Episode 159: Abstract Dreams and Tattoo Machines, the life of Gerard "Gerry" Harrison.

Every brushstroke tells a story, and in our latest podcast, we uncover the vibrant narrative of Gerard "Gerry" Harrison, a tattoo artist whose ink has become a vessel for healing in the military community in Northwest Florida. As Deny chats with Gerard, you'll be whisked away on a journey that starts within the confines of a college art department and meanders through the unexpected twists of life that led him to the Rocky Mountains and eventually to the buzzing tattoo guns that would define his path. It's a tale of creativity intertwined with the courage to embrace change, and a testament to how unplanned detours can lead to fulfilling destinations.
 
 Gerard's story is a canvas of experiences, from crafting needles under the tutelage of a seasoned tattoo artist to transforming his shop into a studio where abstract paintings come to life. His drive to pursue passion over paycheck paints an inspiring picture for anyone standing at the crossroads of security and dreams. As we traverse his career evolution, you'll witness the power of art to change lives — not only for those who receive it but also for the one who wields the brush.

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Follow Gerard on instagram and visit his website to see what he's working on. 

Instagram: @gerardfrank.art

Website: gerardfrank.art

Transcript

Speaker 1: 0:02

The man who's the best.

Speaker 2: 0:10

With guns, with knives, with his bare hands, a man who's been trained to ignore, ignore weather, to live off the land, a job with a disposed enemy personnel To kill period. Win by attrition. People are always championing it.

Speaker 1: 0:30

You don't need the most expensive camera. You can do everything with Olympus. I'm going to do everything with an Olympus. And then I realized that when it comes to Pidigo the Olympus cameras they have a timeout. A lot of cameras have a 30 minute timeout. A lot of guys figured it out the wrong way too, Because they bought the Olympus or bought a Canon, they didn't look into it and they're trying to do their video for their podcast and the camera heats up and then shuts down after 30 minutes. Oh, yeah, yeah.

Speaker 2: 1:04

Like running back and trying to fire it back up.

Speaker 1: 1:07

Yeah, Turn the camera back on and mark. Yeah, this doesn't work that way.

Speaker 2: 1:13

I have that same gimbal.

Speaker 1: 1:15

Yeah.

Speaker 2: 1:16

Yeah, yeah, I like it. I use it when I'm painting. I time lapse myself.

Speaker 1: 1:20

Yes, I got those two specifically for having one set on you, the one on me, but for this one it's just. Editing is so tedious I'm going to dial it back. I need a full studio team. Oh, ok, yeah, that's the one thing I learned. You can do it, but it's man, it's a lot of work. With me going to school and then focusing on every other aspect of my life, I'm just like, ok, there's good, and then there's good enough, yeah.

Speaker 2: 1:56

Yeah, yeah, yeah, that's true. Yeah, I'm happy though.

Speaker 1: 2:04

I think that where I look back where I started, it was like a janky webcam. Ok, like with Prop, that with books. Yeah, I was like just all right, I'm going to just talk for an hour long with two friends about random stuff, and it always went back to like Star Wars.

Speaker 2: 2:26

OK, that's fine, I like looped back to everybody's interest.

Speaker 1: 2:31

There was like there was a little bit like mental health and now, like now it's like this podcast that covers like everything in my life that has helped me or has been a value to me, and they're like oh, how can I help other people? Yeah, ok, nice, what can I put out there? That's just positive, not negative. And sometimes you got to like all right, there is some negative stuff we got to talk about, but let's talk about it in like a healthy way, not in a way that it's just a negative echo chamber, because it's like dude, like you can complain about the world.

Speaker 2: 3:02

Yeah.

Speaker 1: 3:03

And then you just depress for, like, the next 45 minutes, absolutely.

Speaker 2: 3:07

It should get you nowhere. Yeah, and that's something I think. As you get older, you start to discover like, ok, why am I spending an effort on that?

Speaker 1: 3:17

Yeah, which leads me to our discussion today. Jerry Harrison, welcome to Security Out Podcast. We've been recording for like two minutes.

Speaker 2: 3:27

Oh sorry, we're live. Yeah, well, thank you for having me. Absolutely yeah.

Speaker 1: 3:35

You're somebody that within this region, you're not just a tattoo artist, you are a amateur mental health provider. Because what I found out? A lot of reason why guys go to see you. Specifically, I just go to Jerry's and I just listen to somebody talk. That gives him perspective and I just I can just be myself and have a really good time, kind of get things off my chest. So guys continue to go back to you because they're like, yeah, you know, he's kind of like you know, a soldier whisperer without even knowing it. Wow.

Speaker 2: 4:09

Yeah, that's really you're like cool to hear. Yeah, when I talk to people like my clients, what you're talking about is I always do anybody in life I always try to like whenever they say something to me, I try to be like, how can I give them? Somebody a perspective? I do that with my son, you know, constantly Look at it from this person, like you're not looking at it, and then I think that that's. I try to do that to myself my whole life, so I feel like it helped me. So that's why I think, why I always end up. You know, I guess preaching in that manner is that you know, if that's the right word to use on how it comes across to us. That's the only the best way I feel like I deliver. You know something I can think about.

Speaker 1: 4:51

Yeah, it comes off natural. You're not somebody that and it's. It's funny because I think every culture has their like. Yeah, I'm not going to go see a therapist, but I got a barber and when I go there I can get some perspective on the world and somebody else's opinion on things are going on around me. That helps me balance out what I feel about my immediate area and I think that's what I. That's why I instantly was like dude, that's, that's the guy I'm going to go get a tattoo from, cause that just I'm sitting there getting an awesome piece of artwork, but I'm I'm engaging with somebody outside of my normal day to day environment and we don't do that enough these days.

Speaker 1: 5:33

We don't get that outside perspective. I can hang out with military people all day long and only get one view of the world and like that's just, that's of no benefit to me. But if I am, if I'm able to make a friend with somebody that's from a different world, a different culture, and then I can see their perspective and see their views on things I'm like oh, now I'm a little more well rounded.

Speaker 2: 5:55

Yeah, that's, I can appreciate that.

Speaker 1: 5:57

And that's like what drew me to your tattoo shop. It was a mix of people that weren't just the same people weren't the same person, cut from the same cloth. Everybody was different and everybody was just really chill yeah.

Speaker 2: 6:12

That's the environment that we always, like you know, kind of curated you know with with Jerry and my wife was. She you know came into owning a hair salon. So she came into that world. It was a new type of you know environment to work. In. The first couple of years she like, as you know, worked in front of the shop because we were like getting it off the ground. Now it's great that it kind of just runs itself, sustaining. Yeah, you know we've got the right people in there, but we were always on the. The harmony of the shop was our first and foremost, before anything else.

Speaker 1: 6:47

Yeah, you did it right. There's a lot of places you can go into, whether it's a tattoo shop or hardware store, and if the people are kind, are generous, aren't inviting, it's just like why am I even here? Yeah, especially with some of this intimate is getting a piece of artwork on you, like that. That in and of itself is like a very vulnerable thing Like you're, you're trying to express, or if you're like me, where you can't even express it verbally, like I've always been, like I kind of have this idea. I want to be like a robot from the 1950s, yeah.

