jesse smith tattoo artist 08

It was a great opportunity to talk to Jesse Smith and some of the people in his life. I contacted Jesse’s father and couple of his clients through email and it’s safe to say that I learned a lot about him. I was a little worried about how the interview with Jesse’s father would go down because, in my head, I had this image of a mean ass drill sergeant yelling at people calling them "scum fucks" and threatening to screw there heads off and shit down their necks. But Jesse’s Dad was NOTHING like that. He even said that I should stop calling him Sir right off the bat, but thanked me for the good manners.



I have always considered Jesse’s art to be multicultural and don’t think it can be pigeonholed into one category. This probably has to do with the fact that his family lived all over the world. Jesse’s father was raised in a pretty non-religious, Christian family and to be able to see many different cultures, must have left a positive mark on him, helping to expand his outlook on life tremendously.



But of course, things weren’t always easy in the Smith Family. How could it be when you’re raising three teenage boys and a little girl? When Jesse’s father was a 17-years old, he got married and Jesse was born a month after he turned 18. So he knows how sudden changes can affect a young man. When asked about them moving around a lot and his opinion on how he thinks it may have effected Jesse, here is what he had to say:



It taught him how to adapt to different situations, environments, and people. It also broadened his outlook on the world, and the different cultures therein. Unfortunately, a lot of Americans live in a vacuum, and don't really realize how they fit in the global scheme of things. Jesse's travels have opened his eyes to the fact that he's part of a much bigger picture.



He thinks that, at a young age, Jesse learned how to be responsible. This is what he had to say about what he tried to teach Jesse while he was growing up and what societies role is in this matter.



In my opinion the responsibility for teaching those values lies with both the family and society. The first focus is with the family unit, but as children grow, their peers and society play an increasingly larger role. I think for the most part parents are doing their best, but society's thought process has evolved to the point where no one is responsible for their own actions anymore. The blame is always placed on someone or something else, thus alleviating individuals of personal responsibility. It's really a shame. It's not as bad over here in Europe though, which is one of the reasons I stay here. Fortunately, Jesse hasn't fallen into that trap of the ‘blame game’ - he takes responsibility for his actions.



He became aware of the fact that Jesse was doing graffiti when they were living in Germany but he may well have been doing it back in the states before that he says. He realizes the art aspect of graffiti, but doesn’t really look positively towards tagging and anything else that desecrates people’s property.



I certainly didn't condone it, except when he did the ’legal‘ walls.



Being that Jesse’s father works in the medical field, he was pretty concerned about sterilization when he found out Jesse was tattooing. So in order to make sure he was doing everything correctly he made Jesse tattoo him. After the tattoo it was obvious that Jesse knew what he was doing. Not only was his father impressed with his sterilization techniques he was also extremely happy with the piece.



My best piece from him is a beautiful framed mermaid on my calf, which draws quite a bit of compliments.


Besides his father, there are also the clients that put their trust in Jesse’s ability to spellbind them. Some of them have been looking for a great cover up artist A close friend recommended I check out his work after I grew tired of a tiny tattoo on the small of my back. She sent me to his myspace page and I was impressed right away says Melinda (proud owner of the Gothic Mermaid, Screaming Turtle and the Bunnyfish). And others had just heard the hype and wanted to know if it was true. According to Shawn Barnard, owner of a huge work in progress that consists of a gorilla being driven by a politician, the hype is well deserved. When I went to Jesse’s website I was totally amazed by the colors at first, but the more I looked around, the more I was drawn into the artistic quality of his work. Jesse has an amazing eye for detail and the ability to really draw your eye to certain parts of the tattoo. I was really impressed with the way his work comes alive.



And I think the word “alive” is well suited for Jesse’s work, because he truly knows that he is working with living human beings and doesn’t consider them to be just a meal ticket. Melinda says that when they had their consultation He noticed my clothing, jewelry, asked about my job, my car, the type of artwork I like, where I live, my education, music...anything that would make it easier to more clearly define who I am. He does it in such a way that you don't realize you're being ’interviewed‘, so the answers don't come out contrived. He did a great job of putting me at ease.



And he doesn’t just push his art on the client, but makes them feel like they are artists themselves. Most people are interested in where the ideas come from… mostly Jesse but I like to say I have contributed to the madness says Andrew Routzahn, owner of the Battle between Rabbits and Mice piece parts 1 and 2. .



It was nice to actually hear the stories behind the tattoos. What makes this art form so great is the bond that is created between the artists and the clients, which is unmatched in any other art form. In my opinion, tattoos are a true folk art. I am glad there are still people like Jesse out there, ones that uphold all the traits that a great tattoo artist should have: kindness, understanding, imagination, talent, patience, firmness and a little bit of weirdness.



