ISSUE 30 DECEMBER
CORI DENINO
LEMEIR MITCHELL
BIG JAZ
ASHLEY McNAMARA
PON DeMAN
SERGIO FERNANDEZ
HOLLI MARIE
CAROLINE FRIEDMANN
ALEXIS KOVACS
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NEEQ SERENE PHOTOGRAPHER U.K.
IG: NEEQS
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CONTRIBUTORS
TABLE OF CONTENTS 247 I N K M AG A Z I N E - I S S U E 30
WALT ANDERSON VICE PRESIDENT CREATIVE DIRECTOR IG: 21PRIMETIME37
CAROLINE TOREM CRAIG LA PHOTO QUEEN LA NIGHT CLUBBING IG: NYNIGHTCLUBBING
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SPECIAL THANKS
GOLDEN EAGLE DINER, DR. RAJDEV, DR LEE, DR. BISSON, YC PHOTO, MILLZ MARLEY, FAME MONTALVO,
6
HOLLI MARIE
30
ASHLEY MCNAMARA
50
JANELLE HANSON
56
LEMEIR MITCHELL
78
PON DEMAN
92
ALEXIS KOVACS
108
SERGIO FERNANDEZ
130
BIG JAZ
136
CORI DENINO
JOE MARTINEZ, BRIAN MACKEY, ASHLEY V, CRAIG, GOLIATH NEEDLES, LYDIA BRUNO, JACKIE & LOU, WILDWOOD, WESTCHESTER TATTOO CON, BANG, CURTIS AND CO. WATCHES, MEGAN JEAN, AMY SACKS, VINCENT CASTIGLIA, FRANK'S PIZZA, TY’ESHA, MARK LAWRENCE, TOMMY’S SUPPLIES, ANA, JLC, SARAHFUCKINGSNYDER, DAB TATTOO CREAM, CHRISTIANA LUCRATIF AND OPULEN STUDIOS LA, QUALITY CHEF, THE PEOPLE WHO KEEP STEVE SANE, TREVOR AND CLINT. SORRY IF WE FORGOT ANYONE.
INTERVIEW BY: STEVE AZZARA PHOTOGRAPHY BY: STEVE AZZARA
HOLLI Marie IN K M A ST E R SE A S O N 1 2
IG: HOLLIMARIEART
HO W WO UL D YO U S AY BE IN G O N IN K
M AS TE R HAS C HAN GE D YO UR L IFE S O FAR? I've really only seen positive changes so far. Honestly, I know a lot of people have gotten a lot of bad critiques and like a lot of people like or don't like them as people and stuff like that. So I’ve really only seen positive stuff. HO W DID YO U ADJ US T TO THE TIM E IN “THE HO US E ” WAS IT DIFFIC UL T? It was difficult. Filming was from January to March, and I had just gotten married In October so two months after I got married I was away forever and you can’t see each other or talk to each other and it was the first time I had ever lived on my own and with people I had never met before. I had lived with my husband and we had roommates you know somebody there, so it was the first time like being a grown-up and not having
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anybody.
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DID YOU F IND TH E JU DG ING SL AN TE D
AL L THAT C O UL D C HAN GE AT AN Y GIVE N M O M E N T TO O , IF TH E Y J UST
A T A NY TIME? Y OU COU LD SAY IT!
WAN T S O M E BO DY E L S E TO S TAY. WO UL D YO U DO IT AG AIN?
Yeah (laughs) Yeah, I definitely think they get
Yea, sure, if they asked me.
a relationship with certain people, like they favor certain people and give them passes. W ELL T H EY DEF INITELY G O ON PER SONALITIES. NU MB ER ONE, YO U'VE A LL DONE TH E PSYCH OLOG ICAL TE S TS . T H EY KNOW EXACT LY W H ICH TWO B U TTONS T O G ET T O ANY ONE AN D THE N T H EY KNOW Y OU R PER SONA LITY AN D W H AT' S G OING T O G ET T O YOU. Y OU R TATTOOING . W H AT ST U M PE D YO U T H E MOST ON W H AT TH EY T H RE W A T Y OU ? I definitely was shocked from day one how much they were looking for design versus solid straight up technical application so if one thing in the design is flawed, they’re like it’s trash. You could have the best technical tattoo, which on my coverup is what saved me, but my technical is what saved me because other people had bad designs and technical. It’s like high school art class. They want everything artistic and i’m just a tattoo artist trying to do a sticker tattoo. I’m not here to do all this fucking color
YO U'RE M O RE O F A C O L O R ARTIS T? I started out doing black and gray realism and portraits and stuff like that. Too Boring. S O DO IN G BL AC K AN D GRE Y DIDN ’T BO THE R YO U? No, I went right back into it. They tried to throw me for a loop on black and grey day. This guy wanted like 15 things in one tattoo and I was fine and they were like ok, we’re not gonna fuck with her anymore, she knows how to do black and grey. (laughs) And realism. On realism day. The traditional girls found out. Thank you very much. She's a one trick pony, like no, I believe episode 3 would beg to differ. I did a realistic face.
theory, which comes with tattooing, but I’m PAG E 8
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just here to tattoo.
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F IV E-YEA R PLA N? I just want to continue to travel as much as I do now. I do about 25 shows a year which is a lot, and guest spots, etc. Obviously would like to grow my own personal business like maybe open a shop one day but the timing would have to be right. I'm super happy now at Flats Tattoo in Groton CT. If the opportunity and timing were right, maybe. My husband would have to run the front of the house. LET ' S DO TH E STANDA R D O N E JU ST TO G ET TH AT OU T OF THE W AY IF Y OU COU LD T A T T OO ONE PER SON DEAD OR AL IVE , W H O W OU LD IT BE? Yeah, I'm always torn. It sounds stupid between Bruce Willis and The Rock. I feel like either one of those would be like. T A KE TH E R OCK.
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PHOTOGRAPHY BY: MICHAEL FITZGERALD IG: FITZFOTOGRAPHY11
AVRORA IG: AVRORASUICIDE
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INTERVIEW BY: STEVE AZZARA PHOTOGRAPHY BY: STEVE AZZARA
O KAY, S O I'VE BE E N HE ARIN G YO UR N AM E A L O T L ATEL Y AND F IG UR E D IT WAS TIM E TO S E E WHAT’S GO IN G O N HE RE . (L AUGHS ) I think I got further out of my apprenticeship. I started 4 years ago. Outside of my apprenticeship, I've been tattooing for about three years. So I guess the first year I was working out the kinks and I guess I figured out something right in the past two years. You definitely draw inspiration from places in it doesn't have to be other artists but definitely working next to you Sam Fiorino, even before I started, has been a huge, huge influence on me, like even subconsciously just from like being next to him and admiring him so much is, you know, an artist and a friend. Sometimes it takes a while to find “you” you know. WHAT WE RE YO U L IKE IN HIGH S C HO O L ? Oh man. I was a fucking piece of shit. I was weird. I was weird and not weird at the same time. You know, like I was into like nerdy stuff, but I also played Varsity Sports. Ended up being captain my football team my senior year, but you know freshman year I played in a band, I skateboarded. I did weird stuff. I was also the kid in class getting yelled at for a drawing instead of taking notes. But yeah, I never, I never really, I never
IG: CORYHABERMAN
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really saw myself as being that artistic. It was always something that I just enjoyed doing and it's something that I was kind of like oh this sucks and throw it out like what the fuck are you doing? So it felt like everybody was pushing me into doing art and I was; I'm the kind of person like you don't, like especially back then, it's like the more you tell to do this, I'm like no fuck you. So it wasn't until later that I really started pursuing art. Yeah, I know that sometimes people will encourage you out of it. Yeah, they're like, oh you should take AP art. I was like, no I should take study hall.
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YO U R S T Y L E?
IF YO U C O UL D TATTO O O N E PE RS O N DE AD O R AL IVE W H O W OUL D IT BE ?
