how does one become a tattoo artist? Do they make good money?
I think being a tattoo artist would be a fun job. Do they make good pay? I’m not looking to rake in thousands of dollars but just enough to pay for normal living expenses such as an apartment, groceries, ect. How do I go about becoming a tattoo artist? And does anyone have any tips?
You have to apprentice…self taught scratchers rarely ever make it in the real tattoo world.
The money, ha ha ha ha ha, I’m apprenticing, I do NOT make a cent off of anything that I do, which is why I still pierce. If it wasn’t for continuing to pierce, I wouldn’t even be able to drive back and forth to work everyday. I have to agree with the guy above about having to love the lifestyle, it’s not easy, it’s not all fun and games, and it sure as hell isn’t something to do unless it is an artform that you absolutely love and want to put a lot of time and effort into. The hours are long, the business is totally unpredictable (you may be slammed on a Monday, back to back tattos, then on Tuesday, only do one or 2, then Wednesday do none, then Thursday be slammed all day again…you never know what to expect when you walk in the doors from day to day.).
All these freakin t.v. "reality tattoo" shows have really started a trend of bad artwork coming out of people’s kitchens, and have triggered a domino effect of people pouring into studios on a daily basis begging for apprenticeships. Most of these people only want to do it because they think it would be cool to say "I’m a tattoo artist"…this even goes for piercing, I’ve already turned down 3 people this week begging for apprenticeships and it’s only Thursday.
I’ve been in studio’s since I was 14 (10 years ago), just watching, listening, and getting to know how the business works. I apprenticed to pierce in 2002 for 15 months, during which I also learned scarification (tattoo machine and cuttings/skin removal), now 4 years later I’m apprenticing to tattoo and am nearing the end of my first year with a whole year left to go. Body modification is my life, my goals are to learn everything there is to learn that can be done to the human body. The lifestyle is something that I love, changing people’s body’s to make them more beautiful in their eyes is what drives me, and the money that comes from it is only a bonus. To me it’s about helping people be more comfortable in their own skin.
If it is something that you’ve just recently developed an interest in, then it’s not something you should be considering as a profession…the majority of us in this business didn’t just wake up one day and decide to become a tattoo artist, piercer, scarification artist, etc, we had an interest in it for a long time before taking the leap into becoming a professional. We didn’t just have our opportunities handed to us either, we had to prove ourselves to ourself and our peers, and then prove that we really did have what it takes to advance and become the professionals we are today.
Back to apprenticing, don’t just walk into a studio and ask for an apprenticeship, start out hanging around, getting to know the artist, then find out if they need some counter help, if they do, take it. Learn how the studio works as a business, after a while start expressing your interest in learning about modification, if you’ve proved yourself you may be offered an apprenticeship, if not give it time and ask for one. Be prepared for a year or more of grueling tasks….setting up and breaking down for the artist, cleaning their equipment, doing their line drawings, basically being their b*tch until they are ready to start working with you with a machine in your hand. It’s not something that happens over night. If you don’t have any artistic ability, then before even doing this, take some classes at a local college in art…without artistic ability you are only a tattooist, with artistic ability you then are a tattoo artist. (There is a difference…a true tattoo artist can draw anything a client requests…there are others who can only do flash, and as I’ve been taught, those are the tattooists.)
i am not one personally but all of my closest friends are successful tattoo artists. First of all, you have to be a motivated artist… enjoying drawing if nothing else, because thats what you would be doing all day. you need to purchase all of your tools, and you would have the most luck online i think. after you have your tools , you have to find some people, or yourself, to practice on. when you start to feel comfortable with practicing, you can go around to different tattoo parlors and talk to the artists about being an apprentace. i think different states have laws about the length of time you need to apprentice for. after that, just apply to different shops. you dont make amazing money unless you are very busy or get really big and can get away with charging more for your "great service".
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if your thinking about the money, then simply do not bother, we have enough ppl jumping on the bandwagon and diluting the trade as it is…its not cool, its bloody hard work and you have to LOVE the lifestyle before even attempting to learn…most apprentices work for free or tips for the first couple of years..a lot of artists charge up to $10,000 to train you and even then at the end of the training it doesnt mean your gonna be any good. you can make better money in other jobs..thanks a lot miami/ LA/ london ink grrr
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me (professional tattoo artist)
first off – no, you don’t make good money. it’s very sparatic and the clients are difficult to deal with. The hours are long and completely different from "normal" people hours. It is extremely taxing on relationships, not just the time away from home, but the environment as well.
second – do NOT "practice" tattooing. Anyone who starts out scratching on their friends is already loosing face with most true artists. It’s not only ILLEGAL to tattoo out of the house, it’s disgusting and unhealthy, for you and your client. It’s also unsafe, legally speaking, because you can’t prove who you did and didn’t tattoo out the house…the locals find a young teen with a tattoo, it can be pegged on you as easily as anyone else…that’s statichory rape in my state.
