Truth - Queensland Tattoo Artist

Can you give our readers a little tattoo history about yourself and your background?

I got into graffiti and producing hip hop in the mid 2000’s which paved the way for me to enter the tattoo industry. November, 2021, I began my apprenticeship under Geoff Teague at one of Brisbane’s busiest tattoo shops, CB Ink

As a kid, what type of stuff did you draw and what art were you inspired by?

I got into drawing graffiti around 8 years old because of my brother, I started getting into it seriously around 13 years old and took a lot of influence from Pezl (RIP) at chalk drive skatepark. the coal train scene in Toowoomba was a big inspiration, the years of history on rolling canvases made me wanna be apart of that and write my own name.

What was the first tattoo you ever inked and how much do you feel you have either improved over the years?

I only did graffiti and lettering beforehand so it’s been my dominant style getting into tattooing. I’d describe my style as bold and dark; Graffiti pieces are making their way into tattoo studios more and more now and being incorporated into chicano style instead of the traditional old English, calligraphy and cholo fonts being used.

Looking at the detail you put into your work how far you have evolved over the years as an artist and what inspires you when designing some of your work?

I went from tags to throw ups - throw ups to pieces, pieces on walls, to pieces on skin in one of Brisbane’s busiest tattoo studios with 25+ artists. It’s been inspiring learning new lettering fonts and being able to put them in motion. Meeting new artists and studying different styles. It’s been a crazy journey so far and an opportunity I saw to push graffiti culture into the mainstream. Getting stay ups on skin instead of having my pieces buffed or fading in one location. I’ve been lucky to have good clientele willing to come in and Let me do my thing. Without that I wouldn’t have grown this far, Thanks to everyone who’s gotten a tattoo off me.