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GREENSBORO — Local tattoo artists want to leave their mark on history by making a permanent mark on your body.

Golden Spiral Studios at 206 S. Elm St.  will offer free tattoos  on Monday  to commemorate the opening of the International Civil Rights Center & Museum.

Store manager and co-owner  Ashley Tedder  said the eight  staff members wondered how they could be involved in the historic opening at their monthly meeting Thursday night.

Their conclusion: Create and draw free tattoos.

“Just the fact that we’re providing the tattoos makes us a small part of history,” she said.

Tattoo apprentice Sam King  sketched the design Friday. The sketch — not yet finalized — mimics the bronze coffee cup sculpture created by Charles Jenkins  that was installed next to the museum at 301 S. Elm St. 

The drawing depicts the Greensboro Four — Franklin McCain , Joseph McNeil , David Richmond  and Jibreel Khazan (formerly Ezell Blair Jr. )  — above the rim of the coffee cup with “Feb. 1 ” written on the front.

“We might as well use what we do all the time and what we’re best at,” King said.

The studio will open soon after the museum’s ribbon-cutting ceremony at 8 a.m. and remain open until midnight or when customers leave. (Their regular Monday hours are noon  to 10 p.m. )

Each tattoo session should last about 20 minutes , Tedder said. The design is fairly small at less than 4 square inches.

And the tattoos are permanent. Tedder said the permanence mirrors the significance of the actions taken by the initial sit-in participants 50 years ago.

Ryan Lawrence , a body piercer, said the museum opening is a unique experience:“How often can you get tattoos that really mean something?”

Contact Dioni L. Wise at 373-7090 or dioni.wise@news-record.com