What about the tattoo industry drives your passion?
Tattooing is hard, like really hard. It’s one of the most difficult things I’ve learned to do in my life so far, and I’ve barely dipped my toe in yet – that’s what I love most about it. You have to work hard and be consistent if you want to grow and get better, so it’s brought a sense discipline to my life, and the way I approach my art.
What was your defining moment when you realised this is what you wanted to do for a living?
I’ve always loved tattoos and have been love-drunk over the idea of doing this since I was about 15. I think the defining and solidifying moment must have been when I did a body painting job for SA Fashion Week – I was hired to paint some fake tattoos onto the runway models and all I remember feeling was total dissatisfaction. I realised that there is no other medium quite like tattooing, it feels like the perfect language for my artistic expression. So I’ve pretty much just looked at tattooing through a lovey-heart filled, rose tinted Instagram filter ever since.
What style of tattoo do you enjoy creating the most and why?
I love anything and everything linework based. I do a fair amount of blackwork and I love using lines to create texture, shape and shadows. There is something about the style that reminds me of geographical relief maps, and I just think that’s a cool way of building an image for the audience.
