Braydon

In Braydon’s own words

Visual art of all kinds has been at the forefront of my life for as long as I can remember. It never mattered what medium I had access to or was interested in — I wanted to create in any way possible. My visual art journey started when I was just a child: I constantly had a writing utensil in my hand and would draw whatever came to mind, often getting myself into trouble doing so. My love for the arts grew as I aged and I ventured down avenues other than drawing—painting, music, sculpting, and graffiti, just to name a few. My art really started to blossom when I was in high school, through both traditional mediums and digital art. The art teacher I had really had a love for what she did, which instilled in me that same kind of passion. It continues to fuel me as an artist today.

I first saw tattoos when I was about 7–8 years old and I was immediately in love. An uncle of mine had a handful of larger-size pieces and as a kid, I was awestruck at the idea of permanent body art and creating in tandem with another living being. As I grew up, the musicians I listened to were covered in art, which only fueled the fire for my love of seeing tattoos on skin.

After conversations with some friends who professionally tattooed, I made the decision to seriously pursue the art of tattooing and eventually landed an apprenticeship when I was 22. It was a tough road with many late nights, lots of stress, and great memories, but I wouldn’t have had it any other way.

I set out on my tattoo journey with a love for color and the Neo-Traditional style of body art, which is the style I work most in today. My take on Neo-Traditional is influenced by Baroque masters like Caravaggio and Rembrandt, the beautiful flowing work of Alphonse Mucha and Art Nouveau as a whole, as well as the stylings of the following Art Deco movement. The styles of those artists and their color palettes, woven tightly together with the fundamentals of Traditional Tattooing, are really what inspires my work as an artist.

When I’m not tattooing, I enjoy spending time with my husband and dogs. When we find time to go to the mountains or out to the ranch, I am always finding references of any and all flora and fauna I can find, as that’s what I enjoy drawing and tattooing the most.

At the end of the day, my passion lies in giving the people who wear my art something that they will cherish forever and that will age gracefully with their body.