I like to consider myself a new school kind of guy. I also think I'm, I try, to be more
Probably my grandfather probably my grandfather. He was I think probably
well-rounded than just new school, but if it were up to me I would do new school as
according to my dad and from what I remember and at least for me my first big
much as possible. But I love doing traditional. I've been trying to do traditional but it
influence and art he was you know, my sleeve was inspired by him. There's an
kind of just comes out Neo-traditional. I can do some black and gray. I like to try and
octopus because he just had his hand in everything but and he would just throw
stay pretty well-rounded and like illustrative kind of stuff.
himself into anything whether it be wood carving sculpting bronze casting painting drawing. He's a dentist. He did Magic he wrote a unicycle he flew airplanes. Like he
WER E Y OU I N S HO PS W HE RE LIKE Y OU T OOK W H ATEV ER CA ME T O
was he would be the one person. I think that I would talk to my dad always tells me
THE D OOR A T FI RS T ?
like, you know, like he would so be interested in what I'm doing and he would so be
So yeah, my whole career has been at Addicted to Ink and it is it's a weird mixture of
interested in getting a tattoo.
a custom shop in a street shop. And so they did a good job of limiting me at first and I did like four million fucking peonies in that like trendy black worst kind of style but it definitely helped being in a busy shop with a lot of variety because I feel confident tackling most styles and that was a huge thing. Being in a busy shop like that was amazing. What I learned was hugely beneficial for sure.
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WH ER E D O Y O U S E E T HE B US I NESS G OING IN TH E NEXT Y EAR OR TWO ?
THE RE 'S J US T S O M AN Y C O N VE N TIO N S AN D I THIN K H AL F OF TH E M
Yeah, I kind of see it doing like what the universe is doing, expanding outwards and
HAVE TO GO .I THIN K WHE N THE IN K M AS TE R C RAZE H AP P E NE D , TH E
in both directions. I see more more and more people doing garbage fucking tattoos
TATTO O C RAZE HAPPE N E D AN D THE N IT AC TUAL L Y B E C AME R E SP E C TABL E
out of dorm rooms and apartments and I see more and more people elevating the
BUT S O M E BO DY S AID TO M E IT'S GO N N A BE L IKE , WH IC H I D ID N'T TH INK
craft to place where we say how the fuck did they do that on skin, you know, so it's
ABO UT, THE Y S AID THE Y THIN K IT'S GO IN G TO BE L IK E W H E R E TH E NE X T
only getting bigger and actually, one of my one of my teachers in college wrote a
KIDS C O M IN G UP ARE N 'T GO N N A WAN T WHAT THE P AR E NTS D ID TH E Y 'L L
paper about this. It was called the Ironic Trend and people always talk about tattooing
BE RE BE L L IN G AGAIN S T THE TATTO O S AN D THE Y WON'T BE G E TTING
like it's a trend but you know, the irony of that trend is that it literally not going
THE M AN D I THO UGHT THAT WAS IN TE RE S TIN G.
anywhere. I mean not going and not with laser with laser removal, you know aside
I could see that. Yeah. I thought that was a ragged definitely see that.
but like that's the whole that's the future. Yeah, you know, it's getting bigger and
Interesting theory. It's definitely become more accepted. Oh, yeah. I think it's
bigger. I just really hope that it doesn't get too, you know with all the stuff you've
definitely getting oversaturated and what I don't like about tattooing right now is
been hearing about with like these like makeup companies trying to move in on it
the whole pseudo-celebrity aspect of it because as I mentioned before, at least
and change the pigments to dyes, it's getting better and better like better materials.
for me personally, I didn't do this to be famous. I never thought I'd be doing an
I hope that continues but like everything, the bubble always bursts.
interview for what I do. I did this to just live an interesting life and make art and make people happy with what I do.
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HE L L O DARL IN G, C AN YO U TE L L US HO W YO U GO T IN T O TATTOOING ?
INTERVIEW BY: ELVA STEFANIE PHOTOGRAPHY BY: THOMAS MATTHEW PHOTOGRAPHY
So I started drawing I don't even remember when. I was really young and I would just kind of sit there and listen to songs. Draw a lot of eyes. Just copy pictures.
HTTPS://WWW.ANONEISON.COM/BLACK-GREY HTTPS://WWW.ANONEISON.COM/DRAWINGS
So I would pull pictures out of things that I thought were intriguing and copy them. Fast forward a couple years, middle school, high school. I think I was the only person that submitted pictures for the logos for the Spring Athlete Sports Dinner covers. They would do a banquet and I would submit covers for it and I would be the one that did the murals in school and I was the one that did like the yearbook cover, so I ended up getting a reputation for doing all the art around, and then I did one art class in high school and she made us pick a larger piece of paper and for the first time I did pencil drawings from pictures, from family photos and I love photography, and then it went dead through college because I thought about going into graphic design but I didn’t really want to make 30 grand a year. So I thought let me just go to a business school instead and I'll go for advertising or marketing. Got out that didn't work. I thought what if I was to do my style drawings as a career. No one will purchase it and put it on their wall, but they'll put it on their skin, and that's when Instagram came out and so I got an Instagram account. I used my aim username from like 8th grade, which was very Anonymous and I started posting
ASHLEY McNamara I NK MAS T ER S EA S ON 1 2
all my drawings, and I started following a bunch of artists and we like grew a Network that way and that's how I got my apprenticeship.
IG: ANONEISON
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SO H OW LONG HA V E Y O U B E E N T A T T OOING ? A ND W H A T W AS Y OU R
to me, learned how to tattoo like my drawings and you'll be able to one day do very
AP P R ENT I CESHI P L I K E ?
well and I was like cool. So you’re looking for an apprentice, not for me, you know
So I began tattooing as an artist in January 2015. All right, it took me a year and a half
what I mean? I can't really work here and he said yeah. I had more jobs than I've
before that as an apprentice. So I'd spent five months in London, and ran out of all of
ever had in my life during my apprenticeship. Starbucks, I would do CNA overnight
my savings and then I flew straight over to California and I was entirely, completely
nursing work with old people usually until like 2:00 a.m.
broke and I worked multiple jobs and I gained 20 pounds and then it was all bad. So right now I've been tattooing almost exactly five years. My apprenticeship was really
I KN O W YO UR S TYL E , BUT HO W DO YO U THIN K THAT YOU'VE L IK E D TAK ING
difficult. I walked into a shop, and it was all guys, because the one before that was
THIS TIM E THE PAS T FE W YE ARS TO DE VE L O P THAT P H OTO P H OTOG R AP H Y
mainly cleaning so they would have me come in and I would mop all the floors and
S TYL E THAT YO U PUT TO GE THE R AN D TRAN S L ATE D O NTO SK IN?
clean up and when you go over to California, everyone's using rotaries and doing black
I started hardcore photoshopping like a female face
and gray, which is more aligned with what I wanted to do, but they were all Southern
this way with like a rose and then maybe with lyrics
California guys that grew up in the scene there and felt that they had earned their right
and like a butterfly or I just figure spoke to me. So that's
to be there and earned their way into the shop and I show up one day, this random
how I started photoshopping things and then drawing
fucking white chick with no visible tattoos that they can see and they thought I rolled out
them and after college I started watching YouTube videos
of bed one day and was this bitch thinking that she can just tattoo now, like her parents
on Lowrider. I was a huge fan and I saw that they would
are clearly paying for her to be here and they weren't, and I was dead-ass broke and I
stencil for tattoos and I didn't know that. The first time
proved to them and worked harder than anybody else, any guy or girl that they've ever
I saw it I was like he's cheating! Going into tattooing
come across. I was there before anybody ever showed up in the morning. I cleaned
and that's a game changer. Once you stencil your
absolutely everything. I never made one complaint. I did everything and I left after
design you can't have any proportion like out of line
everybody else every night. So I had a lot of troubles with them. I don't really know how
and then everything's perfect, so that's when I
to fully describe it to you. There were mainly three people that really had a hard-on for
started drawing like I was tattooing.
