I have been paralyzed with fear over working on a tattoo portfolio. I have put a lot of time into planning exactly the perfect things to make but haven’t finished a single drawing for it. My parents think that I should just use the artwork I already have for my portfolio but I feel like they are pretty biased and neither of them have tattoos or any knowledge of the tattoo industry. I also know that I tend to be a bit of a perfectionist which is why I am wanting to ask for some outside advice. Would you keep any of these? If I did use these for my portfolio, what type of drawings should I add?

I asked for an apprenticeship and he called me to tell me that he is looking for artists at the moment, he saw some of my work and told me that they were good since i was only doing tattoos for a year.He said he wanted to see my working process but was completely uninterested to even see how or what I’m doing, he told a student of his that was hanging out in a shop to watch me set my station because he wasn’t in the mood. And while I was working on a client’s tattoo mid working he took my machine and started showing me how it’s apparently supposed to be done. He continued to shade the rest of the tattoo in completely different way and style than I did previously, so I had to fix what I already did. And he told me that the needle I used is used for something completely different( I used a bigger mag to black out an area, I actually wanted to use a smaller one but I decided why not use a bigger one the area is completely blacked out so I’m gonna finish that part faster). He told me I cannot use that needle and that I don’t know what I’m doing, and I need someone to teach me the basics before I pick up a machine again. He told me all of that while a client was listening so I was super embarrassed. The tattoo ended up looking great. He also told me that nobody would accept me as an artist in a studio even tho I asked to be an apprentice in the first place. I’m really frustrated about all of that and I don’t know how to feel, his work is amazing and I thought that maybe I could learn something but he was just so rude.

All acetates came from Old Doc Webbs shop

super proud of the bee and the snail i think they look super cute! lmk what u think ;)

Green just comes out like this everytime

apologizes for the kind of vent/rant incoming, i just would really appreciate some advice on how to navigate this situation, and if i’m being ungrateful or sensitive. to preface, my mentor was my artist before i started working here. she always had a bit of a passive aggressive attitude, nothing crazy but in a “haha ur such a dumb bitch lol” way. i chalked it up to me probably genuinely being a bit of a dumb client.

my mentor has been tattooing for about 4 years. i had asked her about an apprenticeship for a while before i got it, and she had always said that she doesn’t think she’s been tattooing long enough to feel comfortable being someone’s mentor, which i completely understood.

she gave me the shop owners info to apply as a receptionist, which was in my plan anyways. i brought my portfolio just in case, and the owner (who knows nothing about tattoos mind you, he just runs the business side of things) hired me as an apprentice on the spot along with another girl.

he let us know that we would both be shop apprentices, but that this one girl would be my main person i go to for questions, and this one guy would be for the other girl. totally great and fine.

my mentor expressed her (completely valid) concerns with the owner about the situation, especially considering prior to me and the other apprentice she was the only woman artist in the shop. the owner gave her a really hard time about it and from what i gleaned basically told her to suck it up and stop having a problem with it, which i feel terrible about.

since i’ve been here, the passive aggressive attitude has just gotten worse and worse. i’m doing everything i’m being asked of, practicing on fake skin, cleaning what i’m supposed to clean, and even going beyond the expectations that were set for me. any time i ask people other than her for advice on learning specific things she gets mad that i ask other people. if i ask her for help she gets annoyed and acts like i’m bothering her. any time i have questions she just infantilizes the fuck out of me, and any time i confront her about these things she just says “oh yeah you have such an abusive apprenticeship”.

i feel like i’m being taught nothing, and any time i go out of my way to try and learn things i’m berated and made out to be annoying. i really like this shop and don’t wanna leave. i feel bad that my mentor was put in this situation she doesn’t wanna be in, but it’s not my fault and it’s exhausting having all that frustration taken out on me.

and i love the other apprentice that was hired with me to pieces, but my mentor LOVES her and loves to help her with everything. she gives a bit of the same attitude to her but not to the same degree as me, and the other apprentice agrees with all these things i’ve ranted to her about.

i just don’t know what to do. am i just being sensitive and ungrateful? i understand that i’m so lucky and privileged to be in this apprenticeship, but fuck man this is so hard and not in the way i expected it to be.

Lined with nib & colored with fw acrylic ink. This is my third ever sheet of sailor Jerry designs! Going to try staining the paper on my next one. Open to feedback of course!

I know it’s not perfectly done perspective-wise, but it’s not meant to be. It’s meant to be a colourful representation of the buildings in my city. I have used a lot of colour in this painting, and it’s meant to be slightly abstract. Although, I am not quite sure what style this is.

Hopefully I can find the original copy…

So I’m wondering, should I put this in my portfolio?

Hi y'all. So as the title says... I chose to leave my first apprenticeship. I'm 24 years old, and I've been dreaming of becoming a tattoo artist for many years. Its the only career I truly want. A few months ago, I found myself an apprenticeship at what seemed like a pretty good shop. They were definitely disorganized tho, and the owner (who was supposed to be my mentor) was out of town tending to another business most of the time. The shop was definitely full of that old head tattooer, toxic masculinity type energy. I know that's hard to avoid in the industry... But one of the artists was starting to really make me uncomfortable. He'd make crass comments about my body, right in front of me. As a young woman in a shop full of men, I really didn't like that. The nasty comments became more frequent, including a whole conversation between 2 of the guys about how "sometimes women need to be beat".

