Maverick ZINE — Tattoo Culture, Art & Artist Stories

Evan Jones

📍 Downington, PA

@evjonestattoos

Get ready to meet Evan Jones, an artist whose journey into tattooing was as unexpected as it was ultimately fulfilling! Unlike many who dream of tattooing from day one, Evan "sort of fell into it" - but what a fortunate fall it was.

After graduating art school and struggling with unfulfilling graphic and product design jobs (and even recovering from an emergency appendectomy!), a friend's timely call changed everything. Offered an apprenticeship in New Jersey, Evan, who hadn't even considered tattooing before, decided to take a leap of faith. It was "seriously the best decision I've ever made."

From the moment he started, Evan knew he'd found his calling. The technical side came naturally, and he discovered a deep passion for the daily creative challenges, connecting with clients, and the profound privilege of creating deeply personal art. Despite feeling a touch of "imposter syndrome" due to his accidental entry into the industry, Evan's immense "love, devotion, and passion" for his craft shines through in every piece. 

Make sure to read below to learn more about Evan! 

What made you realize you wanted to be a tattoo artist?

To be honest, I sort of fell into it. Before getting my apprenticeship I was living back at home with my mom after graduating art school (because student loans + art degree = zero income). I found work doing graphic design and product design for a large camping and vacation supply distributor and HATED it. Not only because I was underpaid for the work I was doing, but it was not at all what I wanted to do or where I wanted to be. All I ever wanted in life was to make a living doing art, but I struggled for years trying to figure out where my passion was. I was always drawing from a young age and had tried all varieties of freelance work ranging from commissioned paintings and murals, to t-shirt design, gig posters, coloring comics, and working every other type of job you could think of that was related to art in some way (screen printing, photo editing, art framing, etc etc.) But nothing ever stuck or felt like it filled that creative hole. Then one day, I was chilling in a hospital room recovering from an emergency appendectomy (just to add another layer to how awesome and not at all depressing my life was at the time), when a friend I’d graduated art school with called me up and asked if I wanted to move to New Jersey and learn to tattoo. Turned out she had fallen into it herself after making friends with a tattoo shop owner and, due to being insanely talented herself, was able to progress very quickly through her apprenticeship. Her mentor asked if she knew anybody else like her, showed him my work online, and they reached out to offer me an apprenticeship as long as I could get my ass from upstate NY to NJ. 

Even though I’d been tattooed before, I for some reason never even considered tattooing as an option.  Probably because I either felt I wasn’t cool enough and/or tattooed enough at the time to fit the image, or didn’t feel confident enough in myself to do the actual work. But I hated where I was living and hated what I was doing, so it was hard to really see a downside. So I said “Fuck it!’  I put all my eggs in that basket and moved to New Jersey, and it was seriously the best decision Ive ever made. 

As soon as I started learning to tattoo, it was clear that this was the thing that I had been searching for.  Not only did the technical side of it seem to come easily, but I loved that every day brought a new fun and interesting design challenge. I loved connecting with clients and hearing their stories and being given their trust and the privilege to provide a service that is so deeply personal and meaningful for them. It just checked so many boxes I didn't even know I had, and my passion for it grew fast. 

Although this all happened by accident, I could never imagine myself doing anything else. I think I’ll probably always feel a little bit like an imposter or like I somehow cheated my way into this career. I know there are so many artists that pay out the ass or fight tooth and nail just to have an opportunity at an apprenticeship because tattooing is their goal and focus from the very beginning.  What happened for me is incredibly rare and I am acutely aware of just how lucky I am. But even if this all happened by accident, I think my output proves just how much love, devotion, and passion I have for this craft and shows just how hard I work to continuously learn and improve on my craft. Not only to provide the best for my clients, but to honor the incredible life that this career has gifted me. 

I’m sure there are much more meaningful tattoos and moments I’ve helped create for people over the years, but the first that always come to mind is one day during my first year tattooing: We got a call at the shop and were asked what the age limit was for someone’s first tattoo. We explained that any client must be 18 or older,  or at least 16 with parental permission. To which they answered “No, I mean what’s the OLDEST age you can tattoo”. Their grandmother had just turned 90, and when visiting her at her retirement home on her birthday, they asked her if there was anything she’d never done that she had always wanted to do as a way to help her celebrate such a huge milestone. Next thing you know, she’s shuffling through the front door of the shop and, to this day, was the sweetest, toughest, and most sharp witted 90 year old I’ve ever met. I had just tattooed her great granddaughter a week before, so the idea was fresh in her mind. She said she remembered when she was a little girl and saw a woman with a shamrock tattoo and always thought it was so cute, and if she’d ever had the opportunity, she’d get the same tattoo in the same spot on her ankle. She figured she probably wouldn’t have many other chances after turning 90, so that’s what we did! But as many reading this will know, tattooing any skin over the age of about 60 can get a bit dicey in terms of the quality. So is it an amazing tattoo? Not at all. But she couldn’t have been a better client and couldn’t have been happier or more grateful for the experience. It was one of the simplest tattoos I’ve ever done, but it was so rewarding to be able to help someone fulfill that lifelong wish at such an old age. And that’s sort of the point of all this, right? I know we’re all artists who have such an intense desire to express ourselves and just want to do sick tattoos all day every day.  But it means so much more to the people that wear them and it can be so easy to lose sight of that when you’re in it every day and you’re grinding so hard just to make cool shit and keep up with your schedule. We all should work hard and be proud of the work we produce, but its creating moments like giving that 90 year old woman her firs that are the real reward.