coming after me. I moved home to Boston after I was years into tattooing and I noticed that their apprentices got paid to just sit behind the counter and do fucking nothing and I felt like they were kind of lazy because of that so my boss in particular, he was Asian and he learned at Lowrider Tattoo Studios, and he wasn't allowed in for quite a while. Like I said, they're very saturated with tattoo artists and he really had to work his ass off to get in the door. He learned from them and then he left to open his own Studio. He said no to me at first, and I when I was in London I met Jose Lopez and I fucking waited outside the booth for an hour and a half before he finally sat down and talked
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S O WHAT ABO UT BL AC K AN D GRAY DO YO U PRE FE R? D O Y OU D O ANY O THE R S TYL E S O R IS THE PHO TO RE AL IS M / PHO TO S HO P SUR R E AL ISM TH AT YO U C RE ATE YO UR AVE N UE YO U WAN T TO DO THE RE ST OF Y OUR L IF E , E XPL AIN TO M E WHAT THE IM AGE RY THAT YO U L IKE T O D O IS AND W H Y . I never painted. I did it like a little bit of water color when I was younger, but when it comes down to it the way that I did Art was through pencil. So everything that I saw went into black and gray and I just guessed, I guess they're just repetition. You've learned to translate it into that style. So no, I don't ever see myself going into any other realm just because it's just not my preference. Yeah. I love black and gray realism. It looks just the softness and it the way the things blur out. So I gues it's also with the photoshopping and the high contrast that I learned to draw on.
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SO OB V I OU S L Y W E J US T DI D A T H ING TOG ETH ER , A TV SH OW T H ING
YO U KN O W, YO U S HO UL D I KN O W I’L L TO TAL L Y HE L P Y OU SE T UP
TOGE T H ER . D O Y O U T HI N K T HA T Y OU W ER E A B LE T O R EPR ESENT
THIS TATTO O .
YOU R SEL F H OW Y O U W A N T I T T A T T OO W ISE IN T H A T KIND OF A SETTIN G?
Let's get some advice from Oprah. You know, this is..I just find it hysterical, that and
HELL NO! (laughs). WERE YOU?
I've always wanted to do Ice Cube melting so I can write “chillin” like as I've done it before with his reflection in the Ice Cube and it's going to puddle.
BI TC H , A B S OL UT E L Y N O T ! No absolutely not. When it comes down to it tattooing doesn't have any timeline. In any art. There's no timeline if somebody wants good work. They're going to sit sessions or however long it takes the artist. You're not sitting there and you have three hours to do a design and now we're actually going to take what you normally do. We're going to throw it out the window and we're going to find a completely different style that you need to study the rules for, figure out like a color scheme for and it's just something that takes far longer than three hours when you’ve only known black and gray for life. So you're training your mind to know one thing. Everybody knows a different thing. Some people can do multiple things, but I'm not one of them, right? SO I F Y OU COU L D T A T T O O A N Y O NE EVER IN TH E EXISTENCE OF A NY E XISTE N CE, WH O W O UL D I T B E A ND W H A T W OU LD IT BE? That's tough. I mean like mine's not going to be cool. It would probably be my dad. I don't have like a cool person that I would want to tattoo because like the end of the day everybody's just a person right the one that means the most to me is my dad and he wants my logo on his back. I've always wanted to tattoo a portrait of Oprah Winfrey on someone's ass though. I really want to be, hey, here's a thing. If you repost this, I'll tattoo it.
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SO D O Y OU D O A N Y T HI N G E L S E
S O I HAVE O N E RAN DO M Q UE S TIO N . S O L IKE FO R M E W H E N I D ID TH E
AR T W I S E?
S HO W I HAD L IKE M Y WHO L E O WN S E T O F RE AS O N S F OR D OING IT.
I draw. You’re tattooing so long every day,
YO U HAD A VE RY N O N -TRADITIO N AL RO UTE GE T S O L I K E W ITH TAK ING
you’re going home doing your emails,
YO UR ART AN D PUTTIN G IT O N TV. WHAT DID YO U WA NT TH E W OR L D TO
your stenciling, people don’t understand
S E E FRO M YO U THAT THE Y DIDN 'T GE T TO S E E YO U AS A P E R SON, AS AN
how long our days are. On our days off like
ARTIS T, AS A FE M AL E , L IKE WHY DID YO U DO IT AN D L IK E W H Y W H AT D ID
on the weekend, you’re doing a convention,
YO U WAN T THE WO RL D TO S E E FRO M THAT?
you know what I mean? Yeah. No we don't
I'm not that deep. (laughs) I told you I went to a business school.
have a weekend. The tattoo artist life is very long hours.
YO U DID AN D YO U'RE FUC KIN G S M ART WO M AN . You go on TV, your publicizing your work whether it's good or it's bad, you're
SO WH A T A R E Y O UR PL A N S FO R TH E
marketing yourself and that's why I did Ink Master. I said no the first time, but
NE XT Y EA R N O W HA V I N G C O M E OF F
that’s why I did it. It wasn’t about female power or anything like that. It was like
TH I S T V S H OW A N D L I FE A N D W H A T
fuck this. I've been doing this for this many years. All these other people have like
YOU G OT G OI N ’ O N ?
whatever amount of followers. I'll just try and help boost mine and promote myself.
I'm going to keep working work a lot. I'm going to travel more though as I've discussed with you just to hopefully try and branch out a little bit more beyond my realm of just myself, you know, Yeah, just just chug along and hopefully keep growing as I continue working, like you learn through repetition.
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KAYLAAllen PHOTOGRAPHY BY: DENNIS VAN AARDE IG: 3DVASTUDIOS
IG: KAYLA_EMILY_ALLEN PAG E 4 0
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INTERVIEW BY: WALT ANDERSON
WHAT’S YO UR BAC KGRO UN D IN ART AN D WHAT L E AD YO U TO WARDS TATTO O IN G? I have been drawing my entire life and ever since getting my first tattoo as a teenager I have been interested in doing tattoos and after working a 9-5 for 7 years I made the jump into the tattoo world. HO W M AN Y YE ARS HAVE YO U BE E N TATTO O IN G? As long as I remember. I’ve been driven by art, drawing, painting, sculpting, since I was very young. WHAT DO YO U C O N S IDE R TO BE YO UR S TYL E ? WHAT M ADE YO U C HO O S E IT? Professionally tattooing 5 years. WHAT C O N TRIBUTE S TO YO UR TATTO O S ? All tattoos. I enjoy tattooing full color to black
TATE Woodruff IG: TATTOOSBYTATE
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and grey big, small doesn't matter just enjoy tattooing in general. DO YO U DO A L O T O F C O N VE N TIO N S ? I do around 6-8 conventions a year. There are a few that are my favorites and enjoy doing every year and the others I try out here and there. WHO IN FL UE N C E D YO UR WO RK? I have alot of artists I follow such as Evan Olin, Paul Acker, DJ Tambe.
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I F YO U COU L D T A T T O O 3 PE O PL E,
AN Y ADVIC E FO R UPC O M IN G ARTIS T THAT’S
P AST OR P R ES E N T , W HO W O UL D T H EY BE?
J US T S TARTIN G O UT?
My Grandma for sure, she used to joke around about me
Learn everything you can from anyone you can
tattooing her but she never had any tattoos and I was firs
and apply it to what works for you, but don't be
starting out back then so I never got the chance to
afraid to try new stuff and listen to people with
tattoo her, Jamaal Charles as he is my favorite sports
an open mind.
player of all time, Post Malone would be cool, he's the new rock star of this generation.
HO BBIE S ? I like watching sports and playing video games,
WH AT I S T H E M O S T M E M O RA B L E T A T T OO Y OU
other then that, spending time with my wife and
H AVE EV ER CR E A T E D?
kids doing family stuff.
