ION INDIE MAGAZINE June 2015, Volume 13 | Page 131

SKETCH: Since a young age, I have always had an appreciation and a certain attraction to many different forms of art, and tried my hand
in several before being introduced to the world of tattoos. Over the years, I found artistic expression to be an amazing outlet for many
different personal emotions, and have used it to get through a lot of life experiences. I am now a husband and a father, and with those
things comes more responsibility and a changed way of seeing the world and those in it. Tattooing has given me a way to help others in
their expression, and I take pride in the opportunity. I strive to make every tattoo that I run, into a piece of art that each client can
personally view as an individualized masterpiece; and feel pride themselves in wearing and showing it off. I specialize in portraits and
black and grey.
LOCO: I have a beautiful wife and two wonderful children who love my tattoo work. I strive to do the best tattoos possible and I specialize
in cover-up work. After my first cover-up, the parents of the client came back to my shop about 2 weeks later with tears in their eyes. They
told me how I did a wonderful job and changed their daughter's life. That's what did it for me, taking a tattoo that someone hates and
turning it into something they love. I love seeing the client's face when they see their tattoo. That is one of the best feelings in the world,
knowing that I have touched someone's life, it is very rewarding to me. I specialize in cover ups.
KIKI: What is the process to become an Artist? Is there formal training or, is it more of a case of a seasoned artist taking on an apprentice
to mentor?
GOT INK: An artist takes on an apprentice to mentor. As an apprentice, you watch, observe, and apply the skills and knowledge taught to
them. There is no pay for apprenticeship and some shops require an apprentice fee. Apprenticeship is a minimum of 2 years, or when the
artist is really to perform high quality tattoos.
KIKI: When did you make the decision to pursue this art? Was it something you always wanted to make your life’s work or did it evolve
that way by chance? Was there one person that influenced this decision?
SKETCH: Since a young age, I have always had an appreciation and a certain attraction to many different forms of art. I found tattooing
to be a personal outlet for me. My wife is my biggest influence. She believes in me and my passion for art and pushed me to pursue it.
LOCO: I love seeing the client's face when they see their tattoo. That is one of the best feelings in the world--knowing that I have touched
someone's life, it is very rewarding to me. My mother is my biggest influence. Mama was always telling me how talented I was. She always
pushed me to draw and was always positive.
KIKI: What do you think is the percentage of people that end up regretting being tattooed? And, I’m sure this happens at some point with
every artist--what happens if a customer is dissatisfied with their new art?
GOT INK: We do not have a large percent coming in wanting our work covered up. In the beginning we strive to make the customer happy.
We do not let them settle for less than they want. Tattoos are permanent. We do not have flash in our shop because w e feel a tattoo is
personal. We custom draw your tattoo in front of you, double and triple check. The design process is the most important. Of course, there
have been a few, and when that happens we go above and beyond to make the customer leave with a piece they are proud of. Also, our
artists have their own style and what they are best at and regardless, the artist that is capable of doing the best job is the artist that does
the tattoo.
KIKI: What was the hardest “cover up” you ever did?
LOCO: The hardest cover up I've ever done was a blown out pin-up girl. The lines were very dark and the customer's skin was scarred--you
could barely make out what the tattoo was supposed to be. I covered it up with a realistic dog.
KIKI: Tell me about the current tat trend(s). Does music have a role in these trends?
GOT INK: Trending in our shop is personal tattoos--tattoos with meaning. Of course, music has a role in these trends. Musicians and music
majors get tattoos relating to music (guitars, notes to a song, microphones). We also have customers that get band logos on them,
expressing their love for music and art.
KIKI: Let’s discuss “musicians and tats”…can you talk about some of the musicians you’ve tattooed. How did their craft influence their
choice of tattoo?
GOT INK: We have done many cover ups and original work on the hottest new Rock group, SILVERSEL. For instance, George has a guitar
tattoo; he is the guitarist for Silversel. This has always been a dream of George's and he finally got his chance. Rock on! A musician from
INSIDE OUT was miserable—he was walking around getting laughed at because of his poorly done tattoo. He came in to see LOCO and
nearly had tears in his eyes seeing his NEW tattoo. We as artists have noticed that a lot of musicians wear their lives on their sleeves,
through their tattoos.