Speaker 2: 7:26

And you're just like you know, like, okay, you know I can run with that, and that's one thing with that. When I that drew me to, I think, dad doing in the beginning, because I always liked to be creative, always like painting and drawing, I just, and I went to school for graphic arts but I found that I didn't like commercial arts. It was, there was designing, like you know, a magazine layout or something. I just didn't give me the fulfillment that it gives other people you know there's other people that just love that but I was kind of like I felt, you know, almost like it was like production work to me and not to discredit it, but that's how I felt. And so when I got into dad doing, it was something that I felt like I was never going to like totally know it, and so I felt like I could always learn something.

Speaker 2: 8:13

And so I'm over the you know, almost 23 years now of people wanting to get work from me is that there's always something new coming in and they're presenting just their idea verbally. And then it's a new challenge for me, like how can I depict that? You know, and I would always kind of just, I guess, my perspective of how I sold myself because I'm selling my service of what I create. Was that okay? I'm going to take their idea and I can sell them what I will do best. You know, if that doesn't hit the mark then I might not be the artist for them in that particular you know venture. But you know, most time I am, and a lot of it I think, goes back to like you described of like me as a person. I get a lot of that as well. People say that they come back to me just because I just like the whole experience. Oh, 100%.

Speaker 1: 9:03

You know, I remember there's few pieces I have of my body that weren't done by you originally, that I was completely like dude, like I don't the. I think the the factor in getting them read done was like I had no connection to the artwork. There's nothing. I got in the time period where I wasn't like it was just a lost kid and not finding my own spot in life. And then I'm like you know what, like now I really have something I want to add to this. Like, and I don't want just any other artist to do, I want somebody to have a connection. I think that for a lot of people that you know go out there and look for artwork, they tend to stay loyal to that one person or that shop because of that experience, at least in life, from talking to people that I know because it's like man, once you find your, your crew of people that you enjoy being, because you're going to be there for a couple hours.

Speaker 1: 9:57

Yeah, yeah, at minimum you're there at least a couple hours for the whole you know, but I want to ask you, as you started out in graphic design, what was, how did that shift come where? You're like man, I'm going to take this and now I'm going to put it on human flesh.

Speaker 2: 10:15

Well, honestly, I was. I got out of high school, I grew up here in Fort Walton and I was going to what's now the college in Niceville but it was a community college at the time and I went to, wanted to do something art related, you know. I was like you know and I remember saying, you know, my parents and I actually even wrote in my high school like, where are you going to be in 30 years? And I was like, I'm going to be a painter, you know, I'm going to have stuff in galleries and museums. And that was like I had no idea how I would make that happen. Or even if there was a direction and growing up here in a small town, there wasn't even like a perspective in front of me of like, well, here's how you could do that, you know. So I didn't know at anything. And my mom was flipping through the curriculum of the college because I was like, well, maybe I'll go take some art classes and kind of, just, you know, see where it takes me, just to get my momentum going. And she's like well, you know, you could go into graphic arts, you know that's a. And she was looking at more in the perspective of like, here's a job that you could get. You could be creative, but you could. You have a place you show up to, you know, and there's, there's work there, so it continually keeps you, you know, living, supporting yourself. So I was like, oh, that sounds interesting. So I got into that.

Speaker 2: 11:28

And then my second semester, I got into the, the art department, because I was taking some drawing classes as well. You know, I was learning how to like doing, like you know, portraits of faces. You know, like I just want to build my foundation more than I had in high school art classes. And the art teacher there, who was kind of like the, the building, he was like in charge of the building, he was the main art teacher in that one, that's, the, kept seeing this guy come in, you know, and like going and making mud and you know loading the kiln up, and I was kind of like, well, you know who's, why is that? Who is that guy? You know, cause he was like my age, you know, and and then he's like, oh, that's my assistant. And I was like, oh, oh, that's a job, you know, and and he's like, and he goes, he goes.

Speaker 2: 12:17

And it occurred because after one day in my drawing class. He actually my teacher needed a ride into Fort Walton to pick his car up from the auto shop. And he's like can anyone offer me a ride? I'll give you some gas money. And I was done after that class and I was like no one person like raise their hand, I'll give you a ride, you know. So I started talking to him on the drive and that's how I found out who that person was, and so I asked him like you know about it? And he's like he goes oh, do you, do you want the job? And I said I was like yeah. And he says yeah, this is his last semester, so he's going off to you know a university now.

Speaker 2: 12:53

So he goes go fill out the paperwork and I'll tell him I want you. And he goes, it doesn't matter who else fills out paperwork, cause I get, I can pick him, I want him. So then I started working in the art department with him and I was like loading the kilns up, mixing glazes, you know, taking all these powder and chemical measurements and all kinds of stuff that you know I had no idea about it, you know, and learned how to you know it's, taking dry, you know, dirt and turning it into workable clay that you know students were using in their classes. And so I started just kind of hanging out in that, building more, you know, more so, and I kicked around several ideas, you know, like, well, maybe I could become an art teacher, maybe I could, you know, try to figure out, like, what can I do with myself being creative? But I still need to support myself, you know, and you know not knowing how to make that step. So then I ended up getting all the way to where actually I only needed.

Speaker 2: 13:47

Like one class I failed, like an English class and then, and then I was kind of over school at the moment and so I just dropped out. I guess it was like, you know, I don't even want to do this. And then my counselor, you know which I don't even remember who they were, you know, but I remember sitting in their office and they're like, well, we only have one more semester left. I said, yeah, but I've already been here like two semesters longer. So I felt like I was like spinning my wheels in life because I was young, you know, and thinking like, oh, another semester is going to kill me. But you went now, you know, this will end my life, yeah, you know, like like I'm wasting my years, you know, type of thing.

Speaker 2: 14:29

And so I quit and I just kind of, from that moment, just kind of bounced around from job to job, you know, and I always kind of went to whatever paid more money, you know. And then I was in. I became a screen printer when I lived in Denver, up there, that's right, you were in Denver for a little bit, yeah. So I ended up moving there because my best friend had moved up there and it was the winter around here. I was like, move up here, there's plenty of jobs. So I was like I'll try something new. So I moved up there and then I was a screen printer, did production work on like metal instrument panels, printed stuff that went on rockets, printed things that went on like aircraft carriers, like I did surgical units, like instrument panels on metal, and sometimes it was just one part and I had to like create a whole screen just to do this one squeegee pole, and then you know, okay, that was done.

Speaker 1: 15:21

Dude, that's crazy Because when I was a young kid straight out of like, because I enlisted the first thing I did was enlist in a National Guard. When I left home, I ran away from home early, like in 2018. And joined the guard. I was doing like guard drills as a senior in high school. Oh, okay, and then, like you know, we're like I'm gonna go to school, they're gonna pay for everything. Come to find out. You don't make shit and you still have to find a different job. So I got a job doing manufacturing and plastics and magnesium production and I was making parts for L3 and the radios that I would eventually be carrying and working with in Iraq.

Speaker 2: 16:02

Oh, where yeah?

Speaker 1: 16:04

Yeah, yeah. And like I always remember just how of a shitty job I did at QA QC inspection and be like I'm never gonna suffer the consequences of this.