Not sure on memorable but I do have my favorites. Just to name a few I'd say the Fallout video game
5 YE AR GO AL ?
leg sleeve, the Nun, Pennywise, Full black and
Just continuing to get better at art, tattooing
grey horror sleeve, Mars Attacks mixed with
and everything really. Also opening more studio
Judge Dredd was cool.
locations out-of-state.
YO U ON L Y H A V E E N O UGH RO O M F OR ONE M OR E T A T T O O O N Y O UR B ODY , WH O D O Y OU W A N T T O DO I T ? Right now I'd say Evan Olin, the dude is a beast and is killing it right now I would get him to do a full color horror piece or maybe something in full color involving 80's movies like Back to the Future, or maybe Big Trouble Little China.
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PHOTOGRAPHY BY: PATRICK STUTZ IG: STUTZPHOTOGRAPHY
INTERVIEW BY: WALT ANDERSON
WHAT’S YO UR BAC KGRO UN D IN ART AN D WHAT L E AD YO U TO WARDS TATTO O IN G? I have been drawing since I could remember. I didn’t have many friends growing up and so I created them. I would write the stories I wanted to be in and draw the friends I wanted. Drawing and art has been lifesaver for me. What lead me towards tattooing was my uncle who had tattoos everywhere and told me that my art can move and travel. He explained tattoos are not stationary but mobile and he described it in such a romantic way that just made me gravitate towards that medium. HO W M AN Y YE ARS HAVE YO U BE E N TATTO O IN G? I’ve been tattooing since Oct. 2015. I have tried to get into a tattoo shop for years. Since I was 8, but it was a little more difficult for me due to the shops in my hometown.
JANELLE I NK MAS T ER S EA S ON 1 2
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Hanson IG: ICHASEBADGERS
WHAT DO YO U C O N S IDE R TO BE YO UR S TYL E ? WHAT M ADE YO U C HO O S E IT? I have no clue what my style is. I think I lean towards neo-traditional, but I like to experiment with mix styles. I am more attracted to American traditional, but my mind always wants to add more detail.
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DO Y OU D O A L O T O F C O N V E N TIONS?
WHAT IS THE M O S T M E M O RABL E TATTO O YO U
As if late, I have been going to more conventions.
HAVE E VE R C RE ATE D?
I not only represent myself as a tattooer but
The most memorable to me might be the tattoo
I now represent the companies I am
I did in my friends living room. It was suppose to say
sponsored too. I’m proud of the companies and
“Thrasher” but the letters I cut out I put in the wrong
want to represent them well and promote as
order and I spelled “Thrahser” instead. It was well
much as I can. Networking is another thing
done but misspelled and I tattooed a redline over
that really makes me want to do more
the h and a and corrected it above with the correct spelling.
conventions, because our community large and I believe everyone has something to offer to the industry. W H O I NF L U EN C E D Y O UR W O RK ? Sneaky Mitch. He has been a great influence a
AN Y ADVIC E FO R UPC O M ING AR TIST
nd Jime Litwalk. The artistry they hold is
THAT’S J US T S TARTIN G O UT?
so amazing and to see what they create is
Shut up and listen.
astonishing!! My boyfriend Andy Hyde
Watch and always
has influenced my style a lot. He has helped
be curious.
me more than I can explain!
Push yourself.
YOU ONLY H A V E E N O UGH RO O M F OR
HO BBIE S ?
O NE M OR E T A T T O O O N Y O UR B ODY,
Embroidery
W H O D O Y OU W A N T T O DO I T ?
(just learning)
Sneaky Mitch.
and writing stories. 5 YE AR GO AL ? hopefully get married and have a kid! If I don’t do that than own my own shop and have my own house on some acres
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of land.
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HOW WA S Y O UR E X PE RI E N C E ON INK MAST ER ? While I was on, I learned a lot about myself. How stress can alter your quality of work and how anxiety can cripple you from making clear decisions. I had fun off camera but the reality scenes are not my favorite. I just wanted to do good tattoos. Towards the end, I let the stress and drama get to me. It was hard to have people talk shit to you on camera but act like your friend behind it.
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INTERVIEW BY: STEVE AZZARA
FIRS T O F AL L , O N THE S HO W THE RE WE RE S O M E C O N C E RN S ABO UT THE HE AL TH O F YO UR BABY, BUT YO UR BABY IS HE AL THY, HAPPY AN D DO IN G FIN E . THAT'S GO T TO BE A M AJ O R RE L IE F. Yes. Hey, that's been number one blessing in my life right now. Everything else is good. But that's great. Number one for sure. L E T'S TO UC H O N HAPPY IC E . YO U S TARTE D AS A M O BIL E FO O D TRUC K WITH HAPPY IC E AN D IN PHIL ADE L PHIA. IT'S KN O WN AS WATE R IC E . WHAT'S THE DIFFE RE N C E BE TWE E N HAPPY IC E AN D A S N O W C O N E ? The difference between Happy Ice and a snow cone is Happy Ice actually tastes the same from the first scoop to the last scoop, but our flavor is actually made into the ice. It's actually made the same way IG: LEMEIRMITCHELL
LEMEIR Mitchell B L ACK IN K C R EW C OMPT O N
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that you can make ice cream. The same machine, the same process. It's just that we don't add any dairy products to our stuff. It's privately made in our own warehouse, so there's no nut products or anything of that sort for people who have food allergies, and it's just a way better flavor. We just have the best premium product to make our product with. It’s smooth, it’s creamy, creamy texture of ice cream, the fruity flavors of sorbet. Refreshing like shaved ice but it’s got all the other factors. To make it simple when people ask me, it’s like imagine if ice cream, sorbet, and shaved ice had a child. 247 I N K M AG A Z I N E | I S S U E 3 0
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AND Y OU 'V E B E E N L UC K Y E N O U G H TO H A V E PEOPLE LIKE ANG ELIN A J O L IE ,
THAT'S PHE N O M E N AL AN D YO U AL S O YO U'RE AT RAM S STAD IUM.
KYLI E J ENNE R, A N D A L O T O F CELEB R IT IES COMING T O TH E T R U CK WHIC H
HO W'D YO U PUL L THAT O FF?
I S PU B LI CI T Y Y O U C A N ’ T B UY ! TH AT' S A MA JOR ENDOR SEMENT A ND
So a lot of our relationships pretty much come from just genuine people that
D OES N 'T G ET A N Y B E T T E R T HAN TH AT.
actually support Happy Ice that we talk to on a regular basis so we have
Yea, for sure. Definitely. That’s a blessing too.
connections here and some new people that connecting. My partner, he's a very good networker, someone I actually partnered with in February named Jeff and
SO Y OU WEN T FRO M O N E T RUCK T O TW O TR U CKS AND NOW YOU 'RE
he has some relationships and he made some calls and the calls that he made also
BUI L D I NG A B UI L DI N G.
pulled a lot of things off. He had a friend who was close with the president of the
Yeah, so we went from one truck to a second truck that we that we do in the spring
Rams, made that call, they saw the product and came through, they tested it out.
whatever and we added on a catering truck. Our catering trucks actually have
They tasted it and it was over from there.
freezers inside of it because we do a lot of big events. Can do like 75,000 or more. So that way we can go and set up a booth, set up and it's like a whole nother
THAT'S PHE N O M E N AL . L E T'S TO UC H O N THE S HO W A L ITTL E BIT AS F AR
business in itself. So we added that on and then we also added on a truck
AS O THE R ARTIS TS , THE WHO L E BL AC K IN K C RE W FRANC H ISE AND NO
and now opening up our flagship store on Melrose right now, and actually
DIS RE S PE C T TO WARDS C AE S AR O R AN YBO DY IN IT, B UT TH E Y W E R E
should be open within the next week or two.