Jesse pushes the envelope in areas other than his art. Life mirrors art and vice versa, I think that describes him very well. You can learn from everything and make something beautiful from it , at the same time including others in the wild ride of modern day tattoo art. I remember how Gabe, creator of Tattoonow.com and owner of Off the MapTattoo in New Haven, Connecticut, told me that I have to be careful when interviewing artists, because they naturally may feel a bigger need to shelter their personal life from the public. So I thank Jesse for his trust. Without further ado, I present to you Mr. Jesse Smith; Dream weaver and modern day renaissance man.









Pyrrhus Darwin Castello: Nice to talk to you man, as always. You have just done some T-Shirt designs for different companies, any other new exciting projects on the works?.



Jesse Smith: I've always got some sort of project laying around that needs to be finished. I've been working on a painting for the past couple of years that I hope to have wrapped up by the next update. I've really been trying to focus all of my energy on it. I had originally told the fella’ that it would be done in 4 days. Needless to say, I bit off way more then I could chew.



From what I have seen, it looks really good so far. So, let's get started with these earth shattering questions. Your father was in the military and could be a pretty strict fellow. Tell us about the times when you were forced to stay in your room. What was the usual reason you were grounded in the first place and how old were you when these episodes occured? Did this “trouble start” begin when you moved in Germany, or before that?



Honestly, I really don't remember most of the reasons that I got grounded. Most of my troubles throughout life have revolved around my failure to conform, my lack of respect for rules and/or authority, and my inability to keep my mouth shut. I remember when I was younger (around 5th or 6th grade), I got in trouble for pencil fighting and was faced with the option of getting suspended from school or writing an 8-page book report on the solar system; I chose the latter. My father would always punish me on top of whatever punishment I received from school. So if I got suspended I would have to spend the time that I would normally be at school, doing chores. I was also confined to the house for the duration of the suspension and was unable to watch T.V. or talk on the phone. So I would sit in my room and draw.



As I grew older my mischief matured. During my senior year a couple of guys and myself decided to put together a senior prank. We broke into our school and stole all of the locker combinations out of the attendance office. We then removed all of the locks off of every locker in the school and switched them out with one another so that no one would be able to get into their locker the next day. We really didn't think it would be that big a deal being that they had master keys for all the locks, but the next day I showed up to school to find cops all over the place. Apparently, instead of using the master key they would just ask people for the lock’s serial number and give the combination of the lock that was on their locker. A few people claimed that some of their property had been stolen which escalated the crime even more. It took them 3 days to get school running smoothly again. Eventually the identity of the people involved was all over the school and we ended up in the principles office. After all was said and done, we were suspended for 2 weeks. I was going to a military school at the time and they shared the same philosophy of suspension that my father had. When you were suspended you had to pull community service during your time of suspension. So I had to pull community service all day and come home and do chores all night for my dad. Didn't get much time to draw during that suspension.



Can you tell me about how you once tagged a bathroom stall in school and you were caught because the picture was the same as an art project that you had turned in? Why Jesse, WHY!!? Anti Ninja...



Yeah, that was a pretty stupid move on my part. I really didn’t have much of an artistic vocabulary back then so everything I drew pretty much looked the same. The principle dragged my art teacher into the men’s room to see if she recognized any of the art that was on the stall walls. Being that I had drawn that same design over and over in art class, she didn’t have any problem dropping my name. The worst part was that one of my fellow graff buddies had lit up about 95% of the stall with a bunch of tags and bombs and I drew a little character that took up the additional 5%. I wasn’t trying to snitch on my buddy and I ended up taking the rap for the whole bit. I had to come in on my weekends to re-paint all of the stalls and cover any and all graffiti that was found on school grounds. Lesson learned: “Don’t shit where you eat.”







I think this is a good time to let one of our mystery guests ask you some questions. I give you Greg "Craola" Simkins. So Craola, what would you like to know?



When did the voices start talking to you and when did you start answering them?



Greg, what’s up buddy? As, of course, you know from experience, the voices have always been there. Never realized that it was unusual until around the age of 9, about the time I started to talk myself. I’d be talking to them while in school and the other kids would make fun of me. I soon realized that talking to them at school was detrimental to my social standing so I saved the in depth conversations for when I was alone. As time went on I realized that not all of the voices cared about my well-being. Some of them were definitely trying to set me up for failure. Paranoia set in around the age of 16 and it’s really been difficult for me to ignore them since. So I spend most of my time secluded, trying to figure out which ones have my best interest in mind and which ones have an ulterior motive. The older I get the more political it gets. I really don’t know how much longer I can take it.