Speaker 2: 16:16

Yeah, and then you're like oh, I'm using this equipment.

Speaker 1: 16:19

Little did I know that's funny.

Speaker 2: 16:25

Yeah, I was like I ended up with just a plethora of things that I really would not have thought were actually screenprint and I had screenprinted a couple of times in college in classics. It was like part of the like oh, we're gonna do some screen printing this semester and I'd already done that textile wise. So I kind of had an understanding of it. And then I worked with just me and one other guy, you know, and did pieces for telescopes and sometimes I would go to this one paint shop and it was like a warehouse that was powder coated stuff and I would go over there and I would have to bring my screen and they had a table there that they stored in the corner for us and I literally would set up in the middle of this warehouse and fill pallets, like sometimes three to 500 pieces, and I would like walk them into an oven. That was like you could drive a car into to like bake the ink, and I can remember like walking into the oven like this is so weird that I'm inside an oven, you know, like, and then this is my job, you know, and so then I was, I just having that job, basically is what I was doing. I ended up going to a different company doing the same thing.

Speaker 2: 17:32

You know doing production. You know production parts. It was all. It was all like flat work. They referred to it.

Speaker 2: 17:36

It was never textile work that I screen printed. But and I hung out with a group of, you know, gear heads that were all into Volkswagen's and I had a Volkswagen at the time and the guy who ended up having like a garage that kind of became our clubhouse. We'd always just hang out there and he basically just did anything and everything for a car on a Volkswagen, all air cooled. And he came in one day and he had like a new tattoo on his stomach. He'd got like flames on his stomach or something, something very you know, 90s, you know, and what's the name of that band? God and. And so it was like just right around his belly button you know.

Speaker 2: 18:15

And then I was like, oh, where'd you get that you know?

Speaker 2: 18:18

and he's like the tribal flames and he's like, oh so did it, you know, and I didn't know he tattooed, you know, because I knew he had a different job and he was part of the kind of a group that we would get together and, you know, talk about what we were going to do to cars one day. And he's like, oh yeah, he tattoos at his house, you know, it's just kind of a hobby. So so he's. I was like, oh wow. So the next time I saw him, I basically just was talking to him oh, I didn't know, you tattooed. I was like, you know, that's pretty cool, I've always been interested in it. And he's like really.

Speaker 2: 18:49

You want to come over tomorrow I'm tattooing. You know this one guy that I knew because of him, and this younger guy and I was like, yeah, I'll come check it out. So I went over there and literally was like watching him. You know, set up, get it really. You know all his stuff like asking why are you doing that? What is that you're doing? You know like, oh, why do you put that there? And you know. And then finally, and then he started tattooing and we were literally set up like on his kitchen table. You know is where he was set up. In was like an open living room, so like the TV was right over there, the couch and this was the kitchen table. He's tattooing some. I want to say it was doing like an iron maiden, you know piece or something on the kid's forearm and laying out list so many lines in the tattoo, you know.

Speaker 2: 19:34

And I'm just like, oh wow, how do you see what you're doing? You know pretty common questions that my clients ask, and so finally he was like, do you want to give it a try? He goes, you know, I answer some of your questions better than me. And because he didn't by no means did he consider himself an expert. It was just like I, you know, there's only so much I can tell you because I just do this.

Speaker 1: 19:53

It's a hobby.

Speaker 2: 19:54

And he really didn't have a desire to like do it for a living either. He just enjoyed, you know, just like doing it. And so I was like yeah, so you know, put some gloves on you know, and then, you know, right in the spot, yeah, right on the spot, just sat down.

Speaker 2: 20:08

The guy that getting tattooed did not seem to care, but I, you know that I had never done, and he was like, yeah, right on, man, sit down and give it a try, you know. And I'm all like, oh, okay, yeah, it's on now it's the most Colorado guy thing ever.

Speaker 2: 20:22

You know, like okay, we're doing this. Hell yeah, dude, you know. And so I literally I drew like maybe like six or a dozen lines on it, and then I kind of started to feel like kind of nervous, like oh, okay, man, maybe I should step back, you know. And then, and then I, you know, I was like wow. And then, but literally after I drew like like maybe the second or third line, it was like my brain just went off and I was like I have to know how to do this.

Speaker 1: 20:47

That was the moment.

Speaker 2: 20:48

You know, and I didn't even think I was gonna do it for a living. I just was like I always wanted to be creative and I was like it. Just it opened up that door, you know, and gave me like the wow, I could do this. But I don't feel like it ever like, like I say, learn it all. Yeah, you know. So I went and bought magazines and he had told me basically like, oh, you can order some equipment.

Speaker 2: 21:12

The back of every tattoo magazine at that time was, yeah, you know, spalding Rogers. You know. So they bought the back page every issue, you know. So that was advertisement, which a lot of artists have been like. You know, they'll like bag on the company at the same time. They'll be like they got me started. Yeah, you know, because they were the only one at that time that sold to the general public and you know nobody else. You know you couldn't call a company, they would just hang up on you. Yeah, you know, if you were trying to like order equipment and so you know that was like money order days. So you like, I had to like Check your money order.

Speaker 1: 21:49

Yeah.

Speaker 2: 21:50

I mean I had to literally like, mail a letter to buy a catalog and then mail that letter and then wait for the catalog to show up. And then you know, and he told me, you know, buy this, this and this. And I bought a machine off of him and a power supply that somebody had made.

Speaker 2: 22:06

Oh nice, which was very common at that time, you know, people making their own power supplies. There wasn't like an abundance of supplies still, you know, Even though tattooing was wasn't like super young at that time. It just there was, only there was a limited amount of supplies. You could buy a limited amount of inks companies out there, you know, needles, everything and so I, you know, filled out my little form, mailed it off and I think it was like four to six weeks later, you know, finally stuff shows up, you know, and then I tattooed, like a friend of mine in our living room. I tattooed another.

Speaker 2: 22:41

You know another friend had moved up to Breckenridge at that point, yeah, and another friend of mine had maybe done like I think at that time I hadn't done anything and I moved up to Breckenridge. I'm one of my friends, came up to visit me for the weekend and he's like so do you want to fix that tattoo on my back? And I was all like, whoa, are you serious? You know I had been practicing on oranges and, you know, trying to like, trying to read magazines and get information, but it was mostly just interviews, it wasn't like no one gave out information. You know, then there was nobody trying to like gain notoriety by you know telling the world how to do something they were doing.

Speaker 2: 23:19

It was very, I guess, close guarded. You know, secrecy of like, even like even like where you would get your equipment. People wouldn't talk about that. You know, like, like, oh, that's cool machine. You know, or did you get that they wouldn't even divulge?

Speaker 1: 23:33

that.

Speaker 2: 23:33

Yeah, because it was kind of like well, then you're just going to have as good a stuff as me and then that's going to make you my competition. So it was, it wasn't, you know, like totally open. You know.

Speaker 1: 23:45

I mean, there's a bit of that to the, to the world where they are, people do communicate with each other, but you know, when I see, when I look in the tattooing, it's like there's no institute of tattooing, there's no institute of the fine arts, of tattooing when you can go in, sit down and pay your semester fees, like it's always seen as the master in the apprentice, like, oh, I'm apprenticing at this shop. Yeah, it's very much like that there's. It's like the one of the closest they. Here we go, star Wars, it goes back.

