VAN NAVA

Happy New Year everyone! 🍾 Did everyone enjoy their holiday season? Did you do anything crazy for the New Year?! I know the end of the year can be super busy for most of us but let’s all take a minute to enjoy the start of the new year and learn about this month’s spotlight artist. 

We would like to introduce one of Maverick’s newest Family artists, Van Nava. Van hales from Denver Colorado and has been professionally tattooing for 7 years now. Back in 2021 he opened up a private tattoo studio in downtown Denver with a good friend and fellow tattooer Tier Nguyen @Skvllhound. Van spends pretty much all of his time tattooing and when he finds some free time he likes to repair and refurbish Thermofax machines! “I’d say my art is heavily influenced by my background of oil painting mixed with my love of bold and saturated tattoos that are made to last.” Van has some amazing work and great responses in his interview.

Instagram: vanxtattoos

Tiktok: vanxtattoos

WHAT DO YOU LOVE ABOUT MAVERICK?

I love Maverick’s high quality products and their personal touches on each order. I’m also happy to support Maverick as a company that gives back to the Tattoo community and charitable organizations that support the arts. 

MAVERICK'S GOAL IS TO HELP OTHERS WHERE WE CAN. AS PART OF OUR 'GIVE BACK' PROGRAM, $1 FOR EVERY CARTRIDGE BOX SOLD GOES TOWARDS THIS PROGRAM WITH A CAP OF 1K MONTHLY. WE TRY TO TARGET FOOD, ART, AND MUSIC (FAM) BASED NONPROFITS OR THINGS RELATED TO THE TATTOO COMMUNITY AND ARTISTS (LIKE SPECIFIC GOFUNDME PAGES FOR ARTISTS). IS THERE A SPECIFIC ORGANIZATION THAT YOU ARE INTERESTED IN? FOR YOUR SPOTLIGHT MONTH WE ARE GOING TO DONATE MONEY FOR AN ORGANIZATION OF YOUR CHOICE. PLEASE PROVIDE THE WEBSITE TO MAKE SURE WE GET THE CORRECT ORGANIZATION. WHAT MAKES YOU PASSIONATE ABOUT THIS ORGANIZATION?

Artfromashes.org is an organization that is designed to help at-risk youth with self expression through art to help promote constructive development. I can definitely relate to the issues these kids are facing as I too had many of the same issues when I was young.

 

 

WHAT ARE YOUR FAVORITE GROUPINGS TO USE FOR YOUR TATTOOS?

I often use 7RL, 3RL, 9RS and 15CMBP for all my tattoos. 

THE PENGUIN IS THE MAVERICK FOUNDER'S SPIRIT ANIMAL. WHAT'S YOUR SPIRIT ANIMAL?

My favorite movie was The Lion king as a toddler, so much so that my first words were “Squish Banana” 😹. My favorite animals from the movie were the hyenas which spawned my life long fascination with them. Petting a hyena is on my bucket list for sure! 

CAN YOU DESCRIBE YOUR FIRST TATTOO EXPERIENCE ? HOW OLD WERE YOU? WHAT WAS IT OF AND WHO WAS THE ARTIST ?

Believe it or not I got my first “Real Tattoo” when I was 14. It was a solid black star on my neck by a Tattooer who was an apprentice at the time. After this tattoo I became obsessed with the idea of tattooing. I will forever be grateful to him as he unknowingly introduced me to my life long passion.  

TOP 3 ARTISTS YOU ADMIRE. CAN YOU GIVE US A BRIEF DESCRIPTION?

Aniela Dahlgren - I have been awe struck by her tattoos since the first time I saw them, all her work is bold and yet still painterly and soft. 

Justin Hartman - His work is beautifully composed, technical and calculated. He has been a huge inspiration of mine in tattooing. 

Bobby Johnson - Bobby’s tattoos are second to none in my opinion. All his projects have beautiful color schemes flow and amazing attention to detail. 

WHAT ARE SOME FUNNY TATTOO MOMENTS YOU HAVE?

There’s too many moments to list. One of my favorite things about this career is the ability to share stories and jokes with my clients and coworkers.Tattoo shop antics are very unpredictable.

IF YOU WERE TO CHOOSE A BAND TO BEST DESCRIBE YOUR ARTWORK, WHICH BAND WOULD YOU CHOOSE AND WHY?

That’s a hard question. I guess I would just say any aggressive music because that’s what I want to listen to while I tattoo. 

IF YOU WERE TO WIN BEST TATTOOER IN THE WORLD WHO WOULD YOU THANK AND WHY?

I think if that ever happened I would finally be able to give myself a pat on the back. 

SECRET HIDDEN TALENT? WHAT IS IT?

I can forget people's names almost instantly after meeting them 😅

WHAT IS YOUR KRYPTONITE?

The sun! I’m very pale.

ANY PERSON THAT YOU WOULD LIKE TO TRADE PLACES WITH FOR THE DAY?

Gordon Ramsey! I'd get to eat the best foods when I want , be brutally honest and yell in a British accent. 

WHAT BOOK OR MOVIE WOULD YOU SAY EVERYONE SHOULD READ OR WATCH? WHY WOULD YOU RECOMMEND THAT SPECIFIC ONE?

I think everyone should watch the movie Snatch just because it’s one of my favorites and the first movie to come to mind. 

WHICH STATE ARE YOU LOCATED? WHAT DO YOU LIKE MOST ABOUT WHERE YOU LIVE AND WHY?

I currently live in the Denver metro area in Colorado, I prefer Colorado because I feel as though people here are creatively open and are overall very friendly compared to other places I’ve lived. 

WHAT IS SOMETHING WEIRD YOU DO BEFORE BEDTIME?

Ok this is pretty specific and weird but here we go … often right before I fall asleep I always picture how to position my feet on a skateboard to accomplish a predetermined trick. then I play out in my head what movements I would need to do in order to successfully land that trick. I don’t know why but I find this very calming. Although I have woken myself and my girlfriend up by kicking to try and do these tricks as I’m falling asleep. 

WHAT WOULD YOU SAY IS THE BEST WAY TO DEAL WITH STRESS?

I’m the wrong person to ask about that, but I feel most at ease when I’m tattooing. For me all the stress of day to day life goes away when I’m tattooing and talking with my clients. 

DO YOU HAVE A MOMENT THAT CHANGED YOUR LIFE? DO YOU MIND SHARING?

Unfortunately I had some pretty traumatic experiences early in my childhood that drastically changed my outlook on life. Because of these events I was forced to mature quickly. Despite it all stemming from negative experiences I feel as though it motivates me to make positive decisions.

WHO IS THE MOST UNIQUE TATTOOER YOU HAVE EVER MET?

Probably Bobby Johnson, he is one of my favorite people and endlessly entertaining. 

WITH HAVING TO PROMOTE YOURSELF ON SOCIAL MEDIA, HOW DO YOU MAINTAIN A POSITIVE MINDSET?

Social media to me has just become so routine that it doesn’t really affect me negatively. Despite staying busy I always look forward to promoting new projects on social media because any chance to get the projects I work so hard on seen by new people is exciting to me. I also enjoy looking back at older posts on social media to see my progression. I tend to be my worst critic so looking back at my old work at least gives me a sense of accomplishment from where I was to where I am.