KN O WN IN THE PAS T AS N O T HAVIN G GO O D ARTIS TS , E SP E C IAL L Y F R OM N E W YO RK. ARE YO U GO IN G TO S HO W M O RE TATTO OS F R OM C OMP TON BE C AUS E I'M AS S UM IN G YO U HAVE S O M E Q UAL ITY TA TTOO AR TISTS TH E R E . Yeah, I definitely feel like Compton is definitely one of the strongest Black Ink Crews when it comes to artists. I know for a fact I'm the top artist out of all the Black Ink Crews period. I'm actually one of the best black-and-gray artists in the world, so definitely one of the best artists for sure of all of the franchises, but I feel like our artists are hungry. All of our artists have a lot of great things going on outside of just tattooing, our artists are truly artists, not just tattoo artists. They open themselves up to other lanes and are very good in other lanes. I feel like we have a very diverse group and a lot of talented people and everybody on our team is super hungry, and I know that they're going to do great things for sure.
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SO D O Y OU T H I N K T HE Y ' RE G O I NG TO SH OW TATTOOS T H IS T IME ARO UN D?
THAT WO UL D RE AL L Y BE GO O D. THIS IS J US T A L ITTL E BIT OF AN
Yeah. I feel like they're definitely going to show a lot more tattoos. I feel like a lot
O FF-THE -WAL L Q UE S TIO N . IF YO U WE RE IN C HARGE OF P UTTING ONE
of the episodes that we've done so far was more just trying to let people understand
PE RS O N FRO M YO UR S HO P O N IN K M AS TE R N E XT S E ASON,
who we were, what we’ve been through, all the trials and tribulations, just get
WHO WO UL D IT BE ?
people personally attached to the artists themselves then they're going to go more
It would be me for sure. I actually had to make a decision between Ink Master
into the artistry of things that we do as artists. Of course personal things will be
and the show I’m on now. They have been trying to get me on their show the
in there, but we have a lot to showcase and I definitely think you're going to give
last two years.
us more freedom to showcase those things. I definitely see that. HO W GO O D WAS IT S E E IN G YO URS E L F AN D YEAH. I H OP E T HE Y DO , I RE A L L Y DO BECAU SE I MEAN IF TH E T A LE N T IS
YO UR C AS TM ATE S O N A BIL L BO ARD IN
TH ER E. R EA L I T Y T V I S FI N E B U T I T H INK IT W OU LD BE G OOD F OR
TIM E S S Q UARE ?
E VER Y B OD Y TO S E E S O M E RE A L TALENT COMING OU T OF T H ER E.
Yeah, that felt amazing. I know that it was a big deal
I'VE A CT U A L L Y S PO K E N T O A L OT OF BLA CK AR T IST S W H O’V E SAID WE
for me because a lot of people from where I’m from
W AN T T O S EE Q UA L I T Y T A T T O OS T H A T W E CAN DO, QU ALITY AR T IS TS TO O
are going to be inspired by it. The reason I did it was
AND NOB OD Y ' S S HO W I N G T HA T.
to inspire, and being on reality TV and not representing
Exactly, for sure, for sure, and I stress that and they definitely made it known that
drama and stuff I feel like I feel people actually are
I have more sessions on the next episode, actually thinking about doing two tattoos
connecting with me genuinely. Really see me for me.
per episode. Definitely for sure there won't be any episodes; there shouldn't be
Also just inspiring people to do good things like see
any episodes next season without a tattoo and it would be great.
me in real life is like inspiring and I feel like a Times Square billboard super inspiring from where I'm from. Philly is always in New York and a lot of people don't have hope that they could do something like that. Me actually really being from Philly you really like growing up in the trenches you know. I used to really be a product of my environment. All the stuff that’s not good that people actually know, you know, you know Philly being for on the danger side. Like I was actually out there really there and see me do something different and I feel like you watch me go from the streets to a billboard in Times Square.
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S O, D O Y OU H A V E A FI V E - Y E A R PLAN F IVE-YEA R PLA N? Yeah. I mean, I have a five-year plan for my life. Hopefully five years from today I will have blown Happy Ice up to a major company and able to sell it for hundreds of millions, a hundred million dollars, and my goal is something a large number and the money I get f rom you. I would like to take at least 20 to 30 percent of that money and start a nonprofit organization. That's our organization that is focused on giving back to like low income areas. Where I will actually teach people how to start a business, how to structure a company, and then from there when I actually start doing things like that, I'll be able to select certain people that I can tell has
invest into their companies because a lot of people have great ideas from where I'm from but they don't have the resources. They don't have the income or the money to start it. And I know that because I used to be I was in that position before and then I found tattoos. Everybody doesn't have a talent like me that's equal to where they can save money to do things like that. So I would love to be their light on a lot of people and help someone grow a business and be able to help their family.
have it in them and have their hunger and I will actually
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INTERVIEW BY: SEAN HIGHTOWER
TE L L M E A L ITTL E ABO UT YO UR BAC KGRO UN D. HO W L O N G HAVE YO U BE E N TATTO O IN G? I'm starting my 5th year of tattooing, but before that I was a full time painter for 2 years. I have pretty much always been a part of the art industry. HO W L O N G HAS ART BE E N A PART O F YO UR L IFE ? As long as I remember. I’ve been driven by art, drawing, painting, sculpting, since I was very young. HO W WE RE YO U IN TRO DUC E D TO TATTO O S AN D WHAT WAS IT ABO UT THE M THAT KE PT YO UR IN TE RE S T? I was getting a tattoo and asking the artist a lot of questions. After he finished, he asked me "why aren't you pursuing tattooing if you're so interested?". The day after I was buying all my
CHRISTELLE Damien WEBSITE: WWW.OLYANGERTATTOOBLV.COM FACEBOOK:(PERSONAL) WWW.FACEBOOK.COM/MADINKTATTOOSHOP
equipment and studying, and I haven't stopped since. WHAT C O N TRIBUTE S TO YO UR TATTO O S ? My painting background definitely helped me to find my own unique way of tattooing. Mixing my own colours, and using opaques, all stem from my painting background.
IG: MAD_INK_ART
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WHAT ST EP S DI D Y O U T A K E E A R LY ON T O BEG IN Y OU R CA R EER I N T A T T O O I N G? My career is still fairly young, but my first steps were to find a mentor, listen to everything he had to say, stay humble and take the criticism. HOW D I D Y OU S E T T L E O N A S PECIF IC G ENR E OF TA T T OO? I have been pencil drawing realism for as long as I remember. Then, I became a painter and did a black and white realism piece. So it was a natural transition for me to end up tattooing black and grey realism.
ARE THE RE AN Y ARTIS TS , C URRE N T O R PRE VIO US L Y, WHO ARE IN FL UE N TIAL TO YO U O R WHO HAVE IN S PIRE D YO U AT S O M E PO IN T IN YO UR C ARE E R? Everyone that I meet teaches me something. The key is to always keep learning. Keep your eyes open, everyone has something to teach. From life lessons, to tattoo tricks, everything is important and will help you grow. WHAT DO YO U L IKE TO DO IN YO UR FRE E TIM E ? What is free time?? Haha I don’t know what that is, but if I ever get any I’ll let you know.
WHAT A R E SO M E HI G HL I GHT S OF YOU R CAR EER ? Meeting the most awesome man while doing a tattoo seminar who pushed me and helped me grow in my career. Winning my first awards and getting a sponsorship was a huge deal to me. It definitely gave me the push I needed to believe in myself. WHE N D I D Y O U DE C I DE T O O PEN YOU R OW N S H OP A ND H O W DI D T HA T C O M E A B OU T ? I decided 2 years ago to open my own shop. But, after the death of my father in summer 2018 I was slowed down. However, My studio finally opened it in December 2018.
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IS THE RE ANY TH ING SP E C IF IC C O M IN G U P OR ANY TH ING TH AT YO U WO UL D L IK E TO SE E H AP P E N IN THE N E AR F UTUR E ? I'm doing a lot more traveling, international conventions and guest spots. I'm just happy to be able to work, and thankful for the people who allow me to put my art on them.