Speaker 2: 24:19

It was this thing to that. Yeah, yeah, you can, yeah, I can throw, you can give it any analogy that lays off of it. But yeah, and that was it. It was, and I did that for like almost like about a year and a half, two years, I feel like is like I don't really remember the exact timeline, but I mean I did my first tattoo and like I think it was 98 or you know, and then it wasn't until, like you know, 01, that actually like got my foot in the door and I kind of would, off and on, do it while I was trying to like find the literature, and because I had this perspective that many people were, oh, you can tattoo, oh I want to get this, and it was just some grand scheme, and I'm like, well, okay, let's, you know, let's hold back, because I don't even know what I'm doing. Yeah, you know, and I don't. I didn't want to like just totally mark someone up and it not be, you know, at least something that they were going to live with. And so I kept.

Speaker 2: 25:12

I went and asked the shops. There were two in Summit County at the time. I went and asked, both of them got denied. Wow, you know. And then I felt like that was maybe like 99. I had done you know that, or maybe 2000 or whatever, and I had started, I was driving the transit bus up there and then I then I went, you know, it was about a year had passed, maybe it was a little longer. I was like, you know, I'm going to go ask again, yeah, you know. And then, so you know, went into one shop, you know, got denied again, went into the other one. That was actually like down the street from where I lived, because I was on Main Street, wrecking Ridge, so I could walk to it, and I just went in on the right day.

Speaker 2: 25:51

You know, this guy named Chris and he actually is now lives back in Summit County, tattooing, I guess, and he was tattooing there. The owner was out and he's basically was looked at. I had this little book of like a dozen tattoos that I had done on friends and I had a little box of needles that I had made and he looked at all of it and was like, well, he's pretty good, you know, and he's like he goes. You know, the owner might honestly be interested in, you know, apprenticing he goes. You know, I just finished my apprenticeship with him and he's you know, it's hard to find artists up here in the mountains, so he's like he's all about teaching somebody. So he said come back, you know, and like four o'clock today he should be back in town. So I went back and he chatted with me and was kind of he was really impressed mostly with the needles I made, versus my tattoos or anything. He was like how did you learn how to do this?

Speaker 2: 26:43

And at that time you could order a needle kit from Spalding. So I ordered that and basically ordered some pre-mades which were at that time like a dollar or more per just single needle, so and they sold them by boxes of 50. So it wasn't like you could go buy you know, a large amount of pre-mades. They were still very expensive. So most people made their needles and they bought loose ones. They loose ones, they grouped them how they wanted them and everybody was very specific kind of grouping. You kind of could create your own paintbrush, so to speak. I had no idea On how to do that, so I bought, and you know, ones that were already made, bought a bunch of materials and then I just reverse engineered it.

Speaker 2: 27:24

Holy shit, and my head was like okay this is what they did this is this needle, this is the jig for that needle. And I would just look back and forth and I'd just make them over and over and over and solder and I had never really soldered much of anything at that time. So, and then the needles, the pre-mades one, they were like perfect. So I was trying to make them perfect, you know, because that's the way I thought it was supposed to be, and he looked at me and told me I'll be honest, these needles look better than the ones I make. And he goes. I'm not even this concerned with how perfect the solder is, he goes because I'm only using it for one tattoo and I'm getting rid of it. And he goes as long as it's on there.

Speaker 2: 28:04

And so he was kind of excited that at that moment, you know, maybe he wasn't going to have to make needles anymore because that was one of my tasks. So I would sit down, I'd go in and I would make him and the other guy needles for the week or and I would kind of overstock. So I was like, okay, if I'm going to sit down and do it, I just would figure out like I should make like two, three weeks worth at a time, so I could kind of keep up on it. And then I carried that probably the first, like you know, maybe like four years, like you know, I kept making them and then then at one point all of a sudden they just the prices started dropping on pre-mades, and then there was pre-mades. Then you were trying to find a pre-made that was looked like what you had made before. Well, this is how I make that needle, but nobody else makes it that way.

Speaker 1: 28:53

So you know, I was like there's so many layers. This is not just being an artist.

Speaker 2: 28:57

You can make an engineer, yeah, and it is yeah. So a lot of it like so going through an apprenticeship was with Sierra Colt and he owns a shop in San Diego now and he basically, which is Bearcat tattoo gallery down in little Italy area, and he was, I think he was like I don't know like six years into tattooing so and he had started very young, you know, and then, you know, already owned his own business. So he was like he's a really super driven person, so it was really cool to like learn from him and he was also very like savvy of like the business side of things and he approached it differently, with more of like he always called it the bedside manner. You know like he goes. You know like a doctor he goes. That person like you say they're sitting in your chair for hours, he goes.

Speaker 2: 29:46

So there has to be a comfort there too. You can't just be like sit down and now I'm going to work and then because it makes you know, it makes the person uneasy and then and that projects into you as an energy and then you're not, you know, being able to do as good a work. You know there's there's that exchange going on. So you're kind of like, okay, this person's not even like sitting here Now I'm really trying to get this and they're uncomfortable and this is painful, and so it starts to make you kind of, yeah, well, now I just need to make this done.

Speaker 2: 30:18

So there's the whole experience going to be, you know, but but you're trying to be able to know I need to make, you know, make it a good piece, you know. So he was very much on that, like teaching me, like the whole, like start to finish, the just talking to the person was a huge step that he instructed on, just even before they even maybe sit down and when you might not even touch him that day, but just the talking to him. Then he taught me how to make needles. He, you know, taught me some basic principles of how my machine you know why my machine did what it did. You know open up the doors.

Speaker 1: 30:51

So much to it.

Speaker 2: 30:52

Like here's a couple companies you can order from, now that you're at a shop, you know. And then he's like and then he would have to call and like, hey, this person's my apprentice, really, yeah. And then, and then we, and then basically like here's the shop number and you would call from the shop phone, you know, as pre-sell phone, so not everybody had direct access to it, so you would call from that shop phone and you know everything would get shipped to the shop, so you know. And then he basically just kind of he was very good at like teaching me all the layers of it Then he went, you know, it was like, okay, you got to go start and get get a ledger book, you know.

Speaker 2: 31:28

And then I literally wrote down like every single tattoo that I did, how much it was if I got a tip on it, you know, and then the date, and then I had, and that was like here's my income book. And then he's like okay, now this is your other book for expenses. And he taught me how to track and he kept track of that. He's like cause, one day you're going to want to buy a house and you're going to I mean, he had forethought of that, where a lot of people don't teach that to anyone. It's like I'm going to teach you how to make a living but I didn't teach you how to actually like do something in the world with that. You know revenue.

Speaker 2: 32:03

Then you kind of set up somebody to fail Absolutely so is he was really setting me up to succeed as far as, like, you know, this is where it can take you. Yeah, you know, you got to get an apartment. You got to get your income. You know, like, walk in, here's my ledger. You know. I mean, I got our first home loan to get a house, you know, with a Terri and I was with handwritten ledgers. Yeah, you know she's like, oh, I need your PNLs, I need this. And I walked in with two books and I said here is everything. I don't have anything as far as a PNL, I handle everything. And so she flipped through all of it, made copies of some pages and then was, and it went right through because it was, because it was real thorough.