It might not sound like much, but one of the biggest challenges I’ve faced was simply learning to say “no.” I spent a decade grinding at a busy street shop, where the mentality was: take everything that walks in or you’re letting money walk out. My mentor was incredibly supportive and I’m forever grateful to him for giving me the opportunity to build this life for myself, but proving your value to the business was definitely a numbers game, and the pressure to constantly produce made it hard to set boundaries. I felt indebted—not just to him, but to tattooing itself and the incredible life and purpose it had given me. But it also inflamed my imposter syndrome. I had convinced myself that if I didn’t bend over backwards to please every client, I’d risk losing it all.

In many ways, I’m thankful for getting pushed into that mindset early on. Fear is a powerful motivator, and it helped me grow very fast. I worked hard, built a loyal following, and got great at adapting. But it also burned me out. HARD. I was just a tattoo factory, taking any request that came my way, and churning it out in any style requested. Jack of all trades and a master of none. Even when I tried to inject my own voice, I just couldn’t see me in my work. I sacrificed too much of myself. So after years of anxiety, burnouts, and two herniated discs from busting my ass for others, I finally put up stronger boundaries and learned to say no.

I wish I’d done it much sooner.  I think I probably missed a lot of great opportunities that I would have benefited from much earlier in my career. But I got trapped in my little bubble and had no influence outside of my environment to guide me or convince me to do otherwise. I was tattooing and I was busy, so I was grateful just for that. It didn’t make sense to rock the boat and put that at risk.

Now, I’m more selective with the work I take on. I focus on tattoos that align with my interests and allow me room to learn, grow, and challenge myself as an artist. Ive been tattooing for 13 years now but it’s only in the last three that I feel I’ve finally started to see myself in my work. And for the first time, I’m genuinely excited about where things are heading.

 Das Frank

📍 Las Vegas, NV

@das.frank.ink / @das.frank.inc

Get ready to meet Frank, a Las Vegas tattoo artist with a story as unique and vibrant as his art! While he might jokingly blame "getting drunk" for his entry into the tattoo industry, Frank's passion for tattooing actually sparked back in 1998 after his 18th birthday tattoo.

Fast forward to 2003 in Las Vegas, and a chance encounter at The House of Brews with fellow artist Dano laid the groundwork for his incredible journey. Frank, who was pursuing his Masters in Fine Arts at UNLV, quickly transitioned his artistic talents to the skin, learning the ropes from Dano before embarking on his own path.

Specializing in bringing complex custom tattoo ideas to life – like the epic alien, Godzilla, and Alice in Wonderland leg sleeve you'll read about – Frank is a master of turning challenging tattoo projects into meaningful, show-stopping pieces. Dive into his world as he shares insights on overcoming industry hurdles, and some truly golden life advice!

CHECK OUT THE EPISODE HERE!

What made you realize you wanted to be a tattoo artist?

I got drunk. That’s the short answer I usually give when asked that question but really I had been interested in tattooing since getting my first tattoo on my 18th birthday in the summer of 1998. By the time I moved to Vegas for graduate school in 2003 I was covered in ‘em.

I used to hang out at a bar near campus called The House of Brews and it was there I met Dano. At the time we were bar friends, it wasn’t like we were hanging out at each other’s house every other night but if we were at the bar we were drinking together. I knew he tattooed and one night, out of the blue, I said, “I wish I learned how to tattoo. I think I might have been alright at it.” He asked me what I’d did for work now and I told him I was getting my Masters in Fine Arts at UNLV to which he said, “Alright, show up on Saturday. I’ll teach you.” I showed up on Saturday and he started teaching me. A year and a half later he cut me loose and told me to figure out the rest.

Ok, so this guy is sitting in with his brother who was getting a tattoo out of his jeep. While we’re plugging along on this jobber he starts chatting me up about an outline he had on his leg that no one wants to work with. The tattoo was special to him and he wanted to find somebody to finish it but everyone he had spoken to up to that point only wanted to cover it. I asked to see what he was working with and it turned out to be an alien holding a ray-gun hot rodding in a flying saucer. Rad. I told him I’d be more than happy to handle it for him but then he asked if I was willing to handle the rest of his ideas and make it into one cohesive piece? It turns out not only did he want the alien finished but he also wanted a Godzilla for his son, an Alice from the Disney animated movie for his daughter and to hide his wife’s name in there somewhere.