You should have a secretary, like Cage does. Another question that doesn’t make any sense to me (Because I don’t hunt, I kill...)



What is the best time of year to go raccoon hunting?



I would have to say, whenever Dick Cheney’s out hunting. That way we can kill two birds with one stone. (One of my voices told me to say that)







Back to our normal broadcast. This will be a two-part question. As in capitalism, the motto of graffiti is pretty much, "get on top, be the biggest". You try to get your name out more than others, in hopes of someday being the top dog. You have to "crush" others to get there. This can be done in very negative way, not just with paint.



Is it a healthy and natural competition or a negative side effect of the society? What’s your take on it? Secondly, why can’t people just say that they are painters, why would do they feel inclined to call themselves graffiti artists? Why did you become one?



Initially, I got into graffiti because I really loved the art that was produced by the artists involved. Back when I started I lived in Germany and really didn't know where to find art magazines; the only art that I saw was on the walls around me. There was no internet back then. I would run around with my camera and take pictures of all the surrounding graffiti, take it home and copy it. I eventually mustered up the guts to start painting myself. I started off with some shitty car spray paint that I bought at one of the local stores and ventured out to paint my first piece. It was horrible. I never got into graffiti politics when I was in Germany. I would just go out and paint the best piece that I could. I never painted over another artist and would never paint private property. My goal wasn't to destroy public property, get on top, or to compete with other artists. I just wanted the world to see my art.



As I started to get better, graffiti became more political. I always figured that when I met another graffiti artist we would be friends automatically just because we shared the same interest. That wasn't the case. Other graffiti artists saw me as competition rather than a friend. I really didn't understand.



I'm sure there are a lot of graffiti artists out there who are trying to "get on top, be the biggest" but there are also a bunch that are just trying to create a good piece of art, add color to a plain wall. As far as your comparison to capitalism, I think that for every artist/person that is out there "crushing"/stepping on people to get to the top, there are a bunch of people that are willing to settle for a little bit less in order to keep their integrity.



Do you think that your views on graffiti culture would be different if you had started in the states?



Most of the latter part of my graffiti career has been spent in Virginia. Virginia is a relatively conservative state and because of the massive penalties you can obtain from being caught, it has affected the overall dynamics of the local graff scene. Graffiti-esque type murals are hard to come by and the overall feel of the place is relatively monotonous. If you really want to see some good graffiti you have to go behind the scenes. I later moved to Texas where the dynamics of the graff scene were a lot different then they were in Richmond. The artists were more inviting and treated one another like family. Of course, not all of them got along, but for the most part they were more united. Graffiti was more a part of their everyday culture. Store owners would lend us their walls so that we could paint murals. There was graffiti everywhere. We would paint pretty much every day and every night. So, to answer your question, I think my views on graffiti would probably be the same no matter where I grew up, but it may have taken me a little longer to get into it had I grown up in a place like Virginia.



If I understand correctly, to you graffiti is about a sort of unity. So who in the graffiti world, do you feel puts out sick art and has that unity mentality? How important is it for you to have a positive connection with other writers, not just the ones that you work with?



I usually won’t paint with someone if I don’t catch a good vibe off of them. It is kind of one of those scenes that can get pretty dirty if you get caught up with the wrong people. A few people who I have painted with and respect are FRENZY, SUPHER, DIGET, REPAE, AWAIT, CRAOLA, and DALEK. All of these guys are extremely talented and good down to earth people.







Btw. How did you come up with your graffiti alias, Yuse, and what does it stand for?



It’s been a difficult journey trying to find a name that I liked on all levels (the meaning/letters). My first graffiti name was JIZ. I used to do these horrible pieces all over the city of my name with jiz squirting out of them. Looking back I realize how lame it was, but at the time I thought I was hot shit. As time went on I became bored with the letters and switched it up a bunch. I followed one stupid name up with another. I eventually came up with a name I really liked, JUSE. I wrote JUSE for a bit but soon realized that there was another fellow who wrote it in LA. He was a lot better then I was and it only made sense to change my name out of respect. So I came up with YUSE. I had spent so much time with JUSE that it seemed to be the next logical step. So YUSE has pretty much been my name since.



Because your father was in the military, you have seen more of the world than the average person, this has to have made an impact on your art. Would you say that your Geisha of Guadalupe piece was inspired by your expanded world view, or was this something that came from your home life?