Speaker 1: 32:47

Yeah, so they, you know that you're not just learning how to do art, you're learning how to be a business owner. Yeah, from somebody that actually cares. That's true mentorship. That's something that I talk about on this platform, a lot Like when you take somebody in to teach them your profession, your job. It's. It's more than just the tasks of that nine to five, of coming in and doing that work and you're helping a young person understand what it means to be an adult, what it means to take on and take ownership of your, your craft, all aspects of it. Yeah, like that's. That's phenomenal.

Speaker 2: 33:23

Yeah, I mean, he taught me that it was like, and the same thing I taught, you know my apprentice when I taught Dylan at the shop was I was like you are, you know, the commodity, yeah, selling yourself in all aspects, you know. It's like who you are as a person, what you're you know, giving them as a service, you know, and the whole experience is what you're, what you're selling, yeah, you know. So, true, and then and then being able to, like, take that into a real world application, if you know how many apprentices have you had?

Speaker 2: 33:59

I've had well, I've had one that that made it Nice. I guess I could leave it at that because I don't need to, I don't need to bag on anybody. You know various people didn't make it because, you know, just I didn't, didn't have the seriousness or the or the you know dedication that I thought that you know that I put into it myself, that I wanted to see, you know, someone else put into it.

Speaker 1: 34:28

And I would imagine it takes you, take all of your experience of all the individuals that poured themselves into you, into helping you succeed, and it's like okay, there's that lineage, there's a direct line of everybody that helped me, like I'm not going to half-ass this and the person I choose to like pour into, like I want them to be somebody that's going to go into this, yeah, and like be dedicated to it. There's, I think right now it's it's there's a shift and it's very much like well, I can do this. I. Once it gets hard, it's like I don't want to do it anymore, I'll shift, I'll pivot to something else, I'll pivot to something else and just constantly pivoting and it's like, dude, like take time, really analyze what you're passionate about, cause if you don't, you're going to constantly pick something up, drop it. Pick something up, drop it, pick and quit and quit and quit and never stay into something because you're just so wishy washy.

Speaker 1: 35:25

Figure out your passion about what your your true purpose and passions are and like go after them and stay committed, because it's the challenges that's what you really want. Like you want something that's challenging, yeah. Like you want something that's ready to grow, it's anything that's easy. It's like it's easy to get a paycheck, it's easy to get income from a nine to five, but you're not going to be happy with it. And then you're going to find ways to seek out comfort and seek out pleasure. And it's like, at the end of the day, like you're constantly complaining about your job, like that sucks, yeah, like that's not a good life. You're going to have to work. We all have to work. We all have to be engaged in something. Make sure it's something you're passionate about.

Speaker 2: 36:05

And it is true, and that's when I got into tattooing. It was my mentor, when he was like interviewing me I guess would have been what was going down when we were having the conversation is is he's like, why do you want to tattoo? And then I said he's like, you know he goes, you know a lot of people, you know you can make a good living, you know doing it, you know it's. And I said I just want to like going to work, yeah, and you know. And I said I already have a job that pays well. And I said and it has benefits, it has pension. I said it has all the things that you're supposed to look for in a job. You know. I said, but I drive around in circles all day long. And I said there's, I don't get anything out of it. So that was the idea of like when I started tattooing it found it gave me that direction of like, something that I enjoyed getting up and going to.

Speaker 1: 36:54

I didn't feel like I was working so to speak, and it comes across every time you step into your shop and you engage anybody that walks in there. I know it. Like I can't imagine anybody walking in your tattoo shop and being like, oh, this guy hates what he does. Every time, every time you walk in there and I've had moments where it's like man, like it's been a really shitty day you walk in and the atmosphere is so different. You can't help but to be lighter and to feel better walking in and be stoked, like yeah, you're going to get a tattoo, like, but you're there and you see the excitement and you see the live, like you have a spirit and an ability to engage with people. That it's not common and it's it's becoming a more of a rarity these days. Like just be able to like walk in and disarm somebody from having a really bad day. It's just like, oh shit, like this is going to be great, thank you.

Speaker 1: 37:51

That means a lot. Yeah, it's like I've been there and I've seen other customers come in, when you've been like just just manning the shop on yourself, working on me, and you can tell somebody's having like kind of a weird day, and it's just like that. The shift happens instantly and it's just like, hey, what's up, how's it going? Man, they're like oh, hey, you know, like thinking about getting X, y and Z. I even saw it with a friend of mine that was coming into town to check in.

Speaker 1: 38:19

I remember seeing him come in the door and he was, you know, traveling out of state, coming back having a horrible day because he's here for a horrible situation. But he talks to you for like a few seconds and before we say goodbye as he's leaving the shop, completely different state of mind, completely different. I'm like dude, like that's just, that's DeGerry effect, and I think there's tons of people out there that have that and I think we can all tap into that if we're happy with what we're doing in our day to day life, like anybody that goes to work, and they're like I hate my job. Yeah, and that's the office space scenario.

Speaker 2: 38:58

Yeah yeah. I was never cut for that. So you know, I knew I would never succeed in that world.

Speaker 1: 39:06

It took me a while to find like a window that was like where I could go and do that, yeah, you know, and I think being brave enough to seek that out, to take the nose and continue driving through it because it's like it wasn't easy, it wasn't something that was like, yeah, come in, I'm going to show you everything. It's like you have to, you know, bounce back resilience Like, okay, this guy said no this time. Yeah, what about tomorrow? What about the next day?

Speaker 2: 39:33

Yeah, yeah, yeah, exactly yeah. And so I was like, okay, give it another go. And then, yeah, and then it just the opportunity. You know, the door opened, yeah. So I was like, okay, I'm going to do this.

Speaker 2: 39:43

And while I was apprenticing, I actually was still driving the transit bus and he's told me, because he understood I needed to pay my bills, and he's like you need to be here at least three days a week minimum, you know. And I was like, well, that's perfect. I said I worked four tens driving a bus. Yeah, so I just come here on my days off. And so every day I did something. I got up and went somewhere to work. You know what? My apprentice wasn't paying anything. It's like going to school yeah, you don't get paid to go to class, you know.

Speaker 2: 40:13

So I did that and I had several people like at the bus depot when I'd be over there working that day. They're like so I heard that you're doing this. I'm like, yeah, you know, yeah, I'm just on the. When do you do that? I'm like, well, my day's off, the woman, you have days off. I said, well, I don't, you know, and you know, and, and the, you know, and, and a lot of them. I couldn't tell them the idea that I had given up whatever free time you know that I had, for lack of a better word. You know, I don't think there is any free time, it's just time. You know is how we use it yeah, and and. So they were like oh, and, I don't think I could do that. I was like okay, well then you know?

