BLOG ENTRY:
ISSUE 1
HOW TO FIND A GREAT TATTOO ARTIST
1. BY DG WILSON (C) OCT 2007
When we decide that we want a tattoo...we think that is all that we need.
But that couldn't be further from the truth. How can you tell if YOUR tattoo
is going to look good on you, that you are going to be happy BEFORE
you sit in the chair?
How about an artist? How does one find an artist that can do what you ask
and do it for your price range?
HOW DO YOU GET THE BEST TATTOO FROM YOUR ARTIST?
First decide WHAT you want tattooed upon you. Make sure you understand that it is going to be there for awhile, is it something that is personal and beautiful to you? Now that you have decided what, are you are strong, brave enough for a tattoo?
Personally I HATE it when I sit down, draw up a tattoo, get everything out and set up and then start... Only to find that my customer CAN'T take it! A major decision that you need to determine is do you want a customized piece, does it matter to you? Some of the ideas that you want tattooed may actually be Flash Art, which is art drawn up for the tattoo artist usually by another artist. Your tattoo artist probably bought the set and put them up in hopes someone will ask for one of the designs. That would usually pay for the entire set. If your tattoo idea is simple and you have seen it before then you can check the shops for the best tattoos of Flash, find your design on their walls (or just ask someone that works in the shop if they have what you want.) Or is your idea really original? If you don't find it on shop walls then you might need an artist to draw up your design for you. This is Custom Tattooing. So do you want Custom or Flash? It is an important question because most artists can do Flash and very well. But there are few that can do a really good custom design for you. So you have to do a bit of searching to find an artist that you like, like the feel of their shop, like their tattoo photos and their drawing for your tattoo. THEN do a bit of searching...and a bit more.
We at The Tattoo Zine.com feel that our GOLDEN GUN WINNER for 2007 DG Wilson is also our FEATURED ARTIST can handle any custom design and do it beautifully but if you can't go to him then you have to find someone that is in your area. Although we have heard of DG Wilson drawing up designs for customers any where in the world and emailing them so the customer can take the custom design to a local artist!
These days to find an artist out of the blue on the internet is not that great. With ads and sites that confuse and misdirect you, I find the internet doesn't help you discover the inner workings of the tattoo world, (except for THE TATTOO ZINE.COM) so the net is not going to be helpful unless you have a business card or site address of a tattoo shop. That means direct advertising outside of the net. I feel the very best way to find an artist IN YOUR AREA is to look at other peoples' tattoos around you. If you see something that you like, politely ask the person where they got their tattoo. They might even have a card to give you.
When you have some free time look up the artists' work that you admired on the street (usually the shop has a website but not the big bucks to get advertising by those ads on the net that confuse you. THAT is why I feel that most artists do direct advertising on their business cards) and you can look at their work on their website online or even go to the shop, meet them in person. If you can, talk with them. Find out from the artist what do they LIKE to do? If an artist is not interested in big tribal work then don't ask them for a full tribal sleeve. (Not to say that artists can not do work well that they don't love to do, but I want you to get the best tattoo, so that means working with the strengths of the artists that you find.)
Visit a couple of shops before you commit with cash. Take a look at their photo albums and their customers in person. Do you like the style? Are the lines what you want, how is the color? Do the pieces look like something that you have in mind? The Style of the artist is very important because that will affect the feel of your work. For example if you are light dainty person then I would not recommend an artist that likes heavy thick black line work. The tattoo in the end may be gorgeous...but does it fit YOU? By visiting more than one shop you can get the feel for the business, the artists and how they like to work. Some artists like music blasting so you can't be heard, others have an open studio where anyone can look and gawk at your face during YOUR tattoo, still more have private sessions and appointments (like our main sponsor, the Original MASTERPIECES TATTOOS in Brooklyn, NYC.) Determine what you like best, if you are comfortable, the artist is more comfortable; and able to give better work. Ask previous clients about an artist and how they like to handle their customers.
After all of that research you can feel out an artist that you like, that you are pretty assured that you will get a good piece!
.jpg)