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Las Vegas’ Original Sub Shop
www.sinfulsubs.com
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P H OTO G R A P H Y B Y : ST E V E A Z Z A R A
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PHOTOGRAPHY BY: DEVON SUBOREAU IG: DURTEDESIGNS
DUCKY Suboreau IG: UGLYDUCKLINGBEAUTYARTISTRY
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INTERVIEW BY: STEVE AZZARA PHOTOGRAPHY BY: STEVE AZZARA
YO U'VE BE E N ARO UN D FO R A L O N G TIM E IN N E W YO RK AN D E VE RYBO DY KIN D O F KN O WS WHO YO U ARE AN D YO UR N AM E J US T PO PS UP IN C O N VE RS ATIO N S . Yeah, I'm listening. S O HO W M AN Y YE ARS HAVE YO U BE E N TATTO O IN G? I've been to tattooing for 20 years all over New York. S O YO U'VE S E E N A L O T O F PE O PL E C O M E AN D GO . I think I've seen the business change drastically. I've seen the business come and go not just like artists but the business. I've seen tattooing be l ike a cool thing where people new everyone. At one point when I first got into the tattoo business I could tell you every tattoo artist in New York. I could tell you every tattoo shop
PON DeMan
I NK MAS T ER S EA S ON 1 2
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IG: PONNYC
in Queens. There were less than 10 shops in New York City and now you have 10 on a block. Manhattan itself had like maybe like ten tattoo shops at most and that was a lot like that includes all St. Marks you know, and now you have ten shops on a block and 10 tattooers in a shop over s aturating themselves, and everyone's just reaching for that buck, you know, so it the business has changed and being on Ink Master I can say that Ink Master is definitely the culprit for this new r esurgence with tattooing in America, but at the same time it's like a double-edge sword as much as old Pon would have hated it. You can't deny that it's affected the business in a positive way.
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GREA T . A LL R IGHT , S O L E T ' S G E T W H AT IS IT LIKE MOVING INTO THAT H OU SE W I T H S I X T E E N . E I GH TEEN PEOPLE T H A T Y OU DON' T KN O W. So what it was when I first moved into the house like, you know, the first my first time meeting everyone we were in hotel rooms, individual hotel rooms. You weren't allowed to leave your room those like a security guard at the front of everyone's door, you know, like you'd hear them going into the next room like the interview the person and you can run to the peephole to see if you can catch a glimpse, so the first time we all met was in a common area in the hotel and we're all sitting there and we had where we had what's called ICE. I don’t know if you heard that term before, it's an Ink Master term. well, it's aTV term, but like we're not allowed to talk. There’s Ice and there’s Hard Ice. Ice is you're allowed to talk but not about anything related to the competition or show related. Hard ice is zero talking. First day we learned what hard Ice is and it was the most uncomfortable thing. We spent like three hours in a room just staring at each other not allowed to talk. My first thing is like, you know being a native New Yorker, like being street smart. I was sizing everyone up you know, so
HAVIN G BE E N M IN D-FUC KE D FO R THE FIRS T TIM E . Exactly. So like we've already been miserable for like eight hours freezing because it was dead of winter. It was like negative 3 degrees and we were outside next to the water at Fort Totten Park and we spent hours just going through this miserable experience together. So it was kind of like a camaraderie where we already like suffered, you know for art. UN BE L IE VABL E . S O N O W L E T'S GE T TO THE PO IN T WHER E IT STAR TS AND AL L O F A S UDDE N YO U'RE M AKIN G J O KE S ABO UT THE W OME N SH OUL D BE IN THE KITC HE N AN D S TUFF L IKE THAT. Stuff like this is gonna haunt me forever but people who know me and you could ask literally, I'm sure you're gonna have plenty of opportunities. You can ask any woman on the show and they'll tell you not only was I the first one to make fun of them, but I was always the first one to defend them.
I'm looking, seeing like, you know, I see some of the girls like is she a good tattoo or she just selling her tits or like I see this dude. I'm like does this dude work at a scratcher shop or is he good. You get pretty good at sizing people up in the tattoo business because I've seen them all. I've seen every kind of person and I'm there were a few surprises, I'm not gonna lie to you, but at the same time when we had our first interaction with each other, we're like, it's like an eight-hour day where we didn't know anything about each other like we weren't allowed to talk. We were walking for the intro, we were in the van and there was like a security person in the van not letting us talk. We finally got to the house. It was such a fucking relief that we had already shared this miserable experience with everybody and we we got to finally say Hi!, My name is Pon. When we first got to the house alone it was a relief. We finally got to talk to each other and actually learn about each other.
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I HAVE , AN D THE Y AL L HAVE S AID THAT TO M E . I was always the first person to defend them and it was just busting balls and what's funny is I took a lot of shit for my comments, and people would call me sexist, but in my opinion it was like the polar opposite of sexist because everyone was tiptoeing around these girls like they had some disease, and I was the only one ribbing them the same way I ribbed my own teammates and to my opinion, I'm a ballbuster. I'm a habitual line crosser. I'm gonna go for the comment. I'm gonna fucking call out the elephant in the room. Like it's men versus women Battle of the Sexes. I'm gonna make fun of you being a woman, that is the fucking point and it’s funny because the women weren't innocent. They just cut out the girls talking shit about us. Do you know many times the girls have told us like you guys are too sensitive or what are you gonna cry! Janelle. I love her to death, but she was like, oh you guys are going to circle jerk each other or oh you guys are jerking each other off, you guys want to cry. Dave Navarro told us that we were too sensitive. And we need to safe space because every guy on the team was literally terrified to make fun of the girls or say some things like we were terrified to talk up, I was the only one in the beginning saying I'm just going to treat them like if they want to be if, not if, these women are tattooers. Yeah, and I'm going to treat them like I would treat any tattooer. I'm sorry if my answer was really long, but like yeah, it's good. I'm gonna treat these women like their tattooers because I want them to treat me like a tattooer, so if you want to be taken seriously, that's how I take people seriously. PAG E 82
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OKAY , L ET 'S G E T T O T HA T PI N UP T H A T Y OU COU LD T ELL W H ILE W ATC HIN G YO U T H A T Y OUR G UT W A S T E L L ING YOU NO AND Y OU G OT R OPED IN TO IT. So, on the show, they show me is like this like really abrasive, obnoxious loud person like but what they don't show you is I'm actually super sensitive and they cut out a lot of like me just being like, hey guys, what do you think? There was a joke on the show where they would where they would make fun of me because I would always start every conversation with let me ask you guys a question because I was always uncertain of everything. You know, I'm a team player like this. The things that on this show they can never take away from me is how I represent myself because that's exactly how I'm real life and that I'm a team player no matter what anyone says, I've always had the team's best interest at heart even on episodes where we weren't team. I always thought about the team. So when we went into that challenge, I knew from past experiences like that it was going to be a terrible idea to do that pin up and they sold me on this whole you can make it look like an American traditional pinup. I do traditional portraits all the time, but then I was like, I wish I could do this military one and kill it. And I'll be honest with you. I have no hard feelings against my team because everyone blamed them for giving me the pinup. The only thing I will say that really upset me was that I wasn't considered. When they went up, first of all, I could have went up, but they wouldn't let us, three of us and they only let two people go up, so they had there's picked out already and then I got leftovers. That's what the only thing that upsets me is we did was no kind of like hey, are you okay Jason wanted the guy with the mustache. I kind of wanted the guy with the mustache, you know, they took the ones that were obvious home runs and then I had to choose from the crap. So for the beginning, I knew I just knew my stomach told me I was like, today’s not gonna be a good day and I remember the girl being an asshole and online and like I was like fuck man and like but like I there was so many times where we lean on each other and I seriously thought that like they've had my best interest at heart and I still do believe that but when I started talking to this chick I literally knew I was going home that day. PAG E 84
