I started drawing at a young age and it’s one of the practices I’ve always kept. I actually got in trouble as a child for drawing in church. So to get by I started drawing pictures of Jesus! As I grew, I continued drawing in class. One teacher said I’d never amount to anything, but that didn’t stop me. I went through a comic book phase where my friends and I would design ourselves as superheroes. Ridiculously muscular frames with tiny waists, wearing underwear over tights. Of course my costume was red. Once I got to high school, I shifted to more realistic portraits of people and animals. I became obsessed with how to use shades of grey to make things look more real. Around this time, I also got into graffiti. Riding the 7 train through Queens every day, I was amazed by the bright colors, contrasts, and color combinations I never thought to use. I was intrigued and intimidated at the same time! As such, I continued my art with black and grey pencils and markers. Fast forward to college, I was interested in video game design. Naturally, I started majoring in graphic design. It didn’t take long to lose interest as it’s mostly created by computer, and I was not about to sit in front of a computer all day. Being good with my hands, and restless; I began wondering if I was wasting my time. I wasn’t. I gained the most benefit from a life drawing class. We had live models and I learned even more about shadows, highlights, and blending. I learned to process my art, as well as techniques like stippling, perspective, and texture. I remember watching shows like LA Ink and Miami Ink at the time. I never once considered doing tattoos. I thought they were dumb and made people look trashy. It wasn’t until I saw the fine art side of it that changed my outlook. Eventually, I dropped out of college with 4.0 GPA and began studying any and everything I could find about tattooing. It wasn’t long before I became a “kitchen magician”. That went on for about a year before I found a shop willing to teach me. My mentor was an amazing painter and blues guitarist who gave me the recipe to successful cover-ups. I learned most of what I know from him, and many others along my journey. I was surrounded by a lot of talent from different walks of life. They definitely helped me develop my craft and become a versatile artist. My passion lies in realistic black and grey, but have an affinity for traditional, as well as new school color bombs. Lettering was always a big deal during my apprenticeship and led to me fine tuning my own style of script through free-handing. I learned the importance of solid lines and how lots of artists cover shaky lines with mediocre color and shading. I quickly was able to pick apart tattoos in 10 seconds. After my apprenticeship, I stayed at the shop for 5 years. Then, I bounced around looking for the right place for me. I couldn’t find it. After 10 years in the industry, I opened my first studio and had my first daughter the same year. I relocated my shop 6 years later (still in Chattanooga). I apprenticed about 10 people and at least half of them went off to have successful careers. The others didn’t take it serious and got fired or quit. I ended up closing my shop in October 2025. I thought I was done tattooing for good, but still had people reaching out for work. Nearly a year later, I stumbled upon a FB post that brought me to McMinnville. With no hesitation, I went for it. Today is Friday, October 10, 2025. I have yet to open as I’m waiting to get inspected. I’m eager, grateful, and excited to see what the future holds. My name is Andre, and I’d like to welcome you to my tattoo parlour, aka my second home.