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I been hearing alot of different flack about tattoo schools.
*Seasoned artist calling them ‘a joke’.
Can anyone give me some honest true facts, without getting emotional (because they learned from the school of hardknox), why getting licensed and certified by a tattoo school is a bad idea?
I hear most apprenticeships require ‘payment’ (Some starting at $5k in the New York area), and the apprentice usually is a slave for the first 2 years, doing no hands on tattooing or gaining any experience more then what they can view watching videos and reading books. -
I am against tattoo schools alone but if you go to one to learn a bit then do an apprenticeship that is another thing.
I wouldn’t pay for a tattoo apprenticeship unless you really really wanted to. and if you did pay – you should make sure that the tattoo artist you are paying is actually a good tattoo artist.
if you don’t know what a good tattoo artist’s work looks like – then check out Hell City -80% of the artists at that convention are good.I would pay one of the top ticket artists a few grand just to hand out with him for a week… so it is all relative…
but that is to learn advanced stuff.
Most people are not going to learn advanced stuff from a standard apprenticeship… which is why i am against paying for one.What if you decide you dont want to be a tattoo artist 12 months in?
Your payment should be the slave work you do at the shop.Best of luck – do you have a copy of Basic Fundamentals of Modern Tattoo?
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I have to agree about these so called “tattoo schools”. There isn’t enough one on one contact. As an apprentice you will always learn more in a one on one environment. Most try to pump “students” through in 6 months. Hardly enough time to truly learn what you need to know. Your best bet is to stick with just a mentor. Tattoo schools can rip you off just as easily as a shady mentor could.
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I think the only “benefit” to a school is imediate hands on experience, and ONE school offers to give u $5000 in equipment. So if u want imediate hands on, and some equipment, then thats the way to go. but remember….this means less one on one for the important stuff. Also the instructor wont probably remember ur name, and is speaking to the general room when a subject is being discussed. I dont want that personally, I want an actual mentor that knows me by name, knows what I can and cant do, and is willing to work one on one. I think keeping it that personal is the best way to start off. Im no apprentice yet, but I have researched and tried for a time now. I even had some money saved for one school who’s tuition was around 5grand, and u get 5grand in equip back, but it is just a 2 week coarse. Im sorry, but two weeks? come on. How do u expect to be an “artist” in two weeks? maybe a tattooist, but who wants to settle for less? my two cents anyways.
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I went to the tattoo academy after 3 years of trial and error tattooing on my own. I spent about 5grand on the course and it was three weeks long. I agree that it’s not enough time to learn everything and not enough one on one time but it was amazing and I learned so much.
At first I felt a little ripped off but now I’m so glad I went because it sharpened my skills and Mark is always there to answer ANY questions I have.
I think it really depends on your situation. For some people it’s easier to get into a shop because of our personalities, the places we live etc, but the way I see it is that tattooing is changing. It’s not all old skool anymore. Not only is the artwork on skin becoming more and more amazing but there are new machines that run on air, amazing inks and even tattooers are becoming more open and less secretive about their tricks. If we can be taught how to tattoo in a course, why not take it?Mark also gave us insight on tattoo seminars at conventions. You pay a few hundred bucks to listen to a great artist talk abbout tattooing. Cool right? Do one tattoo and it’s paid for.
I’m definitely all for tattoo schools but I agree that you need more than just that. I am alwaya learning and I want to continue taking courses and seminars to get better. I think in the end it will all be worth it.