The initial idea for the piece spawned from the mind of one of my co-workers, Mr. Fred Pinckard. We were painting pieces for one another and I asked him what he wanted. He told me that he wanted the Virgin of Guadalupe as a Geisha. So, during the creative process, I decided since we've merged two cultures into one piece, why not throw a few more in there. So I started to look around for a bunch of symbols that represented different beliefs and cultures and added them.



I do, however, think that being exposed to a ton of different cultures and beliefs has opened my mind and does tend to find it's way into my art. I have learned, throughout my travels, that I can find a friend and an enemy in people of every culture or belief system.



In what other ways can traveling be seen in your tattoos and art?



I've come to realize that I learn the most within the first 6 months of living or working somewhere. After that I tend to plateau. So by jumping around from place to place or shop to shop I have had the opportunity to work with a ton of awesome artists. Each artist has helped sculpt me into who I am today.







Here is a question from your friend Jason Stephan.



Why have you worked in so many different tattoo studios?



Hey Jason, what’s up? I know you already know the answer to this, but I’ll flatter you for the sake of the interview.



Throughout my 8-year career as a tattoo artist I have lived in Florida, Texas, England and 3 separate parts of Virginia. Most of the time when I quit a shop it’s because I’m moving, however I have been fired a couple of times as well. It’s usually because of my inability to conform to the standard tattoo ways (i.e. make money not art). I definitely have a different idea of what a tattoo shop should be and unfortunately most of the shops that I have left don’t agree with me. I have worked at a ton of great shops, all of which, I either left because I was moving or I was just ready for something new. I have a problem finding comfort in monotony.



How did I end up on the chopping block?? I think you guys need to get in here and answer some questions!



What’s your favorite cartoon and how do you think it has influenced your art??



Jason: The Simpsons. I've been told that everything I draw looks like I ripped it off from a Simpsons episode. I've tried to disagree, but the more I do, the more it is said.



I personally think it looks like it came from Alice in Wonderland. So Jesse, did you tell your dad right off the bat that you wanted to start tattooing?



When I first started tattooing I really didn't think it was that big a deal. I was tattooing friends and co-workers out of my house for fun. To me it didn't make a difference whether I was using a spray can, airbrush, tattoo machine or a toothbrush, I just liked to draw. I honestly really never thought I'd become a tattoo artist. I was just using another medium. Before long, I was doing a couple tattoos a week and decided that I would try and get a job in a shop. I've never had a problem telling my father anything, so he pretty much knew I was tattooing as soon as I started.



Your father made you convince him that you were sterile when tattooing. So what did you do to insure him that you operated cleanly?



I tattooed him. My father is in the Medical field so he’s pretty up to date with all the standard sterilization procedures so tattooing him was the ultimate test. He wouldn’t let me get away with anything.



Have you tattooed any other family members besides your Dad? Is there more pressure in a situation where you have to tattoo someone close to you?



I've done a lot of work on my younger brother and a few of my ex girlfriends. I think initially there is more pressure when tattooing people who are close to me, mostly because I'm going to have to look at their piece for the years to come. I find myself staring at my brother's arm sometimes, thinking about all the things I could have done differently. All in all I try to do my best on every piece whether it's on a family member or a client off the street.



What are the best lessons that you have learned from your family? What do you think you have given them?



That's a tough one. I would have to say that I've learned a lot about how much parental influence has an impact on the future of a kid. My parents divorced when I was 16 and my siblings (2 brothers, who were 13 and 14 and a sister who was 2) and I were all split up. My father was always more of the disciplinary parent who believed in structure and rational thought. My mother always had the spiritual, creative, “don't hit the kids” type of outlook on things. The two youngest went with my mother and my other brother and I went with my father. In watching the progression over time, I have noticed the tremendous difference in lifestyles based on who lived with which parent the longest. It's definitely given me a different perspective on why certain people act the way they do.







Relating to this, do you think its important for tattoo artists to have a good sense of humanity in general, maybe by reading psychology or traveling so they can get the best out of clients when doing a consultation for a tattoo?



I’m not sure it’s important, but I do think it has helped me dig a little deeper. Most of my clients already have a great idea floating around in their heads, they just need someone to drag it out of them.



I’m curious, how did you react when I started to bombard you with emails way back? Was it weird that someone you didn’t know talked to as if they knew you, or at least talk about your art the way that I did? If I was out of line sometimes, what were the things that made you feel uncomfortable? Is this kind of thing unusual? How do you think artists in general feel about this kind of behavior? Is there anything positive in it?