Speaker 2: 40:50

I guess I do, because I know this is a good thing. It's going to be forever, you know. It may be for a year, maybe for two years, but I know I can make it to the end of that. Yeah, you know, that was kind of the first time I guess I actually forward thought in my life. Yeah, you know, and I was in my like later twenties, you know, you know, like you know, like you know I can think of this, you know. But you know, and I see people you know in life that like have that forward thought earlier than I did. I'm like that's awesome that they they see that. Yeah, you know. And so that kind of was a turning point, you know, and it opened the door, you know, for me to just to be creative, like going to work, find that spot that I was kind of like trying to find out a high school. How can I be creative and and support myself? Yeah, you know. So I did that for, you know, quite a while.

Speaker 2: 41:43

And then when it ended up, after I had met Terry and we came here to you know, she fell in love with this area and really wanted to just slow our life down compared to Southern California where we were just trying to keep up. You know, overhead was too much and so we decided to kind of reboot our life, you know, came here and then it segwayed into us, you know, opening, opening a shop. You know we had our ups and downs with you know, before it all happened, you know. And then but that's probably another podcast I was going into that story. But you know, then and then one day she was literally just like you know, you need to have your own shop, you know. And and I was like and I was working downtown and I was really working mostly by point. You know, I very rarely took walk-ins and I was working in a street shop, you know. So it was not common for an artist to just be booked in a street shop, because you generally didn't want to book yourself, because you wanted to keep getting that walking clientele and I just enjoyed the engagement with people. So I liked having that kind of like, you know, and I'm.

Speaker 2: 42:56

Plus, I also knew that like I had, you know, more of a steady revenue because I was supporting my family, like, okay, I have this many weeks of work ahead of me coming in, and so I was kind of like oh, we can't afford that. We, you know, we got, we got to put together this much money if we decide to take that leap and listen to that. And she's like no, no, we can you know. No, no, we need, you need your own shop.

Speaker 2: 43:21

And so finally, I was just kind of I was like you know what? Just, you know, just do it. You know, if you think it can happen, I was like just don't tell me about it because I don't think you know. I was like the anxiety of it you know, I have anxiety I battle with in my life and so, and then, plus, I was working for somebody, so I, I didn't, you know, feel like, okay, I feel like maybe am I undercutting this person. You know that loyalty of like this person, yeah, job, you know. And so I was like, just, if you think it can happen, then you know, go ahead and make it happen.

Speaker 1: 43:56

That loyalty piece gets a lot of us.

Speaker 2: 43:58

Yeah, and and so, and it was time for me to like segue on anyway. So, and then I so finally, one day she's like oh, I, you know, this building's a very, very available and there's a lease ready to sign. So I was like, oh well, we don't need, we don't have any money, what do you mean? She goes, oh, we're fine, we have the, we have this credit card, and so we're going to, we're going to do it, you're going to be fine, you're going to trust me. And so I was like okay.

Speaker 2: 44:25

So took me like a few days to kind of build up the courage to basically tell the owner that I was working for, like I'm, I'm going to quit and I'm going to go open up in the same town issue, you know, which is very frowned upon, you know, in the world. So I went to him and I sat down and I said look, this is what I'm going to do. I said if you want me to quit today, I get it. I said, but I have two weeks of appointments on my books. If you'd like me to make you some more money, then I'll stick around and do that. And he was like well, I'd be foolish to tell you to not make me some more money and it's like okay and and so, and he always liked me because I was, you know, very much there Just came to work. I didn't have any other you know agenda going on. It's good man. I worked at a good job. People you know liked me and, you know, engaged with my clients, right and so.

Speaker 2: 45:19

And then he was like man, I bet this was a really hard conversation to have and I said, yeah, actually it was. And now I said because I didn't want to feel like I was doing you know undercutting, you're doing this to you. And he says I can get that he goes. Well, I respect that. You came to me the way you did.

Speaker 2: 45:35

And he talked about people quitting and like basically like him going home for the day and coming back in their station was him, the station was empty in the past and like getting a key in the mail, you know, and like no explanation of just like anything happening and he goes. So I he was, he really liked that I just openly was like I'm not gonna sugarcoat this or lie to you, I'm just going to tell you what I'm doing. He asked me Paul, who are you taking with you? I said no one. You know, I was like I'm just going to go work so that if I need a day off from my son's school, I can take it. If we want to go out of town as a family, we can make that happen. And then I basically just left for creating my own space to work in.

Speaker 2: 46:16

And when I started telling clients, you know, man, everybody was just super pumped for me and I had people coming by, like few people, showing up and actually like helping me do stuff. You know, terry and I were in there working on it, doing it all ourselves, sick of my flag, just filled it and they're all, like you know, like, oh, I'll help you paint this wall. You know, I'll help you do that Drought. They're dropping a deposit to make an appointment. You know, in the middle of rebel, you know. And then there was one guy in town and he had left the shop he was at and he had met me years ago and always remembered that he liked me as a person, was like, oh, that guy's open in a shop. So he showed up and was like, hey, I'd like to work, work with you, yeah, and so, and, like I said, we weren't even planning. So then we're like, okay, well, we got to build another station. So at that moment, okay, now we need two spaces, yeah, and so we built out the two and he worked with us for a while and he ended up, you know, going about and doing his own thing, eventually going his way, and then that's when it just kind of evolved into what it is.

Speaker 2: 47:19

You know, we met Dylan at the the. He actually came to like the grand opening. Yeah, I didn't know him then and then he had later told me that he had come to try to talk to me about a parentheses and I had somebody that I was I was, I was like helping out at the time who you know came over and had worked a counter at a previous place that I worked at, and so he kind of thought, oh well, he's probably not doing anything, yeah. And then it wasn't until later in that year that I met his brother. His brother talked him up and Terry was like oh, you got to, you know, you got to teach this guy, yeah. And so it was her that really pushed me. I mean, honestly, like a lot of the forward steps, the majority of them Terry pushed me into.

Speaker 1: 48:01

You know, that's the beauty of having a partner in crime, having a wife Like I'm. The same way, there's a. We deal with a lot of self doubt, yeah, and we, we deal with a lot of like I don't know if I can do this, making that lateral like same with me, like we're choosing to put my health and my family first. That was a big thing, that was a really big thing. That's a scary thing to make that lateral move and they're like okay, like you know, like am I going to go off on my own? Can I succeed on my own? Can I? And every veteran has that moment. Every working civilian has that moment. I've got a great friend, never served a day in his life, was very successful in the job he had Loved what he was doing, but he had a bigger calling, had a bigger passion for something else. And if it wasn't for his wife saying like hey, you can do this, yeah, in that outside perspective, from the one, the most important person in your life, your spouse like yeah, that's huge.

Speaker 2: 48:58

Yeah, absolutely yeah. She's always been there for me to, like, push me out of my comfort zone. Yeah, she was like you know, no, go and do this. You know, no, take this person on, it's going to work, it's going to be good for you and it was.

Speaker 2: 49:12

It was good for me, as you know a tattooer and you know great for him Because he, he found a direction in life that he enjoys. And and then, you know, just investing in someone and not having seen that return, it's, you know, kind of healthy in itself. And and then, as the years passed on, of you know, the shop, you know, with us working and having artists come and go, and you know trying to fit that harmony that we always, you know, not everybody matched up, so, you know, people ended up, you know, moving on. And then you know I would always, you know, go back to like painting, which I'm doing more of now. Now, I'd like paint. Everything was always like tattoo related. Yeah, like when I would paint, I'd sit down and paint, paint, you know, for the idea that maybe somebody, you know wanted it, you know, to do as a tattoo. And I always paint it all the way back.

