Scott Olive 2011

For the newer tattoo enthusiasts here, can you tell us what year you started to tattoo, and how did you learn to tattoo?

I started tattooing in October of 2007. Around 2003 I was living in Tallahassee going to college trying to find my way when I began getting tattooed. at this point is when I noticed custom tattoos. I asked the guy who was tattooing me how you get in the industry and he told me you need to find an apprenticeship and to do that you need to have a portfolio of drawings. So I began building a portfolio and taking it around to local shops and was rejected every time. I decided I needed to improve my drawing ability so i began taking some art classes. Some circumstances eventually led me to Sarasota to attend Ringling College and this is where I met Travis Franklin who eventually agreed to apprentice me. When I first told my parents I wanted to tattoo they were a bit shocked but they've always been very supportive of me.

How do you balance tattooing as “fine art” and work for hire art?

I've been fortunate enough that most people that come to me for a tattoo are coming for something in my specific style of work. This makes it a little less of a feeling of work for hire because I’m completely into what they’re asking me to do. They almost always give me the freedom to be as creative as I want. Every once in a while Ill take their idea a little too far and have to redraw the image to tone it down a little, and I'm usually fine with that. I understand this is on them forever so its more about the client than it is about me getting to do what I want.

How do you feel about tattooing being accepted into the mainstream culture?

Overall I think it's a good thing. By the time I started tattooing in 2007 it had already become accepted in the mainstream. Because of that I never got to experience the "underground" aspect of tattooing. I’ve been around a lot of artist that were around for that time period and I know they have some memories they miss about it. Because its becoming mainstream there’s a much higher demand for tattoos which has allowed for more people to make a living doing tattoos.

How should future tattoo clients find the perfect artist and design?

Do research. Look at websites, portfolios, ask questions and be patient. Dont just decided you want a tattoo and go to the shop that you drive by every day. Go into the shops and talk to someone who might be doing your tattoo. There’s so many different styles of tattoos so if you’re looking for something specific, look for someone who can illustrate that idea. Some artists are well rounded and can do lots of different styles while others tend to concentrate on more of a specific style. A client should know what they're getting themselves into not just have blind faith that anyone working in a shop is prepared for their individual ideas.

This is one of the first tattoos I did that I was proud of. It was on one of Travis Franklin's friends from back home. He had come down for a vacation and let pretty much everyone in the shop tattoo whatever they wanted on him. I had been tattooing for about a year at this point and it was probably my first one-shot tattoo with a background I had ever done. Up until this point I was incredibly slow and pretty timid when it came to tattooing.

Are there common mistakes that you would warn clients to avoid?

Don’t rush. Girls don't decide to get a boob job impulsively and get them done that day. They have to find a surgeon, have a consultation, make an appointment and have recovery time. Tattoos take time. From the design process, to the application process, to the healing process. Living in a beach community, I don’t know how many people will go out in the sun within days of getting the tattoo and burn it all up. Another mistake I think people make is they will call the shop and ask for a price for a tattoo. If you have a budget its ok to let the artist know and he or she can design that tattoo to fit the budget but if you’re just calling to see how much a design is chances are we have no idea. We don’t have the design in front of us. We don’t know how large it is. Dimas that works at Oddity with me had the best analogy, when he would ask the client how much is a bag of groceries. It depends on what’s going in the bag. Just like a tattoo has lots of different things that go into it.

This tattoo is one of my favorites. It was at the Tried and True tattoo convention in Orlando. I was fortunate enough to be invited by Jason Stephan, to share a booth with him. This was first time I had left the comfort of Oddity to tattoo without the rest of the artists at Oddity. The tattoo won "tattoo of the day," and that was totally unexpected but awesome at the same time. The convention was a lot of fun and I met a ton of great artists, and this tattoo is a nice reminder of it all.

What is the difference between being tattooed and being a tattoo collector?