I love to answer emails and talk to the people who support me as well as my art. Without them I wouldn’t be where I am today. I remember emailing a couple of artists that I really admired and never getting a response from them. It was pretty upsetting to me and I definitely harbored some sour feelings towards them. So I told myself that I would make every effort to answer every email that I ever got so that no one would feel that way about me. As I started to get more and more recognition the amount of emails I was receiving grew and grew. I remember getting back from a 7 day vacation and spending 8 hours answering emails. It was then that I realized I was getting to a point where if I answered every email that came my way that I wouldn’t have time to draw and being that drawing pays the bills, it ended up taking priority. I still try and answer as many of the emails as I can, but there are definitely some that slip through the cracks. Now I understand why those artists never got back to me.



If you could travel back in time and live in the era of any art style in the world, where would you go, and what would you do there?



I would stay here. I love the art that is being put out nowadays. I've always been more interested in contemporary art then the art of the past. I really respect a lot of artists from back in the day, but I'm more intrigued by "the new".







That’s exactly the same thing I said to a person about 4 months ago! She asked me where would I like to be (relating to art) if I could choose any time and place. I told her that I would like to be at Primal Urge (now Skull & Sword) right here, right now. Here’s another one from Craola:



If you were to live in a cartoon, which one would it be?



Man, that’s a tough one. This may sound kind of soft, but I would have say the Wuzzles. Don’t really know what the story line was about but I really enjoyed all the characters. A few more that stick out would be Thunder Cats, Silver Hawks, Gummie Bears, and He-Man. How bout you??



Craola: That's an easy one. The Groovy Ghoulies. Because they're groovy and they're ghoulie.



I heard a rumor that you have a bunch of elves helping you paint your paintings. Where do you hide them and why you don’t give them any recognition??



Where did you hear that? I don't hide them and they don't like recognition. They are actually Oompa Loompas and they help maintain the waterfall that mixes my chocolate. Did you know that mine is the only art studio that uses waterfall to mix the chocolate?



(uncomfortable silence)



One time at band camp...



(uncomfortable silence continues)



Right... When was the last time that you tattooed flash or a ready-made picture?



I still knock one out every now and then when one of my appointments bails on me. I kind of miss that stuff sometimes. It’s pretty refreshing to finish a piece on one sitting.



Unlike many tattoo artists who are heavily into new school, you have the fantasy vibe going on for you. You break the normal straight cartoon stuff and add paint-like backgrounds. It multiplies the effect and it gets the imagination running letting the viewer go deeper and deeper into your world. Has this been something that you have embraced from the start, or is it something that you have developed over time? Are you trying to make the cartoon world seem a little more real by doing this?



For the first couple of years of tattooing, I never put backgrounds on anything. I never really thought anything of it until I went to work for Bugs. He used to bitch me out for every mistake I ever made. Not putting backgrounds on my tattoos was one of them. So I started adding backgrounds. Initially I was kind of stumped as to what type of backgrounds to add to my pieces. So I would add the typical backgrounds like wind bars, negative space stars, and spirally cloudy type stuff. It soon evolved into scenes. I wanted to give the character a place to live. So I started putting in landscapes. It's been a slow process, but I try to come up with something a little different for every tattoo whether it be colors or the shapes of the trees, mountains or clouds. I also have been extremely inspired by the flow of Japanese work as well as Guy Aitchisons tattoos. So I’ve tried to incorporate that flow into my pieces by slanting the horizon lines and the overall background.







How did you start working with Bugs? Did you just pop out of the clear sky into his studio like a teleported space monkey or what was the situation like?



I had decided in my sophomore year of college that I wanted to study abroad somewhere. I kind of wanted to go to a place where I could communicate with the locals and being that I don’t speak any languages other than English my options were limited; I chose London, England. I started to tell everyone that I was going to go get a job at Bugs’ shop and everyone would laugh at me and say “Yeah, right”. When I got over there I headed straight for his studio, walked in the front door and asked for a job. Luckily for me, someone had just left a week or two prior and there was a space available. After telling me how unimpressed he was with my work, Bugs gave me a job. Bugs definitely kept me on my toes and wouldn’t let me get away with anything. He once bitched me out for making a bubble oval instead of round. Although it sucked at the time, but Bugs was definitely a pivotal point in my career and he really inspired me to take my art to the next level.



Do you like clients who come to you without any clear ideas, so you can do what ever you want, or do you want some type of starting point? How do these two situations differ from each other in good and in bad?



I prefer clients who have some sort of idea of what they like and don't like. I find it difficult to deal with clients who have no idea of what it is that they believe in or what they like. Over the years I've noticed that the clients that come in and say they don't care what I do, start to care when I draw a zombie squirrel with a mechanical arm sticking out of its head dropping acorn bombs on six armed gorillas being driven by shifty politicians. I try and get as much info out of them as possible during the consultation.