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There was no question in my head. I had given up already like mentally and she was just so hard on me and like I was terrified in hindsight I should have but I thought like I thought I was losing her. I thought she was gonna walk out and I was gonna have to get this fucking grandmother on me, and she was ready to walk out. She even stood up a couple times and was like, I think I don't think this is for me. Here’s how mood killing this was. The first thing I say I'm like, hey, you know, we could do this traditional pinup. She was “oh I hate traditional” Like it's fucking traditional day. What do you mean you hate traditional? She goes “Yeah. the people in the back told me I can get it to look like a comic book” because the the ask was traditional illustrative and there's so many things that people at home don't get to see, one of the first things was we had like a 45-minute powwow with Chris Nuñez Oliver Peck and Dave discussing what illustrative traditional means because everyone was like, we don't know what the fuck that is, is it illustrative, is it traditional so like we asked can we do multiple line widths and they like, yeah sure. So like in my head I'm like neo-traditional then like I physically ask the question like how about white? I know they hate white on the show like hate it, but when it's necessary they let you use it. So like, if you put white in a traditional tattoo on the show, you're going home. I was like, you know, but it's illustrative. Nunez said with his own lips. He goes “if it needs it feel free to use it” he goes, If you want to put a highlight in the eye because it's illustrative also, so in my head the chick is like I want to look like a comic book. So I was like, alright cool, you know, that's the illustrative. So I drew it to look like a comic book and for the first fucking time in that whole show I was doing like these blends. I was finally confirmed my black and gray even Jake came over me. He's like, wow, you know, I had like the dress had texture. It had like a shininess, her skin was beautiful like that was making it really black and gray an illustrative and then the judges come over and they’re like what the fuck are you doing? I was like what they go its traditional day. They said put your black in put it out and get the fuck out. What are you doing with all these Blends and they like and they were pissed. they don't show this but I showed on my end to exit interview. 247 I N K M AG A Z I N E | I S S U E 28
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Oliver literally stopped everyone go. Stop tattooing right now.everyone! Goes no one in this room is hitting the traditional mark. There's not one traditional tattoo in this room right now. And the ask today is American traditional and everyone's like no the ask was traditional illustrative. So I got scared and I'm like fuck. I already knew I hated this woman and she hated me and she's like, I want realism, so I'm trying to give her like a comic book style. You know, I'm hard lining everything but like now I'm scared. I start black shading are overall my gray shading. That's why I like they start talking about my collar bone was dark and she looks emaciated. because I'm trying to hide my gray wash with black and like now this girls freaking out you’re putting too much black, you’re putting too much black, you know, Jake comes over. He goes Pon that’s a lot of black and I'm like, I don't know what to do and because I work from the bottom up I saved the face for last because that to me I wanted to get the whole body then concentrate on the face and she was being such an asshole that Irushed through that face and like she wouldn't let me put any black. So like the face is like pale and the rest of bodies like dark. Yes and like I didn't get to put
like I left out a lot of like line
details that I normally would have put in because I was gonna do shading and like now I couldn't go back into it. It's like it was just the perfect storm of a mess like, you know, so that kind of sucked but if in hindsight if I would have gone with my gut, I think I could have went made it past that episode and in my opinion I would have been in the finale because the next episode was the marathon tattoo and I would have killed that because that's what I do for a living.
I FO RGO T TO AS K THE RE AC TIO N FRO M VIE WE RS WHE N Y OU MAD E THE J O KE S ABO UT THE GIRL S . So after that first episode, I was terrified genuinely. Like I've literally went home tha night and like I was on the verge of having a nervous breakdown. I was going to close all my social media accounts and like be like, I don't know how to get past this one of the first things I did was I emailed Dave Navarro, messaged Dave Navarro and I was like, that's like Dave they fucking killed me and Dave reassured me goes listen pain. He goes I've seen every episode and he goes trust me when I tell you you're gonna love it by the end, just get ahead of it and don't you know, don't let it kill you. So then that night, you know, I was like I kept like defending myself in defending myself, but one thing I never did. I refuse to apologize because I said those things, you know, I'm gonna own it. Like I said those things, you know, I defended myself in terms of like context, people don't understand the context. I feel like people are so closed-minded. They didn't want to hear that, you know, like still to this day like people who like don't know the show like, oh, I'm binge-watching like I get this like once or twice a week now, I'm binge-watching Ink Master five minutes in and I want to smack Pon. Am I just I just write them like back like cool story bro, you know, so after the first episode I had a serious meeting with myself like how do I get ahead of this without apologizing because then that makes me sound guilty. So I decided to own every word of it and just play a Villain Like I just chose to be like so what I chose to do was just own it and play like like as if I was a wrestler, you know, I just played the heel and like honestly, I went from being the most hated person and within like two or three episodes, like people loved me like I turned it completely around like I'm Reddit which is one of the most brutal fucking message boards ever. I started in a thread called “Ask The Asshole” and I just let people just vent and ask me questions and I just explained myself and like I said like the most harsh fans of the show are on that Ink Master Facebook page. Holy shit. I've never met people so vile and vicious in my life and I turned around I'd say a good 50% of them. The other people just don't want to hear it, but I just owned it and it was the best thing I could have done was just get on top of it and just ride that wave.
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You know what, in my opinion though being the bad guy that early and like making that mark was the best thing that ever happened to me because people remember me. I was just having fun with it and I think people really saw my persona online and saw that it was all just a joke. AND O F COU R S E T HE Q UE S T I O N W OU LD YOU G O B A CK W OU LD YOU GO BAC K? Oh, I've already done Grudge Match. I'm fighting to go back, it was literally the best worst experience of my life. There were times where I thought I would have a heart attack and I was calling the producer like I think I might need an ambulance because my heart's about to bust out my chest, but I learned the game really quick. I'm not the best tattooer in the world, but I did really well on the show because I knew how to play the game. I knew what the judges wanted and I gave them what they wanted. There are people who still are; and I can understand, there's a lot of people who are really hurt by the show, like it really upset them and they can't understand the show. They can't understand TV. It's a fucking competition. I'm sure people on the Mets are best friends with people on the Yankees. There's a competition and someone's gotta win. And I think the short answer is yes, I would go back and I can't wait to go back. You know I would.
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INTERVIEW BY: STEVE AZZARA PHOTOGRAPHY BY: STEVE AZZARA
I DIDN ’T WAN T TO S TART O FF WITH IN K M AS TE RS , BUT E VE RY S E AS O N THE RE ’S AT L E AS T O N E O R M O RE ARTIS TS WHO WAL KS AWAY BITTE R. I WO UL D THIN K AFTE R S E E IN G THE S HO W FO R S O M AN Y YE ARS , ARTIS TS KN O W WHAT THE Y’RE GE TTIN G IN TO . WHAT ARE YO U THO UGHTS O N THAT? Well, yes and no, I mean I did Best Ink, and when I did Best Ink it was an awesome situation, so I was expecting a better situation and, I don't know, I probably was the only person on the show who didn’t know the show, so I was the only one probably with an expectation, and I feel like my expectations were not met. I was let down I would say. YE AH, IF YO U DIDN 'T KN O W.
ALEXIS Kovacs I NK MAS T ER S EA S ON 1 2
IG: ALEXISCHEETAH ELECTRICCHEETAHTATTOOS.COM
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S O YO U DID BE S T IN K WITH J O E C APO BIAN C O . HO W WAS THAT? It was great. I L O VE J O E . He's awesome. I love Joe too. We talk and he actually was like “Why the hell are you doing Ink Master? What's wrong with you?” I said “I don’t know” I was questioning him the whole time I was there and telling him this place is awful. I feel like I'm like a mini Joe, like I was taking on his angry personality. I'm just like fuck everything, fuck it all. 247 I N K M AG A Z I N E | I S S U E 3 0
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I 'VE B EEN SEEI N G Y O U A L O T O N TH E C ONVEN T I ON C I RC UI T A L O T I N T H E LAST F EW MON T HS . HA V E Y O U A LW A Y S DO NE T H A T OR I S T HA T S O M E T H ING NEW FO R Y OU ? D O Y O U L O V E I T ? DO Y OU H A T E IT ? No, not at all. I've been doing it. I've been on the convention scene for years. I did it really heavy after Best Ink like in 2012-11. Really hit it hard. And I mean I've been like attempt of 2012, 13, 14, 15. I was hitting the convention seeing pretty hard and I slowed down the past couple of years and obviously because of Ink Master I decided I would do more now just to feel it out. .