I said no problem. So now this cat has a piece wrapping his lower leg of an hot rodding alien battling it out with Godzilla, who is destroying a city, while Alice is being beamed up into the saucer. A slew of saucers are now in the spacey nebula sky, kidnapping cattle and the wife’s name is a busted road sign in the demolished cityscape. It is easily on of my favorite projects in the last 20 years.

 When I started tattooing, the biggest advancement in tattoo technology was still electricity. A lot of the supplies and equipment were time tested and definitely got the job done. In the last 10 years or so the technology has grown by leaps and bounds and separating the legitimately brilliant advancements from the snake oil has become an endless endeavor. I will be a happy man if I never have to sit through another sales pitch trying to get me to sell another repackaged bottle lubriderm named after an emotional state and a random mammal.

 If you ever drop your keys in a river of molten lava just let ‘em go man because they are gone.

Support tattoo culture by buying from tattooer-owned supply companies like Maverick Tattoo Mercantile. Founded by artist Austin Spencer, our gear is made by artists, for artists — with passion, precision, and purpose.

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Mariah Baker

📍 Ozark, MO

@mbakertattoo

Hey everyone! This month, we've got an absolute gem of an artist that we are spotlighting (see for yourself!), all the way from Ozark, MO – Mariah Baker! Her work is truly next level, and we can't wait for you to get to know her better. Prepare to be inspired by her story and unique perspective in the tattoo world.

What made you realize you wanted to be a tattoo artist?

I went to school for painting and graphic design, and wanted a way to continue pursuing my art. When tattooing was introduced to me, I saw the freedom and opportunities within the industry and decided pursuing it promised me a better future than continuing with a masters program/and or residencies.

The most meaningful tattoo story i've done is actually a project i'm working on right now! My client Kari asked for a 70's road trip leg sleeve, and each piece is a memory she had from her childhood taking vacations with her parents across the country. It consists of the Holiday Inn sign, her families 1971 Ford LTD Country Squire, snacks they had in their red coleman cooler, farm animals, a corncob pipe her dad smoked from, even bobby pins and hair rollers for her mom! 

I would say the largest impact I've had to overcome within the industry is finding my people. I was a chronic people pleaser and was really good at finding the wrong friends in my past, and once that started to affect my business I knew things needed to change. I started therapy regularly, identifying patterns in my life that weren't working for me, and put all of my focus and energy into my art and business to grow

I don't think the key to success is only our artistic skills. Its about your communication skills, kindness, social media presence, self discipline, and so many more things. Hone in, work hard, talk openly about your dreams, share your success stories, share your failures. It all will help create your ideal community and get you closer to your dreams :) 

MIKE BIGGS

📍 Las Vegas, Nevada

@biggsstudio

Pick up a gorgeous hand made tiki mug made by Mike Biggs! 

BIGGSSTUDIO.COM

Mike Biggs is this month's spotlight artist! Not only has he been a friend for years, but he also is our guest on Support Your Local Tattooer this month. If you haven't already, make sure to give it a listen & hear all the rad stories!

1. What made you realize you wanted to be a tattoo artist/ artist in general?

I think when I was in college at Art Institute of Phoenix I started drawing tattoo-like designs. Ive always been an artist my whole life. Always drawing and painting. I wanted to get a tattoo while I was going to college and drew a couple designs I wanted to show a shop but couldn't afford to get one- that was back in 1999. I didn't get tattooed until I was about 24 or 25? I was working at a LIDS hat shop in the airport in Vegas and a coworker saw me doodling while working and said her cousin was a tattoo artist. I met up with him and the rest is history! 

2.Most meaningful tattoo story you've helped create?

I think the most memorable is when I started tattooing realistic nipples on breast cancer survivors. I think I did it 2 or 3 times. Every time they cried afterwards and gave me big hugs. Feels good to be able to provide that for someone. Getting the nipples right was hard! But I think I did a good job and they were happy.

3.One challenge you've had to overcome in the industry and how it has impacted you?

It was ALWAYS challenging for me to deal with people in general as Im not a very talkative guy. I had to get out of my comfort zone and learn to deal with people. The hardest was dealing with difficult people....people who micromanage and nitpick everything you do and having to redraw a design a million times until they are happy. It can be really frustrating dealing with people who have shitty attitudes from the start and don't seem to trust you or the process. People always wanted to rush a huge project and you have to constantly deal with a crazy customer. I don't do well with confrontation. I let people step all over me. So eventually I just learned to speak up and defend myself and my abilities and reassure them its going to turn out ok. I gotta say im kind of a hermit now and happy to not have to deal with people too much LOL! But it did change me and made me better at talking and dealing with people in general. Keeping eye contact and being more confident of my abilities. 

4. Anything else you'd like to share? 

I miss doing tattoos but I love what I do now more. Doing my own thing and doing it for myself is really a game changer in my life. Im doing art and running my own company and that makes me so happy. Keeping it simple.