How did you get started in tattooing? I've loved tattoos since I was a small child. I would see tattoos on family members and their friends and just fixate on them for as long as they were in view. I've drawn since I was three years old, and as a child I was fascinated by art and anything that could be
transformed into art- if I found a piece of rock or shell and discovered that it would leave a mark on the concrete, my next mission would be to see if I could draw the Mona Lisa or at the very least a highly stylized Batman with it on the sidewalk.
If we were eating out, I would arrange my plate to create a pirate ship to leave for the bussers. So, when I discovered that permanent markings could be made in the skin, I would fixate on the tattoos, and instantly found something about those people that I admired, not because i saw them as badasses or rockstars, but because they carried permanent, personal art.
When I turned 18, I tried to get an apprenticeship with the only shop in my town, but was turned down, and the ensuing battle soured me on trying to find a career in it for a long time, until years later in another state I ended up working as a body piercer for 12 years, and when they asked me to relocate to another of their shops and told me I'd also get a tattoo apprenticeship as part of the deal, the desire became too great to refuse, and I'm glad I went with it.
What is your favorite style? I'm not sure if I actually have a favourite style. I love a challenge, and I love visually striking pieces. I love taking surrealist concepts and giving them lifelike detail, making them believable. I enjoy three dimensional effects, pieces that look as though they come out of, or off of,the skin. I also love anything that uses non-conventional colour pallettes, and believe that oversizing and dramatic layout make a world of difference. Anything that makes the spectator need a double or triple take just to be sure they saw what they thought they did.
Name the hardest part about your job The hardest part of my job is sometimes trying to get on the same page with a client who is extremely vague-even unsure-about what they want, when I can tell their tastes are nowhere near my own ideas. I feel my job is to give them what they want, and to make it as awesome as possible, but when they have no idea what they want, I hesitate to push my own ideas if I feel we have no common ground artistically or idealistically.
What would you say is the most rewarding? The most rewarding part of tattooing is when someone looks at themselves in the mirror and tells me (sometimes even tearfully) that they had no idea something like that could be done, or that we managed to exceed anything they had expected. That feeling is better than any paycheck I've ever received for anything.
Best advice for anyone seeking an artist or a new tattoo? My advice to someone looking for a new artist is to look at their portfolios and find out what they're qualifications are before you ever start asking about prices.
First and foremost, you want to know that they are capable of delivering the art that you want with the care it deserves. Second, it's always good to see if you share any common interests with your artist. For example, If you want to do a sonic screwdriver, you want an artist who asks you, "from which Doctor?". If you're a motorcycle enthusiast and want an engine part, you want an artist who knows the difference between an evo and a shovelhead on sight. The devil is in the details, and someone who understands your concept will see details that other artists miss.
What tattoo placement spot has proved to be the most painful to you? I have a pretty high pain tolerance, so I'm probably not a very reliable guide to what hurts less. I didn't bat an eye at getting my elbow tattooed, and slept through my chest right up to the nipple, but the spine was the one that really bit hard. But I'm getting my head tattooed next week, so my opinion on this may very well change.
Any tattoo trends you are tired of doing? Tribal. I do not posess enough command of any language to express how much I loathe tribal.
Do you spend most of your time in the shop or traveling to tattoo conventions?
I spend more time in the shop than anywhere. I often find myself in the shop even when I'm not expected to be there. I love conventions and I love to travel, and if I owned my own shop (one day-fingers crossed), I would probably do a lot more conventions. But right now I work for someone else, and it's in their best interest to keep me close to home as much as possible, so I have a limited convention radius. My wife, Chelsi (who was my first apprentice and if I may say so, is also shaping up to be an awesome tattooer) and I also often talk about spending a few months in Europe if we can get a gig tattooing there to pay for our trip. If I wasn't a tattoo artist I would be.... Hell, I don't know. Honestly I don't think I could be anything else now. I've worked as a professional musician (still do a bit of that on the side), and a bike mechanic (even the Harley dealership was too corporate an environment for me). I've never done well with conventional jobs. I've often thought that I would enjoy teaching junior high science because I absolutely love discussing evolutionary biology, but I doubt I'd be a very popular one amongst the parents and fellow faculty members.
The most meaningful tattoo on my own body I would have to say is the piece I'm currently working on. So far I've done three of the four portraits that will circle my lower left leg; the scientists whose works and writing most impacted my world view. I've got Charles Darwin on the inside, Albert Einstein on the calf, Richard Dawkins on the outside, and soon I'll put Carl Sagan on the shin. I've done the portraits myself, and when I finish Sagan, Chelsi will fill in the background as a continuous chalkboard wraparound with each scientists' notes in their own handstyles in chalk. I'm pretty excited about this, and hoped to have finished it by Halloween and worked up to the thigh piece, which will be my favorite sci-fi (Doctor Who, Star Trek, and The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy).
My best advice to anyone wanting to get into tattooing is: Draw and color as much as you can the best you can, and try to make each piece better than the last. Stretch your abilities and try to learn something new from every artist you ever meet. Get an apprenticeship with a good artist and always be willing to take constructive criticism.
If I had to pick a favorite piece that I've done.. Wow it would probably change by the time you read this. Yeah, every time I think of one, I think of something else that contends. Come to think of it, I've gotten to do a lot of cool pieces. Lucky, aye?
Current tattoo shop address and location where you are working I'm currently working at Trifecta Body Art. It's at 317 West Marshall In Longview, Tx. and I no longer pierce, but the guys that do here(Brian and Justin) are awesome. To be honest, I don't miss piercing, but then I always had a weird ick feeling about having to stick my hands into the mouths of total strangers. Can't knock it though, It paved the way to get me into tattooing, and I couldn't love my work more!
You can view Randy's art portfolio and contact him for an appointment by clicking this link here.
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