that I could have forgotten Heath or his impact on me; He had touched me in so many ways. He touched both my heart and my body, and the ache of his loss is now as strong as my love for him. My heart is already marked; it will never forget and never be the same. This lariat is the mark for my body . . . a tangible physical representation of his effect on me.

The leaf that the second artist did for me is virtually identical to Heath's, but I really got it in an attempt to carry something that is accurate to something Heath had on his body . . . I got it because the lariat was not done correctly, the very aspects of the lariat's design that were so important to me, my original artist just refused to see them and it will never be Heath's lariat . . . yet it was the lariat wrist tattoo that mattered to my heart. It's the one that really meant what I needed it to mean. I wouldn't give it up for anything, and I'm glad to have it and Heath's name on my body. But there is a side of me that will always wish it were done correctly, and just like Heath's loss . . . it will never be right. Not even Scott could fix it.

I've gone and poured it out, again. I never know when this is going to happen . . . and then it just pours from me like a flood and I can't hold back the dam.


LOL The hammer's the only thing you could use. You're not allowed to be under the influence of anything (that they KNOW of ) while getting inked. The tattoo shops want to know you are making this life altering decision with a clear head...
. . . kinda like voting... although as with voting, I'm still certain some participants are drunk.

Exactly! A year ago I would have said "No way!" Now Im surprising my friends with talk of getting a tattoo But Im still searching the right one. I have some thoughts but I want to be sure..

ill need to be drunk



needles scare me silly but i want to do it for heath

well im off to price it up see ya'll later on

I'm much like Rosa, not opposed to the idea but am still searching for something meaningful and sacred, like what Phyllis' mean to her. Scott Campbell is an artist first, in every since of the word. I'm sure that's why Heath choose him. I love the heart Lily has and initially thought I could do that but changed my mind. I realized that the heart was theirs, belonging to his close friends, not mine. I was even embarrassed that I had entertained the thought and exceedingly greatful I did not have it done. I would never want to intrude on the intimacies of true friends.

I have a burning question about Lily's tat. I have noticed in several pics that a line extends to the left of the heart. My thought is that line is where his signature was on the note and now that he is gone, she chose a line rather than signature to represent his absence. Does anyone know what, if anything, it means?

WM . . . I don't know that he signed the note; it was his copy of script notes or something that Ms. Gilliam had given him . . . my impression was that the heart was just one of Heath's doodles on the back of it...

A lot of people don't know, but Heath doodled all the time. If there was paper around, he'd doodle on it. LOL . . .

See the picture

thank you so much phyllis for sharing this!
this photo gives me a warm feeling inside, it realy does, it is indeed very pure.

That is one of the most stunning photos I have ever seen of Heath! Beautiful! Thank you so much for posting this!

Absolutely LOVE the photo Phyllis! Just beautiful!!!

Thanks Phyllis! Not just for posting the pic but for adding it as your avitar so we can see it EVERYWHERE!
As far as tattoos-my experience has been that if you have a good artist that moves around a lot it doesn't hurt as bad but I didn't think it hurt at all but that's just me. Also, who cares what the artist thinks? My first tattoo was a sketch that I did of my dog when I was 10 yrs old. I found it 8 yrs later just after my dog had passed and still remember the artist's expression when I presented it to him. He said, "THIS is what you want???" It represents all the animals that have touched my life-the first being my childhood dog.

Rio . . .

Oh I definitely won't care what anyone thinks next time. But in a sense it is important that the artist "get it", because if they don't understand the significance, you don't get the best work . . . I'm sure of it. I just really feel that the best work is by someone who is simpatico with you.

I have my next 2 lined up and may have them both done at the same time. I do wish I could get Scott, though...

Yes, Scott would be very nice......I wish too. He does such great work! I hope he doesn't get overwhelmed with all this publicity and continues to "ink"-it seems like he really enjoys what he does and takes pride in his work.

Scott would not have the clientele he does if he weren't good. And Heath was a real perfectionist about some things . . .

This is a great photo.

awww that's so sweet,how cute,seriously i love everything about Heath..i've never loved anyone as i love him, that's a really sweet fact P,thanks.

I had totally forgotten bout that photo! I love it! I can't wait to get my next tattoo - wish I could get someone like Scott...... but the one I usually go to is really good

I got my first tattoo done when I was 18 and got 2 more in the meantime. I love them and they both have a special meaning. I'm dying to get another one done.... well 2 actually that I have in mind. But have no money for it at the moment so it has to wait although it's like a drug I'm addicted to tattoos but won't go overboard and get to many done that's why I usually wait till I'm 100% sure I really want it!

I love Heath's leaf tat - always wanted that one.....but kind of not sure if I should get it now.... although it would be a memorial tattoo for him.... hmmm

It's good that you've found someone you're happy with. I've had a bit of trouble finding one who "feels" right.


I did not get my first one until I was 40.

They can get expensive, can't they? Mine are both tribal; I don't have any color yet. I was certain I'd only get one. Everyone said that you can't stop at one, and that they are addictive, but I was like . . . "nah. I only need the one."

LOL . . . now I'm looking forward to my third.


I have the leaf. I would not have done it while he was here, because that would not have been polite to him. But now, I think he'd understand it. I think he'd understand my heart and that it's a memorial.

it's very important to have a tattoo artist you trust and happy with cause otherwise the tattoo won't be as you like it! The guy I know is brilliant - he even comes into your house! and his tattoos are great, so professional!



ah well it's never too late

oh yeah they can get expensive! and I'm constantly broke at the moment anyway cause all my money is going into my car but they are most certainly addictive!

the first one i got is my birth date around my bellybutton and for 12 years I'm trying to design something to get done around it my second one is my initials from my first and my second name on my left forearm, the third one is an angel (she kinda manga) which is in colour - she's like my guardian angel!



for years I was looking for the right leaf. I'm a huge LOTR fan so was kinda loooking into getting one like that done..... but wasn't sure but then I saw Heath's and I knew that one was exactly the one I was looking for .... but as I said I'm still on two minds whether to get it done or not ... although I'm sure (as you already said) he'll understand.

I'm not putting one anywhere that sags or stretches. LOL

that's why the design is important the way it is at the moment it will actually stay the way it is - but what ever else I get done I need to be careful with