Advice on tattoo artistry & how to go about getting into an apprenticeship?

alanna_c

hi, my names alanna, I'm 15 years old at the moment and I have huge interest in tattooing and tattoo's, they're amazing and I love the sound of the machines and how they look and everything! I draw alot and I would consider myself decent at drawing at the moment & I got a B in my junior cert in art, I still have my leaving cert but I was wondering how to get a apprenticeship and whats it like in apprenticeships and how long it takes to become a tattoo artist, just all the details about tattoo artistry in ireland?
Stuff like; pay & hours or work(in general), requirements to become a tattoist,etc?
Say the truth,good or bad, I'm serious in trying to become this and I doubt even the worst will turn me off
Thanks for any help x

Adiboo

It's a very hard business to get into. The pay is very, very little for an apprentice. You'll need an extensive portfolio and a lot of determination. You will be told no A LOT.

alanna_c

yeah I knew it was very hard to get into & that the apprentice pay was very poor, well if I give my all and stick with it ,I might have a chance of getting somewhere,thank you for the reply

Just Like Heaven

Tattoo artists can earn great money. Unless you're really savage, it's recommended you go to art school first. Apprenticeships can last upto 18 months as far as I know, during which you earn basically nothing. After that shops usually operate some sort of 50/50 or 60/40 ish split on the money taken for the work you do.

I met an artist who has just finished his apprenticeship only this year, he's already earning good money. €600+ per week is not bad for a 22 year old on his first proper year of a job that he loves anyway.

Keep drawing though. All the time. Practise practise practise and study study study. It's a super competitive career choice at the moment, you're gonna make it a lot easier for yourself if you're confident, rehearsed and simply better than other artists.

bodice ripper

put tattoo artistry out of your head for the foreseeable future. It is far more a trade or a craft.

Long hours, dirty work. It is physically demanding.
You had better like people, it's a service industry.
Good communication skills essential.
Get used to people ignoring your advice and being dismissive.
The pay isn't as good as everyone seems to believe, especially when you compare earnings with peers in other industries as you get older.
No pension, no job security, no potential for promotion, no paid holidays, no sick pay, break your hands (or your eyes, or you back...) and you are screwed.
Money is highly seasonal.
The person most at risk of contracting a disease from tattooing is the tattooist and is a real risk and not to be taken lightly.



And it is dirty, dirty work.

Blood, ink, spit, sweat, occasionally vomit, and the air breathed by other, very close people.
Customers are clueless about cross contamination and have to be watched like a hawk.
Needle stick injuries are a real possibility.
Cleaning equipment is arguably the most risky thing to the tattooist.
People pass out, throw up, cry, freak out, bleed, sneeze, cough, and all variations of same.
Black ink stains everything. Stencil ink could stain the face of god.
Feet, stomachs, armpits, groins, arses, mouths, and genitals.



A tattoo parlour is a stressful environment.
It is noisy and high traffic.
People are already on edge when about to get a tattoo.
Interpersonal problems between staff are the stuff of legends.
Everyone's music tastes suck.




A lot of people assume that you are some sort of lowlife, even though they themselves want a tattoo. They don't imagine you did too well in school. You get spoken down to a great deal. My personal favourite is the shock expressed when you appear to know anything academic, people don't even bother to hide it. No one will listen to you, even when you armed with facts (letters can't be this small) or experience (this piece is the wrong shape for where you want to put it)



There is a reason (****loads, in fact) that tattooist frequently burn out.
Don't even think about it until after school.

Orim

That post read like a poem. Ode to the Tattooist

bodice ripper

Orim wrote: »

That post read like a poem. Ode to the Tattooist

I went to college, wha?

Jimmy Bottlehead

bodice ripper wrote: »

put tattoo artistry out of your head for the foreseeable future. It is far more a trade or a craft.

Long hours, dirty work. It is physically demanding.
You had better like people, it's a service industry.
Good communication skills essential.
Get used to people ignoring your advice and being dismissive.
The pay isn't as good as everyone seems to believe, especially when you compare earnings with peers in other industries as you get older.
No pension, no job security, no potential for promotion, no paid holidays, no sick pay, break your hands (or your eyes, or you back...) and you are screwed.
Money is highly seasonal.
The person most at risk of contracting a disease from tattooing is the tattooist and is a real risk and not to be taken lightly.



And it is dirty, dirty work.

Blood, ink, spit, sweat, occasionally vomit, and the air breathed by other, very close people.
Customers are clueless about cross contamination and have to be watched like a hawk.
Needle stick injuries are a real possibility.
Cleaning equipment is arguably the most risky thing to the tattooist.
People pass out, throw up, cry, freak out, bleed, sneeze, cough, and all variations of same.
Black ink stains everything. Stencil ink could stain the face of god.
Feet, stomachs, armpits, groins, arses, mouths, and genitals.



A tattoo parlour is a stressful environment.
It is noisy and high traffic.
People are already on edge when about to get a tattoo.
Interpersonal problems between staff are the stuff of legends.
Everyone's music tastes suck.




A lot of people assume that you are some sort of lowlife, even though they themselves want a tattoo. They don't imagine you did too well in school. You get spoken down to a great deal. My personal favourite is the shock expressed when you appear to know anything academic, people don't even bother to hide it. No one will listen to you, even when you armed with facts (letters can't be this small) or experience (this piece is the wrong shape for where you want to put it)



There is a reason (****loads, in fact) that tattooist frequently burn out.
Don't even think about it until after school.

I'm genuinely surprised that people look down on, or are dismissive of artists... I've the absolute height of respect for the skills and knowledge of a good tattoo artist. It's so obviously a path that takes countless hundreds / thousands of hours to reach a certain level.