S O RIGHT O FF THE BAT WHE N J US T WHE N THE S E AS O N S TARTE D I WAS L O O KIN G AT E VE RYBO DY'S WO RK AN D YO U C O UL D PRE TTY M UC H TE L L THAT YO U KIN D O F C AM E UP IN A S TRE E T S HO P WHE RE YO U L E ARN E D E VE RYTHIN G. WAS THAT A GO O D ADVAN TAGE FO R YO U O N THE S HO W? No. In fact, I don't think anything was a good advantage on that show because I don't think anything I did mattered. I’m gonna be candid with you, so I could have been Picasso, I could have been Michelangelo and I was not meant to do well on that show. So no, I don't think, and yea, it's great to be well-rounded and I think I could tattoo my way around a lot of people on that show. It doesn't matter because it's like the producers didn’t want me to do well, so I didn't do well, so I don't know.
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I THIN K THE RE ’S A KIN D O F M AS TE R PL AN GO IN G IN TO E AC H SE ASON AND THE N THE Y WATC H TO S E E WHO THE AUDIE N C E RE L ATE S TO BE ST. I don't get it. I'm food for fodder there. I was just there as a castaway person, you know what I mean, like I knew. I wasn’t gonna make it to the end. I figured out very quickly and I know because all my peers, like all the people I tattooed with on that show, looked at my work and said wow this shit’s fucking cool, and even like what I did my Grudge Match and Steve Tefft and Jeremy Brown. They're all looking at my work and said “Oh wow, you're really good. But how well did you do?” I said I did awful, they hated my shit. Obviously I wasn't meant to do well, it doesn't matter. I literally could have been fucking… It doesn't matter, I wasn't meant to do well, so it's weird. It's a weird question it because I can't ... being well-rounded. No, I think honestly, I think the best thing to be in a situation like that is almost like a newbie, because you're still like fresh and you're not set in your ways and I noticed like even when I did Best Ink, I was still kind of newer at tattooing. I was like 10 years in, and I think I did better because I was reading what the judges wanted and I was like, well I can still kind of tailor myself to what they want. Well, like now, I'm like Jesus Christ, I can't change how I tattoo for 20 years. I can't literally change what I do. So, I’m sorry I gave such a long winded answer (laughs)
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N O , N O , IT M AKE S S E N S E . YE AH, AN D THE RUL E S ARE SUBJ E C T TO C H ANG E E VE RY TWO M IN UTE S AN YHO W, WHAT WAS DE AD FAST L AST W E E K IS F INE THIS WE E K. WHAT IS YO UR FAVO RITE S TYL E ? I feel like it's just mostly like heavy on the new school, a tad of neo-trad, you know color, stylized illustrative that's like the best .... I can't really put it in like a distinct category. But I'd say those define my style more than anything. IF YO U WE RE ADDIN G AN O THE R ARTIS T IN YO UR S HO P , AND IT H AD TO BE A PE RS O N FRO M IN K M AS TE R FRO M YO UR S E AS O N W H O W OUL D THAT BE ? Oh, Janelle, you knew that. I DIDN 'T KN O W THAT. I HAVE N 'T M E T HE R YE T. She’s my Road Dogg. She's great. Love her. S O L O N G TE RM PL AN S ? Five-Year Plan. I want to quit tattooing and do permanent cosmetic and medical tattooing fully. And 10-year plan, I want to move to New Orleans. I don’t even have to bat an eye about it, that's my life. WO W, AN D S TO P TATTO O IN G? Yeah, at that point I don't want to do tattooing anymore. I love tattooing, but very, very select tattoos. I want to just focus on permanent cosmetic and medical. I hate to sound terrible. It's like I'm really good at permanent cosmetic and medical. I've been doing it for a long time. It's a lot less work and more money, and I'm good at it. You know, I enjoy it.
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PHOTOGRAPHY BY: ANTHONY NESTE IG: NESTPIX
MAKAYLA IG: MAKAYLAKPRODUCTIONS
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INTERVIEW BY: WALT ANDERSON
WHAT’S YO UR BAC KGRO UN D IN ART AN D WHAT L E AD YO U TO WARDS TATTO O IN G? When I was a child, I discovered that drawing relaxed me, so I begin to draw when I was 3. That passion was what made me to want to experience with the first tattoo machine. HO W M AN Y YE ARS HAVE YO U BE E N TATTO O IN G? I've been tattooing for 9 years. WHAT DO YO U C O N S IDE R TO BE YO UR S TYL E ? WHAT M ADE YO U C HO O S E IT? My style is defined as black & white, giving some details in colors. I usually prefer warm colors, like the color of sunset, and I try to insert in my designs. About which thematic I prefer to tattoo, I can highlight the animals and expressions.
IG: SERGIOFERNANDEZMILLAN
SERGIO Fernández PAG E 1 08
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Since I was a child I've always liked to draw animals, because of the textures (skin, hair, scales), I love imperfections and visual effects of lights. DO YO U DO A L O T O F C O N VE N TIO N S ? I have not visited a lot of conventions, but, from now, I'd like to start going. WHO IN FL UE N C E D YO UR WO RK? Since I started in the world of tattoo, I've always admired Miguel Bohigues from Valencia, Spain. His way of making compositions and soft shadows has been my reference for a long time.
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I F Y OU COU L D T A T T O O 3 PE O PLE, PA ST OR PR ESENT , W H O W OU LD THE Y BE ?
AN Y ADVIC E FO R UPC O M IN G ARTIS T THAT’S
If I could choose, I'd tattoo Michael Jordan, who is one of my idols. Cristiano Ronaldo
J US T S TARTIN G O UT?
and Messi would be my other two options, because of the admiration I have for them.
The big advice I can give is that his mind has to be opened, willing to hear any constructive critic,
WH A T I S T H E M O S T M E M O RA BLE TATTOO YOU H AVE EVER CR EA T ED?
and always willing to learn of others. Its important
I made one sculpture with the face broken, where it showed an ancient face, with
to have criteria about the quality of your work.
a planet below. The result was one of my favorites and I made it during 24 hours
Everything can improve.
continuously, without rest and no sleeping. HO BBIE S ? YO U ON L Y H A V E E N O UGH RO O M F OR ONE MOR E TATTOO ON YOU R BO DY,
My biggest hobbies is to be with the people
WH O D O Y OU W A N T T O DO I T ?
who I love and my family, because I don't have
I would do a lamp and inside of it, a small brain, representing the ending.
a lot of time for make some sports. I
When the light goes down, there's nothing more, nothing more for tattoo.
love football too (soccer) and I'm a very big fan of the Photography.
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INTERVIEW BY: SEAN HIGHTOWER
I am a traditional hand-poking artist from Borneo. I was based in Skrang Tattoo Studio in my town (Kuching) Sarawak, East- Malaysia, Borneo Island. Currently I am a guest artist in Black Forest Tattoo Studio (Woerden), The Nederlands. I was born and raised in a small town and being close to the villagers, and to my own tribal ethnic, the Dayak people. I am always surrounded by nature and such fauna. I was blessed to be able to grow up with nature and now in the modern century. I believe people have to get connected back with nature as we always were as human beings. My traditional tattoo motives are both majorly influenced from the Dayak tribes and nature as animals and plants. We believe the spiritual journey needs some highlights thus this spiritual journey took place of protection era and back to history context, in island war. I created unique pieces of art with original designs by me only. My common designs would be the natives Dayak indegenous people’s influences and neo-traditional patterns motives ornaments all done by hands, hand-poking/tapping. No machines.
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