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The thing with going to a school is this:
You learn to Tattoo. They can’t make you an artist. You already have to be an artist. They teach you how to set up your equipment, use the different needles , sterilization processes and some art techniques. Things that you can learn in 2-3 weeks. I’d say if you can’t find an apprenticeship right off go to an accredited school. The one in Shreveport la is an accredited trade school, finish up and then try to find a job/ apprenticeship. Somewhere you could do little flash stuff to make money but learn from the better artist there. -
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2-3 weeks is definately not enough time to know ALL you need to know about tattoing – but it’s a good start i personally believe – if you have 5k to dish out like that then more power to you – they can’t teach you everything – but you will learn more there in those 2-3 weeks than in any apprenticeship……..yes i said it…..lol – don’t kill me – i’m not against apprenticeship – i’m against turning your nose up at finding a faster way to get information just becase you might of deat with the pain of the old skool – no mtter how much schooling you get about tattooing and you can apprenticeship for decades and still suck at tattoos – you need to be able to draw……you need an artistic eye…….THEN you need the info and technique to transfer your talent into skin – i say get that info from as many sources as you can – see wich is best for you by tryal and error – and your growth will come frm experience
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gary gray… international school of body art. video series, option to go see them personally for abit more… think it was around the 1500 dollar mark. I’ve been dealing with them for a year as I was a self taught piercer but learned things from the pros I met over time. Showed these guys some of my work and got myself a “certificate to hang on the wall” as everyone wants to see it who comes to see me.
I’m 31 and getting an apprenticeship is probably going to be really hard as I’m not an artist. I’m a tracer but not all good artists make good tattooists and not all good tattooists are good artists but I believe the elite of the industry are the best of both worlds and I’m not really striving for that. I just wanted to do some great work with basic designs (tribal) and some good pre-made flash.
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This subject has been a big issue for decades all around!!!..
Old Schools believe in the apprenticeship were you are a slave before they teach you anything so you have to earn your Dues!!! and then you have the “New Schools” were they don’t believe in the old school ways nor they believe in any type of structure…and then you have people like me… and let em explain:
I’ve been tattooing for 10 years or so…
I can draw ok…but really I suck at it… I am a video game 3D animator… I create 3D worlds for video games…mostly MMORPGS… I can draw the most bad-ass what ever you want in digital media… but the reality is I cant draw by hand as a “real” tattooist should… but reality is… I can tattoo and I can do it like a pro…I tried an apprenticeship once in 1993… they ask me for $4,500… and treat me like shit… by the second month I got tire of it…ask for my money back…the owner refuse, I bit the living hell out of him and made him give me the money and I did tattoo in his fore head “I am a looser”… I did spend 10 days in jail and they gave me a choice because was my first offense…go to jail for 2 years or join the Army… Long story short… I retired from the Army…
After that… I self thought my self by just doing it in Pork Skin… the grape fruit didn’t work that well for me…by the way, I did tattoo few live pigs…just get them drunk first… they like beer and vodka…. don’t know why they didn’t like my Jack Daniels…
Schools… for my way of learning… 3 Weeks in a school would be enough for what you have to learn (the basics)… I don’t care what people say… The real tattoo artist (I am talking about tattooing not drawing)…After a 2 year or so tattooing…he/she is on his/her own…now there is no more learning…now is perfecting the skills!!!…after the first year tattooing at least 3 or 4 tattoos a week you don’t learn new skills you have to perfect your skills and make adjustments and fine tune them… eventually you will learn if the opportunity arise other way to tattoo like the Japanese style or Polynesian style… but that comes with experience…
:ugeek: :ugeek: :ugeek: :ugeek: :ugeek:
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Tattoo schools arent supposed to replace your apprenticeship they are there to enhance it. You’d do your two week course or what have you to get a foundation, then do an apprenticeship. There is no way they can cram an entire apprenticeship into two weeks. Theres no way you can learn everything about health issues, sterilization, sanitization, blood borne pathegins, other health issues, plus everything there is to learn about tattooing. It’s just not possible. If you want to do the school more power to you , but get your apprenticeship afterwards.
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@Sabio wrote:
The real tattoo artist (I am talking about tattooing not drawing)…After a 2 year or so tattooing…he/she is on his/her own…now there is no more learning…now is perfecting the skills!!!
Absolutely not and anyone who even considers this is IMO a moron! I have been in the industry for 10 1/2 years, learned from a 30 year pro, and even with 30 years tucked under the belt my mentor would repeat enough to engave it onto my brain, “I STILL don’t know everything there is to know about this industry or the art of it!”