I guess a collector probably looks for a specific artist to do their tattoos. Maybe they collect from one artist or they go to multiple artists to get different styles. For them the artist doing their tattoo is perfect for their idea of that tattoo. Someone who is not a collector and just getting tattooed might know of a good shop but not know the name of the person who does their tattoo. They still deserve the same quality and attention as a collector because their tattoo probably means just as much to them as it does to the collector.

How do you feel about having or giving tattoos in visible places? Hands, face, neck, etc

I dont personally have my hands, face or neck tattooed but I'm not against it for the people who want that. I have tattooed all those parts but it has to be on the right person. I approach these on a case by case basis. If I ever do turn down a tattoo on those body parts I usually have a reason and I try and explain that to the person why I don’t feel comfortable doing it.

Do you have an art background?

I did take some art classes. I never was a professional artist before tattooing. I never made a living off of art before tattooing so I wouldn’t say I have an art background but I did take some art classes that have helped me along the way What are the essential steps to landing a tattoo apprenticeship? Have a portfolio of art. Presentation counts more than you think. get to know the shop and person you’re asking to apprentice you. An aspiring tattoo artist needs an apprenticeship more than a tattooer needs an apprentice so keep this in mind. Also not every shop needs an apprentice. Timing has a lot to do with it. Don’t get discouraged if you hear no. It took me three years to land a quality apprenticeship. I heard no more than 20 times before the right situation presented itself. Oh yeah DRAW DRAW DRAW

Do you recommend art schools for aspiring tattooers?

I don’t think art school is a must but if you have the time I would definitely encourage it. I know lots of extremely talented tattoo artist who have never taken a single art class but they’re open to learning from other around them. It took me 3 years to find a quality apprenticeship so in those 3 years I took some art classes. Not every class relates directly to tattooing but it certainly doesn’t hurt.

How essential is getting tattooed to learning to tattoo?

I think it helps but its not essential. I got heavily tattooed before I began tattooing and it might have helped me but it wasn’t til I began tattooing that I paid attention to the way other approached the tattoo, how they ran their machines, why they designed things the way they did.

How do you keep learning?

I feel like you have to be motivated to keep learning. Be critical of yourself. I ask myself what could I have done to make this tattoo better instead of "man, I did a good tattoo" ask others around you that you respect about your designs. Sometimes I can get a little too attached to a design Im working on and someone else's advice might be what can take that image to another level.

This was also on Travis' buddy, Jeff. Since he was being so gracious with his skin I hit him up for a second tattoo on his vacataion (the guy got 5 or 6 tattoos in about 2 weeks!!) This was when i first started playing around with Animorphs in my tattoos. 

Do you feel tattooing is a Spiritual art?

Im sure some people get tattooed for spiritual reasons but I dont really look at it that way when I work. My main goal is for people to look at their tattoos and be able to laugh or smile. I know people get tattooed for lots of different reasons, but I personally just don't approach it that way.

Do you have any advice for aspiring artists?

Draw, ask questions, don’t get discouraged, have fun but work hard. If tattooing is what you want to do it's an amazing job. But it isn't nearly as glamorous as people think it is from the outside looking in. Its TONS or hard work. Theres lots of responsibility and long work hours to do this. That being said I love what I do and cant wait to see where the industry goes from here.

now for some other artists tattoos that have inspired me. 

I cant really pick one tattoo from this to link to because of the way the website is set up, but this is Travis Franklins tattoos. This is who I apprenticed under and these are the tattoos that I had to watch him do while I was apprenticing. Almost everything I know about tattooing I learned from watching and listening to him.

This is a tattoo by Jesse Smith, who tattooed it on me. I was pretty heavily tattooed before I got into tattooing so I dont have a ton of room left but this was the first person, besides Travis, to tattoo me after I started tattooing. It was interesting to see different approaches to tattooing and I left very motivated and sore! We did that whole thing in one day. It was a long day.

Well, speaking of a long day, next thing to do is check out Scott Olives website, powered by us, TattooNOW. Have fun!

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