Speaker 2: 50:06

As you know, as a teenager I was into painting and I used to, like you know, try to paint album art or you know, oh, that's a cool picture or a photograph, or just try to paint it just for the enjoyment. I just love that and like, like I said in high school, where I was like I'm going to be a painter and I had no idea I could make that happen and so, but I was like, you know, it just felt like it was going that's what I should be doing, yeah, so I just naturally said it and so I would talk about that. And then Terry was like, well, you know well, why don't you paint? That you know so. She's like you need to do that. She's like go after it. And so, once again she like pushed me, you know, out of, you know, my comfort zone again. And here I've been tattooing for so long, you know like, ok, here's, this is my definition Of who I am, and you know. So I was kind of in that lane and was kind of like, oh, now I can step out of it. You know so. But I also was at a point in my career where I felt established to, where there was forward momentum that kept going and it allowed me to like slow, sit back and kind of like slow down a little bit and kind of take notice of you know what was happening. Yeah, so, instead of feeling like I'm trying to work forward into something enjoying, starting to enjoy the moment. So it opened up that window to like, OK, do this.

Speaker 2: 51:28

And the building next to us that was next to our shop we were renting was became available, and it was the same owner that owned both buildings. So Terry went out there and talked to him. It was basically like you know, like, oh, hey, we want that. And part of it was just we wanted it because we didn't want anybody next to us, because we were like we don't know what kind of business is going to open up. And so we are like, and it was, he just lumped it into our lease, so we didn't even have to like, get a new lease. He just was like, ok, we'll just add this on top of your already existing. You know this much more month. And so we went over there and we cleared the space out and turned it into just one big open room and it became a painting studio. And we are originally going to try to set up a little kitchen for our son, because he used to cook, and kind of, like you know, evolve it into a pop up restaurant gallery.

Speaker 2: 52:25

We had this like idea going for a while, and then you know, so I just started painting.

Speaker 1: 52:31

I just started painting and painting.

Speaker 2: 52:34

She brought home some art books one day when that her and Saylor went out like book hunting to find recipe books Because they, let you know he loved finding new recipes. So they went to thrift stores and we're like, hey, let's see what kind of recipe books are out there. So she came home I was like, oh, here's some. I brought these art books home. One of them was Jackson Pollock and and it was basically kind of a.

Speaker 2: 52:57

It was a short book and, you know, an easy read, and so reading, like reading books is always like a super challenge for me. I have tension deficit, so I get, I get the book goes down and it may sit there for months before I pick it back up again. I don't have a problem. I can remembering what the book's about. I pick it back up later, but I just keep in my momentum. I have to kind of have to kind of like build a routine. You know to do it and I've learned that about myself, you know. But so I was we're going out of town, so I was like I'm taking this book with me.

Speaker 2: 53:30

So I actually read the book the whole week we're out of town, finished it, you know, was, and then was kind of just like really inspired on like a lot of it was describing. He described how he painted like how he kind of like wanted to be away from anything traditional as a painter and and basically paint like you know, ok, everybody's using brushes, I'm not going to use that. You know, everybody's putting their stuff on an easel. I'm not going to use an easel. So he went in a different direction. So it I was like you know, I'm going to, I'm going to go that way. And it was just kind of like me picking a trajectory because I kind of started painting but I didn't really know what I wanted to paint, because I had been doing tattoos for so long that it was like all the everything kind of step kept falling back into that length of like oh, now it's a tattoo again.

Speaker 1: 54:19

And I was kind of like OK.

Speaker 2: 54:20

So I had to like, break the habit, break the habit.

Speaker 1: 54:25

Yeah, muscle memory, you know my mind going back and forth.

Speaker 2: 54:27

I mean, my mind is going that direction of designing and so I was like, oh, I'm going to do some abstract. I always loved abstract work. When I was younger I liked doing it and but, you know, didn't really know where I could take it, you know. So I was like, you know, I was going to do it. So I just went out and bought some. You know, terry's like, let's just go buy you some canvas. I was like I was like picking out, like you know, two or three. And she's like, no, get all of these, you know. And I'm like, ok, you know, like you know. And she's like, yeah, go ahead, spend that on yourself.

Speaker 1: 54:58

Yeah, Again the driving force.

Speaker 2: 55:01

Yeah, you know, invest in yourself. So, yeah, you deserve it. You know, buy them. So if I was like a dozen or so, maybe, I think maybe more, you know canvases and then, you know, I just started painting. And then I just started, like, you know, just adding sharing some like read to my story, my personal like profile, because I had the shop and I always just use that with my tattoos. I never started my own tattoo page for myself, I just operated off the shop name and so I just kind of like started throwing paintings on there and you know, and then was like, god, use this maybe just to, you know, show people, you know, just have fun with it.

Speaker 2: 55:36

This wasn't like I didn't think, I didn't even know where I was going to go with it, you know. And then one of my clients reached out one day and was like, how much is that one, you know, and I was like, oh, wow, I didn't even consider it for sale. You know at the time that I was like, wow, ok, so something appealed to somebody else. And when I was younger and I would do paintings and I had friends that liked them, they were like, oh my God, that's so cool I would like I usually just gave you know because I was like didn't see a value in it yet, which was me giving myself short, short comes, you know. And then so I just well, you can just have it. And then so so he came over, like I was like, well, you can come out of the studio one day and I had, like I think like a dozen pieces that I had done abstract, and then and he was like, walked around. He walked around for like about 30 minutes and was, you know, asking me some questions about stuff. You know what's up with that one, how? You know how did you inspire on that one? And you know what gives you kind of your direction?

Speaker 2: 56:35

And at that moment I was just kind of like I had taken all this, like defined things that I was doing with that doing like you know, I was really fine tuning everything it's structure has to be, and I was like, okay, I want to break this down to just color and texture, and then that's all I wanted to think about, so that I gave myself a limited window to work in and then and then just pick a direction and see where it takes me. And then so that was what I started exploring, like, what colors, what colors I'm going to use in this painting, and then like, okay, what am I going to use to create the texture? And then I was trying to find anything that wasn't an art tool, you know, so, like, but you were literally picking up trash and using trash to like. You know, like, like, oh, I'm going to throw this way this. Oh, actually, before I throw this away, this could do this.

Speaker 2: 57:30

I wonder if I did this with it, you know, and then and then learning things, kind of just exploring with you know, there was, you know, no obligation in the direction I was going, and so that too, I have an obligation to have. A client is sitting down. They're giving me their idea, they might even give me free form of like, just draw something, maybe just draw something Japanese, because I know you like doing that stuff, that style. And then they're still giving me an open ended direction, but I have an obligation to still had something they want to wear. So I got to kind of still hit that, and so when I started painting, I didn't have that obligation, and so in a way, it like freed my mind up and and opened it up and then and actually kind of helped my tattooing to gave me, like a feeling of you know, or creative ability, like there was another window that opened up. Yeah, like oh, here's some more opportunity I could apply to that, because I'm doing this.