That sounds like my normal nightly hallucinations! But what if the client has too much stuff in their head? Like if Ziltoid The Omniscient was your client and he said he wanted "modular forms and elliptic curves, infinite fire revolving around infinite parallels, fractals of infinite reality, each cascading and gliding in an infinite wheel"? What then? Do you ever refuse to tattoo someone?



Yes, I have had to refuse a few tattoos here and there. I get a lot of requests for tattoos that are way out of my spectrum. If someone comes in asking me for a Japanese Sleeve, I try and direct them towards an artist who specializes in that type of stuff. I’ve learned over the years that if I’m not inspired by the piece it will reflect in the outcome. So I’d rather someone be a little pissed because I sent them somewhere else, then be pissed that I gave them something that wasn’t a 100%.







Lets continue on the lighter side of things. Another one from Jason



Has being an artist ever gotten you laid? If so, did you take any pictures?



My art looks much better then I do, so I’m sure it’s helped, J.



Speaking of looks, which celebrity do you get compared to the most when your hair is grown out??



Jason: When My hair grows out I've been told I look like Deuce Bigalow. So I shave my head most of the time.



This question is a little different. What kind of tattoo would you do with these guidelines? I will just make something up and then you describe what you draw. Ok, I want there to be some farmhouses that don’t have any animals in them. Maybe a detention centers for nuns. I want the number 7 to be there somehow and 2 of the seven deadly sins represented, some walking eggs that are confused, a chainsaw and a drunken monkey in a priest outfit fighting something. GO!



If someone actually came in with that idea I’d probably draw up a Octopus Turtle with a blow hole on it’s forehead shooting out two eggs. One with a chicken head and legs sticking out of it with goggles and a scarf and also a question mark on its head. The other one would be plain with your number 7 on it. The tentacles of the Octopus Turtle would be strangling the Drunken Monkey while he was sawing away at them in hopes to escape. Both would be controlled by a character that would represent the two deadly sins that you would request. I’m thinking a fat rabbit in the mouth of the Octopus Turtle would be cool. Matter of fact, I’d probably put another rabbit that was super angry driving the Monkey to represent Wrath. I’d knock out the farmhouse, because it doesn’t seem to hold relevance. If they didn’t like that I’d probably draw up a koi. Everyone likes koi.



Yeah, koi with lasers coming out of its eyes! Good ol’ traditional laser koi. Well, anyway. You have done collaborations with Electric Pick, Craola and Jason Stephan. Tell us about how the idea of working together came to about and the process you used with each individual artist. Who would you like to work with in the future?



My first collaboration was with Craola. I had been talking to him via Internet for a couple of years and finally had the opportunity to paint with him out in California a couple years back. No more then 2 months after I returned a client came in with a bunch of Craola's work and asked me if I could mix his style with mine. I told him that I had just come back from hanging out with him and that it would only make sense to get him involved. So I called him up and asked him if he'd be interested in getting down with the piece. He was all about it. So I sent off two sketches to Craola and told him to pick his favorite and run with it. He sent it back; I made a few minor adjustments and ran with it.





















My second collaboration was with Electric Pick. Pick and I met in China about 3 years ago. I've always loved his work, plus we shared a lot of the same ideas about the industry so it was good to finally meet him. While working the Boston Convention, we had been talking about doing a collaboration together and no more then a day or two later an artist named Darrin White asked if we would be interested in doing one on him. Darrin gave us a basic idea and Pick and I started sketching it up. Once we had an idea of what we were going to do, we took turns drawing the piece on Darrins leg until he was satisfied and then started bashing it out.











My last collaboration was with one of my best friends, Jason Stephan. We had been talking about doing collaborative paintings for awhile and one of his friends had shown interest in getting us to do a collaborative tattoo on him. He said he really didn't care what we did so I tossed together a ton of rabbits and shot them off to Jason. He added a little flavor to it and tossed it back. We did this a couple more times until we came up with something that we were both happy with. His friend liked it so we made a stencil and started tattooing.























As far as future collaborations, I've already got another one with Pick in progress with another one on the horizon. I'm also planning to do one with this fellow from Australia named Jason Jacenko. I'd love to do a piece with pretty much any artist in my links section.



How important is it to be versatile and do stuff besides tattoo? What do you enjoy most about working with different mediums?