Tattoo schools can and do teach you the basic funamentals of the tchnical and sterile side of the business. An apprenticeship is supposed to not just teach you the art, tech and sterile stuff, you are supposed to be learning how to run and maintain a tattoo establishment. Everything from daily and weekly and monthly paperwork, customer skills, problem solving and upkeep, but creating a positive enviroment in which the artist flourish. Any good shop is almost like a second family, a school gives you the begining skils. IMO what pisses the “older” guys and gals off is that they want the power that comes with giving orders and having somone depend on thier information to move forward, a school robs them of that and demystifies some things. I honestly don’t even think that most of these “artist” know what “paying dues” actually is. but whatever.
For a shop to flat out say that they will not accept someone who has been to a school is simply telling people, “we just want a shop bitch for the next year and since you already know the basics you’d be above a shop bitch and so we don’t want you!” What’s next, shops starting to tell peeps, “nah man, you have an art degree and we don’t accept that as any kind of experience in art here, you gotta start from the bottom” BAH!
And for those that balk at the price of tattoo schools, ever looked into the cost of art degrees? or college tuition? or trade school? A school is just that, a school, you go to learn the lessons being taught and then either use or don’t use those lessons in the field in which you hope to get into and excel at. Simple as that.
As the industry grows and more new people come in and more “old school” shops refuse to give someone a chance because they don’t know someone, or want to pay to get treated like offal daily, new shops of people who have the skill in artistic talent, but maybe lack the business talent will pop up and go away. I personally, as lead artist and shop owner, would take a look at anyones portfolio, even if they went to a school, if I need to fill an empty booth, and hope that they have the skill and personality to back up thier desire to call my shop home. -
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Well, IMO schools are for teaching you the logistics of tattooing. IE: Skin conditions, sanitation/sterilization, the local laws, and a few other things. As for the actual tattooing side? We had too do 50 tattoos and 150 hours tattooing. So in theory 50 three hour tattoos would have been optimal. But as for getting help/advice from the instructor? NOT!!!!!! Now I guess if the school is only a school and not a shop as well maybe there would have been more one on one time but really when it came time too tattoo the instructor was tattooing his own clients in his own operatory. So there was VERY LITTLE advice from that end. I learned more from upper classmates that went out in the real world and let me come around watch and ask questions. THANKS HOLLY!!!!!!! I still call her from time to time and pick her brain. We paid 5k for a six month course but only got like 5 in before the SCUM BAG instructor/owner packed up shop and made a midnight run. Yes, he took 6 students money and bailed. Unfortunately here in Oregon you HAVE TOO take a schooling course and have the instructor send in the paperwork to the state saying you fulfilled the 250 hours of bookwork/classwork and the 50/150 tattoos. Which he did none of this. So, too say the least I have a bitter taste in my mouth about schools. I did learn quite a bit about quite a bit. But the art of tattooing was NOT one of them!!!!!! As for an apprenticeship? I have yet to actually achieve one but have a few mentors that are in no way stingy with helping me out with techniques and advice. Right now I live in the PDX area 20 minutes away or so from Washington state where there is no schooling requirements and know a few artist there that would take me in no problem. As for paying for an apprenticeship? ARE YOU F’N CRAZY????? IT’S CALLED SWEAT EQUITY!!!!!! YOU WORK FOR YOUR DUES!!!! At least that’s how I look at it. Especially if you clean the shop, set up for the artists, tear down for them, sterilize equipment, and make appointments…. Figure your time and calculate that by minimum wage at the least and figure out what you are paying. I think one aspect you are ALL forgetting is that part of the definition of a mentor is, they are someone you RESPECT!!!!!! Would you respect someone that takes full advantage of your time and help AND MAKES YOU PAY FOR IT? Not sure about you, but I would totally DISRESPECT someone like that!!!! JUST SAYING
I guess my way of thinking would be, get in with a shop, befriend them and see if they will let you help around in return of learning the ins and outs of the shop. Then see if you can do some tattooing and get some advice from the artists in the shop. Also, go to the conventions and take a few seminars there and learn even more. Most of the time these conventions won’t have some YAHOO/HACK teaching seminars. They are usually very well known artist there for the love of the art!!!
Good luck in your endeavors.
TG
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