247 Ink Magazine (December/January) 2016 Issue#12 | Page 196

I was looking at some of your work. In the fisherman painting that you have it looks like you combined a little bit of realism and some cartoon stuff. Can you tell me a little bit about that painting? I was doing a lot of nautical art and it was at a time when I was really trying to push myself. I had become known for doing these little kids cartoons all of the time. You get pigeonholed. You see it a lot in tattooing. Someone will come up with something and all of a sudden that all that’s in their portfolio; the same thing over and over again. So I always say I tattoo for other people and paint for myself. So it was kind of a way for me to stretch my wings. I got into doing old people faces because it was the exact opposite of what I was known for. It seemed like a really good alternative to what I was doing. It gave me a chance to mess around and show people I was capable of a little bit more than what I was pigeonholed into. When it comes to art I use to have a very distinct style. Then I started exploring and some people were like its better if you have a single style. It’s hard when your brain is more creative than people are allowing you to be. So when you paint you get to 194