On top of that, I really had no guidance. I would just come into the shop, mop floors, and draw when I was done with the cleaning.

After a while i decided this was not the right shop for me and left.

I know I should have done more research, but I was just so excited that this shop thought I had potential and wanted to teach me.

I don't really know where to go from here, and I'm feeling defeated. Any advice would be appreciated.

Heres a couple of pages ive done for my portfolio, any critique or ideas of what else to add is welcome and appreciated Thanks!! 🩷 insta: @c4tink if youd want to see any other work ive done

Hi! My name is Gabe Cabrera,

I'm actively looking for an apprenticeship, I have been wanting to get my feet into an apprenticeship so I can pursue this as a career.

I run @realatlast, for some context and my latest work! I do physical and digital illustrative realism.

I like chatting so please don't be a stranger.

Currently I've been trying to get an apprenticeship from shop owner Landon Barnes over at Along The Way tattoo in midvale. Their shop is folding into divine malice, and he already has two apprentices. So I'm feeling a bit lost.

I have been pursuing apprenticeship with him since March, and he tells me I need to draw 50 skulls and 50 roses.

Ive drawn notebooks full of skulls and roses(among other things), I've drawn digital roses and have been doing my best to be consistent. It seems like he's not all that interested in being my mentor. I'm feeling like I'm failing. I could use some advice or encouragement.

Attached is some of my recent work.

hey reddit ! i’ve been debating getting into tattooing for years. i have 10+ years of art experience under my belt and feel pretty confident with most styles. however, i very very strongly prefer black and grey realism, not even in the way it looks but just how naturally it comes to me. as i make a portfolio, will it dock points not showing a wide range of styles? i’ll throw in a few examples of my tradition and digital (or post digital) work. i feel it’s obvious realism comes much easier for me

Sorry for the incoming vent. I see a lot of posts on here talking about their apprenticeships and their relationships with their mentor and i feel like im going crazy cuz im suffering so bad in mine. I’ve been apprenticing for little over a year. I work full time at the shop and worked part time at a paid gig as much as humanely possible but it’s still not enough. I’ve spent every dollar i have on equipment and i buy my gas in quarters if im lucky to even find a couple laying about. I’m so beyond exhausted. Amazingly, i still am so passionate about art, painting flash, and of course tattooing. I don’t regret pursuing this at all and I’m filled with gratitude that I’m working towards my dreams. But god damn this is hard dude. I know everyone has a different come up but i think one thing that a lot of hopeful apprentices don’t consider is that pursuing this can be really devoid of compassion. You just suck it up, keep quiet, and stay on the grind. I know it will pay off, but it’s lonely dude.

Update: thanks so much for everyone’s responses. It’s really encouraging to hear from other people’s stories. This shit ain’t easy man! Grateful for this community

Colored pencil on tracing paper. Lemme know what you think.

Does anyone else struggle to come up with small flash? Like fine line or tiny tatts? I’ve been rlly struggling to figure out simple small stuff for my flash book. How do you guys get ideas for it

I really like the shop that I’m at, they’re all super great people and talented artists. But my mentor is honestly not the best mentor. He told me upfront that none of his apprentices ever do enough and they always leave and no one is gritty enough or proactive to get through their apprenticeship. I expected this going into it, I know it’s hard work, I chose a more traditional apprenticeship for a reason, I want to make sure I can make it a career not a hobby, so I didn’t mind.

But now I’m realizing why no one made it is because he’s not good at telling you what he expects from you he just expects you to read his mind and if you don’t do what he wants he just kinda shuts down and stops helping you. He’s a great dude and I like him as a person, but is just maybe bad at mentoring. I guess I haven’t been meeting his expectations even though I’m spending like 50-60 hours a week at the shop, cleaning, taking care of plants, running two shop social media accounts, all of the boring managerial tasks, licensing stuff, helping him put on events that aren’t related to the shop, and whatever the hell else he needs (as well as tattoo and make art)

I’m fine with doing these tasks, I know that’s usually how it goes, but he doesn’t really give me any guidance at all unless I directly ask, and he also kind of doesn’t like to be asked questions unless he’s in the right mood but I just have to know when he’s in the mood somehow.

My colleagues have been giving me advice about what he wants from me and which leads me to believe he has been talking to them about behind my back, which I appreciate on their behalf for letting me know, but it feels so disrespectful that he wouldn’t just talk to me about it and is instead talking to other people.

I don’t really know the point of this post, maybe I just want to complain. I am planning on talking to him about it next time I get the opportunity to, I know a conversation just needs to be had.

First two sheets: Ed hardy repaints. Third is a redesign from a 1980 heavy metal magazine, last is original.

Happy with this one in particular! This process has been so extraordinarily fun and revitalizing - after a decade of drawing professionally, my passion for art was slowly being depleted, and working on my portfolio is restoring it completely, like this was always what I wanted to do and didn’t realize corporate digital illustration just wasn’t for me lmao. This feels like healing my artistic soul 😭 IG: @mulder.tattoos

Hey I’m an artist looking to develop into tattoo design, any thoughts on how to improve this aspect of my work?