How to become – you’re gonna have to pay for training just like any other profession, ify ou want to do it legit and have a good reputation. You have to find someone who’s interested enough in your art and motivation to take time and money away from their business to train you PROPERLY. Generally you’re looking at $2-5k for a years worth of training…and you don’t get paid during that time. you either have to suck it up payless or find a second job that doesn’t interfer with your apprenticship. You usually do not touch a soul for the first 6-8 months with anything. I don’t even let my apprentices prep my clients for at least 6 months.
If you cut corners, train yourself, or if you wind up in a place that wants to push you through your training, you’re doing yourself a disservice and increasing the chances you’re going to wind up with a life-long problem, like hep-c or AIDS from shoddy training. Tattoo artists and body piercers are at much higher risk than most medical staffers for contracting diseases because we can’t legally refuse someone just because they have a communicable disease. In my state, the law doesn’t even allow us to ASK them if they’re sick.
so what does it take? Lots of dedication, lots of time, lots of commitment to the industry, lots of sacrifice. Is it worth it? For me it has been, but its taken years of training and searching to find a job that is solid, that no one else is trying to take from me. and I have to "watch my back" every day because there’s ALWAYS someone trying to take your job.
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First, you have to know how to draw free hand and be creative. Then you have to start going to different shops in your area to see who will hire you on as a apprentice for free or you have to pay them!, and its not a easy job.
They really make you work for what they are going to teach you. It can take a while too, unless you have a real talent at it, then it could come quicker. A friend of my boyfriends started as a apprentice at a shop out here in Cali. One of the artist quit and the shop owner put him on the floor before he was really ready because the shop was busy and she had no other choice I guess. Well that was about 4 years ago and he now owns his own tattoo studio and is ranked top 10 artist in LA. They can make really good money. If you are good then anywhere between $125 – $300 an hour. Just know that its a lot of work, I have seen 4 friends do it, but they are all doing really good now. And please don’t listen to lady above me, she knows nothing about it. All my friends that tattoo are doiung really good financially, two of them have very nice houses and the other two have nice condos….and California is a expensive place to live. They are never without money.
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4 friends are tattoo artist
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References :
http://makemoney32b70cc.blogspot.com
You have to apprentice…self taught scratchers rarely ever make it in the real tattoo world.
The money, ha ha ha ha ha, I’m apprenticing, I do NOT make a cent off of anything that I do, which is why I still pierce. If it wasn’t for continuing to pierce, I wouldn’t even be able to drive back and forth to work everyday. I have to agree with the guy above about having to love the lifestyle, it’s not easy, it’s not all fun and games, and it sure as hell isn’t something to do unless it is an artform that you absolutely love and want to put a lot of time and effort into. The hours are long, the business is totally unpredictable (you may be slammed on a Monday, back to back tattos, then on Tuesday, only do one or 2, then Wednesday do none, then Thursday be slammed all day again…you never know what to expect when you walk in the doors from day to day.).
All these freakin t.v. "reality tattoo" shows have really started a trend of bad artwork coming out of people’s kitchens, and have triggered a domino effect of people pouring into studios on a daily basis begging for apprenticeships. Most of these people only want to do it because they think it would be cool to say "I’m a tattoo artist"…this even goes for piercing, I’ve already turned down 3 people this week begging for apprenticeships and it’s only Thursday.
I’ve been in studio’s since I was 14 (10 years ago), just watching, listening, and getting to know how the business works. I apprenticed to pierce in 2002 for 15 months, during which I also learned scarification (tattoo machine and cuttings/skin removal), now 4 years later I’m apprenticing to tattoo and am nearing the end of my first year with a whole year left to go. Body modification is my life, my goals are to learn everything there is to learn that can be done to the human body. The lifestyle is something that I love, changing people’s body’s to make them more beautiful in their eyes is what drives me, and the money that comes from it is only a bonus. To me it’s about helping people be more comfortable in their own skin.
If it is something that you’ve just recently developed an interest in, then it’s not something you should be considering as a profession…the majority of us in this business didn’t just wake up one day and decide to become a tattoo artist, piercer, scarification artist, etc, we had an interest in it for a long time before taking the leap into becoming a professional. We didn’t just have our opportunities handed to us either, we had to prove ourselves to ourself and our peers, and then prove that we really did have what it takes to advance and become the professionals we are today.
Back to apprenticing, don’t just walk into a studio and ask for an apprenticeship, start out hanging around, getting to know the artist, then find out if they need some counter help, if they do, take it. Learn how the studio works as a business, after a while start expressing your interest in learning about modification, if you’ve proved yourself you may be offered an apprenticeship, if not give it time and ask for one. Be prepared for a year or more of grueling tasks….setting up and breaking down for the artist, cleaning their equipment, doing their line drawings, basically being their b*tch until they are ready to start working with you with a machine in your hand. It’s not something that happens over night. If you don’t have any artistic ability, then before even doing this, take some classes at a local college in art…without artistic ability you are only a tattooist, with artistic ability you then are a tattoo artist. (There is a difference…a true tattoo artist can draw anything a client requests…there are others who can only do flash, and as I’ve been taught, those are the tattooists.)
References :
Professional Piercer/Scarification Artist
Apprenticing Tattoo Artist
Put together a portfolio of your art work and goto the different tattoo shops in your area to see if they are looking for an apprentice. Do NOT just buy a kit and practice on yourself and your friends.
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