I used to think it was highly beneficial to be versatile, but as I've grown as an artist I've come to realize that if I were going to pick out an artist I would want to know what I was getting into before I asked him/her. If you go to Guy Aitchison or Paul Booth, you have some sort of idea of what type of piece they might put together for you. But if you go to an artist who has a portfolio full of realistic portraits, reproductive work, Japanese, traditional and new school, you'll never know what s/he's going come up with. Although I respect artists who are versatile, I'd much rather get tattooed by someone who specializes in the style that I am looking for, therefore, I try to build some sort of continuity with my portfolio in hopes that my clientele will know what they are getting into before they hit me up.



As far as learning different mediums, I think it can definitely add to your arsenal. I've carried a lot of painting techniques into my tattooing and vice versa. Every medium has it's own lesson to learn.







Go ahead Jason.



Do you have any mental quirks or pet peeves? How does this help or hurt your creative process?



I never noticed any mental quirks or pet peeves until I started working with other artists. It was then that I started getting labeled as obsessive compulsive, anal, controlling, attention deficit and different. I later realized that the same things that worked against me in a social setting, work to my advantage in an artistic setting. It’s kind of hard to relate to the average person when you think differently, but that different train of thought helps set you apart in the art world. So it’s definitely a double-edged sword.



Why don’t you like milk in your cereal??



Jason: I've never had milk before. It seems like it would be gross.



You should try lactose-free milk. It’s sweeter (at least in Finland), so it’s like having candy for breakfast.



Jesse, you've said in some past interviews that you've had some close encounters with the law when painting graffiti and also that you felt you had more artistic freedom when it was just you and the walls. Do you find yourself trying to get that same rush and sense of freedom when doing tattoos? If so, how do you achieve it?



Over the past year or so, my clientele has opened up a bit more and given me a lot more freedom. This has opened up a whole new world of possibilities for me. Back in the day, I'd sketch up a piece and the client would come in and take out all the parts that I thought were cool. As time moved on my clients started giving me more freedom and instead of a watered down version of an initial sketch, my tattoos are starting to become exactly what I had envisioned. As far as the rush, I don't really know that doing a tattoo can compare to the feeling of getting chased by the cops.



In a way relating to this, Craola wants to know



Have you ever hidden anything in a tattoo that the client didn't know about?



Nah, I’d hate for someone to do that to me so I’d never do that to anyone else. That shit is fucked up! Although I do think that sometimes I draw so much stuff that the client doesn’t realize things are in there until we’re finished. For the most part, they seem to find it a pleasant surprise.



Craola: Where do you get your inspiration for your characters? Straight out of your mind, from other art, T.V, music?



I usually just grab stuff off of your website. If for some reason your site is down, I’m forced to pull it all out of my head. For the most part, I usually surf the web a bit, looking at other artist’s work as well as googling images to prime my mind for a drawing. If it’s something that I’ve drawn a bunch or have a pretty good vision of then I’ll just go straight to the paper.



Where do you get the inspiration for your characters??



All over the place I guess; cartoons, stories from my youth, comics, nature. Sometimes I just start drawing and wait to see what comes out of the pencil.



Jesse, what were the latest movies, books (comics count), or music that left a lasting impression on you?



I just ran across this girls website (www.Audrey-Kawasaki.com) that I really loved. I’ve seen her work in the past but never really looked at it for an extensive amount of time. This time around it really inspired me. As far as movies, comic books, or music I’d have to say Silent hill definitely put some cool ideas in my head. I really enjoyed the creatures in that movie. I also like that one creature in Pan’s Labyrinth (the one who put his eyeballs in his hands). That shit was sick! Although it seemed a little too much like Chet Czars work. Oh, and those creatures from “Hitch Hikers Guide to the Galaxy”. The main creatures reminded me a lot of Tim Biedron’s work.







El cool. Next question. Since you have wrestled in your past and you are a relatively active person, you know that tattoo artists have to take care of their back as well as the rest of their body (hands, eyes, arms, etc.) so that they can have a long lasting career without pain or injury. How do you see that working for clients? Should clients be advised, aside from how to take care of their tattoo, how to improve the canvas (skin) that they offer the tattoo artist? Because if you really love the art, shouldn't you offer the ideal canvas for it?



I definitely think that it would be good to inform the clientele how to take care of their skin prior to getting tattooed. However, there is tons of conflicting info out there about the right way to better your skin. It normally takes years to get your skin to a healthy point once it's gotten to the level at which you notice it's no longer healthy. I used to tattoo one fellow who had skin like a rhinoceros. I had to go over every tattoo I did on him about 3 times in order to get the same saturation that I would with one pass on a person with healthy skin. I've also come to realize that diet can play a big role. I used to tattoo this vegan girl and her skin would hold the ink perfectly, one pass every time. I guess what it really comes down to is that there is no concrete info out there just yet. I could tattoo another vegan and have different results. So until there is some concrete info it's going to be difficult to instruct someone as to how to go about preparing their skin for a tattoo.



Here’s one from your other buddy, Electric Pick



Do you think that what you eat can influence your work? If you eat better will your work be better? Is someone who eats at McDonalds for example, doomed to do crappy work, and someone who is eating natural biowhatever food, much more prone to do groundbreaking original quality work?



It’s funny you should ask Pick, because I read an article the other day that said that it was scientifically proven that if you drink at least one triple espresso a day, accompanied by a Guiness and an overabundance of Lucky Strikes it will inhibit your ability to draw female anatomy. But for some reason it really doesn’t seem to affect you.



What’s your secret?



Pick: Oh! But it does, you're absolutely right Jesse!! It does affect and inhibit my ability to draw female anatomy a lot. One can only imagine what obscenities I could come up with if I stopped all of the above vices of life and started eating bio-grass sandwiches and drinking multi-nut organic milk!



Out of all the places you've visited throughout your travels, which one is your favorite? Which one has the best girls?



Pick: A favorite place is always hard to choose! You always miss something from somewhere and some other place always looks like it has something new to offer! Melbourne, Australia for good chilling times with no worries. Berlin, Germany is the world center for art and culture. Paris, France is the most beautiful city I know of. Shanghai, China is the best place to go party in. For all around living, with the fewest downsides I would say by far, Copenhagen, Denmark! However, for the girl factor; pretty girls are everywhere but nowhere as much as in Montreal, Canada!!



I know Jason did your chest tattoo, who else do you have work from?



Jason actually did my chin tattoo, a fellow named Greg Agner here in Richmond, has done all of my other work. He’s another one of my inspirations. Not only is he a very talented artist, he is also super humble. I’ve always respected the fact that he never gets too involved in tattoo politics.







Do you think it’s important for a tattoo artist to actually be tattooed, if not heavily, at least something other than just a little flower on their shoulder?



Although, I think that getting tattooed can only help you understand what your clients are going through, I really don’t think being heavily tattooed is a necessity to putting in a good tattoo. I’ve seen a lot of heavily tattooed artists who couldn’t tattoo their way out of a wet paper bag. I’ve also seen a bunch of mildly tattooed artists who were awesome.



I think that’s it! This was fun man. I hope you liked it too. Because nothing beats sitting in front of the computer for hours and hours on a hot sunny day! Anything else you would like to say before we close?



This is probably the longest interview I have ever taken part in. I really find it hard to believe that anyone would be interested enough in me to read all of it. Thanks for taking the time to put together such a great interview, Petri. You rock!









I wouldn’t have been able to rock without you. I, and many others are, interested enough in your art to read it all.



I will tell you a little about how I found Jesse and his art. I think I typed "graffiti tattoos" in Google one night, and after some searching, someone somewhere wrote that this guy named Jesse Smith does killer graffiti tattoos. With my hands sweating, I typed that magical name into the search engine.



"Kaoticenzymes. Is that it? Doesn’t say Jesse anywhere. Might as well check it out..."



And then it began. Unlike many other new school tattooers, he projected just the thing I had seen on walls onto people’s skin. When I saw the "The battle between the rabbits and the mice" piece for the first time, I just started to laugh. It was unlike anything I had seen before on someone’s body. The way it was placed was new to me, the colors were fantastic and the way it popped out was freakish. How the hell does he do that, I remember thinking. After looking at this stuff for some time I decided to contact him.



I can’t remember what I asked him, but I know I wasn’t trying to get tattooed by him. I live in Finland and I don’t swim in money, so I just thought I would write him to tell him that I really liked his art. And to my surprise, he wrote back. We wrote back and forth for a wile, I think I wrote 5 emails for every one that he sent back. I remember he didn’t get pissed at me for writing ton of shit to him, even if he was busy as hell. It was great to talk to someone who had the same kind of weird ideas I did. As all great tattoo artists, he is a complex character who has a bottomless imagination, while being a great people person.



And when it comes down to making life long decisions about getting a tattoo, I wouldn't accept anything but the best of both worlds.



P.S. I would also like to thank Jason Stephan (www.jasonstephan.com), Greg "Craola" Simkins (www.imscared.com) and Electrick Pick (www.electricpick.com) for their help when I was putting together this interview. That’s what I am all about; Unity.



Peace out.



Jesse Smith

Ghostprint Gallery

Richmond, Virginia

www.kaoticenzymes.com