Speaker 1: 58:27

Did you feel that it revitalized you? Do you feel like it was like oh shit, like new, you know, gave you a new outlook, or breathed like some new energy? Oh, it did. 100%.

Speaker 2: 58:39

Yeah, 100% it totally revitalized. It's awesome, like literally, like you know, like just like, okay, this is. I just sit down and I would like. It was one of the moments in my life where my mind was quiet. You know, I was this, only this, this in front of me, nice, what I was really working on, yeah, I wasn't worrying about anything, I was just in the moment, you know.

Speaker 2: 59:01

And then I kind of started like you know, where is this coming from? What is it? And I told Terry one day. I was like I said, you know, it's like there's this energy in me. And I said and then when I put it on this canvas, I go, that's what it looks like. Yeah, I go, that's the only way I can describe like what I'm doing is I'm releasing an energy that I have. That's there and I know what to do with it. Oh shit. And so now I'm just like putting it on something, yeah, and then, and then, in a way, it's like I just want to, and then there's a moment where you look at it and you're like oh, that's, that's perfect, and it's like I'm not touching it anymore.

Speaker 2: 59:34

You know, and I've even had times where I've like been painting and doing something, and Terri would have, like, showed up the studio and stopped by and tell me something. And then she'll be like, oh my God, I love that one. You're not doing anything else to it, are you? And I'm like I don't know. I was kind of just staring at it and thinking she goes no, you shouldn't, that's perfect. And I'm like, oh, okay, so, so, a lot of so. It actually like painting. And then having her come and interject it gave me another perspective to look at it, to not look at it as cause.

Speaker 2: 1:00:02

Sometimes I would get caught up in the process because it was I was releasing this energy that I had, and so I would get caught up and I would just continue to keep doing something to the painting. And then sometimes it was like a painting over the top of another painting over the top of another, over the top, you know, and then I might bury something 3D, because what, the whole process that's happening at the moment I'm enjoying, you know, and so, and then so I did those and a friend of mine who's a photographer was like you know, call me up one day, hey, I wanna come shoot you in your studio. And I was like, okay, yeah, you know, and I was like that sounds fine. You know he's rad photographer and like 30 years, you know, plus of experience. You know, amazing guy, and he's in town, sean, and he basically was like hey, I wanna do this and I wanna actually have some footage that I shot you. You know, in your beginning, you know, is what he kind of saw. So then he took some pictures of me that day and then showed a friend of his that you know and he basically was like who is that guy? He goes, oh, it's my friend. He just started painting, you know, got serious about painting again. You know he was like and he goes, so these are some of his you know new pieces. And he's like I wanna buy one and so just another one, just like happened before. I even like really was like, you know, trying to take it Once again.

Speaker 2: 1:01:31

I started it in the direction of just like I wanted to do it and it was like, okay, this is gonna take this somewhere. And then so he called and, you know, picked one out after some photos that I had sent him Well, these are all available Picked one out, framed it up. You know Sean actually delivered it for me because he was going to early eyes house the next day. So he came by, picked it up, delivered it for me. So I was kind of like, wow, that's cool. I was like you know somebody else. So it's cool, like when I create something that I don't have an obligation or direction, I create it and then somebody else sees an attachment in it. It's really neat to see that, like you know, they wanna take that home and they wanna put it in their house. You know that's their. I guess you know everybody's home is their sanctuary, so they wanna make that a part of their day to day life. You know, and that's really neat as well as somebody wearing, you know, an image I create, you know, for the rest of their life. So I did that and then it just kind of that kind of evolved and started gaining momentum.

Speaker 2: 1:02:31

Then we had our shop. The building sold that we basically were renting and they didn't sell it to us, and so we ended up like, okay, well, we gotta find a place. Well, now I had this building that was like almost nine under square feet, that was full of painting stuff and materials and canvas, and you know, and then Terri was like, okay, well, you need a studio still. And so she's like we are gonna move into the living room and you're gonna use the bedroom as your studio. And so she goes, this is she goes. This is just. You know, this is what you're gonna do, that we'll down the road, we will figure out the next step. And so bottom Murphy bed that day and she, like, was like moved right into the living room. So we'd been sleeping in the living room for like a year and a year plus now, and then our bedroom became a painting studio.

Speaker 2: 1:03:23

And then, while we were still in the old building, our son got into it too. He was really like intrigued by watching me. One day I was like I wanna do one. So we said go ahead, you know, go ahead. So, like, set him up, put some colors out in front of him, put a couple of the you know tools that I would that made and used it. Here you go, you know, and then showed it. Well, you could do this, and this gives you this texture. And then he's like okay, so we just let him go to town. And he ended up painting something. He sold a piece, no way, yeah, like one of our friends Terri had shared it and posted it, and one of our friends was like how much is that? And Terri's like well, I already claimed that one, but if you want he'll do one for you. And they commissioned him. No way, yeah, for a piece. And so so now we had this building that we didn't have anymore and we both still she's like you guys still need your space to paint.

Speaker 2: 1:04:19

So we were like kind of you know, kind of scheduling our time of like, oh, I got to get this done, and then we be able to.

Speaker 2: 1:04:24

Sometimes only one of us could be in there in a moment, depending on what we were working on. And then and then we had a friend of mine in California, brady of Wellmont. He's a painter as well and he actually went to school for painting. He does surrealist stuff, you know, really like skilled painter, like oil painter, and he got invited to go out to Miami and go to Art Week, our Basel down there, and so he had been talking about going tearing it out for years. You know like, oh well, yeah, we want to go down there. Another friend of ours was going down there regularly and painting and doing Art Week, and so we were like, oh yeah, well, two of our friends are there this year, we need to go down and see Justin Brady. And so we go down there, and then we go to the sphere that my friend Brady's at.

Speaker 2: 1:05:20

And then so I started following that page on Instagram. And then they had did an open call one day. It was like open call submissions to you know, you want to get in next year. And I was like, no, well, I don't give a go. So I just like pulled six photos of things because they asked for six pieces, I sent in and I had already like built myself a website at that moment and then was like kind of copy pasted my mission statement through it on there, you know, and then through my pieces out there, a week later I got an acceptance letter. You know, nice To get in the fair. And, terry, you know when I did no, no, I did it, you know. I was like opening up my emails.

Speaker 2: 1:06:06

I was like, oh my God, I got in a spectrum and she's like what? And I said, yeah, I just submitted. I think it opened call. So I just submitted. I didn't know what was going to happen. I was like, why not when I give it a try? And so then so I get, like you know, follow up with the email. And she's like, oh my God, that's amazing, you got to do this. And she was telling me, like the year of a friar, like you're going to be down here, you're going to have a booth in this one.

Speaker 2: 1:06:30

And I was all kind of like, oh, you know, like, okay, you know, that's fast you know, you know, maybe not thinking that I was, you know the trajectory, but she's, you know, my biggest believer. I was like, I guess pushing into the right direction. And so she's like, no, look, we're going to figure out how to get you in here next year. So then the call up you know, they told me the booth it was, you know, pretty hefty investment for my, for myself. So she's like I was like, oh, okay, it's this much. And she's like, okay, okay. And I was like, oh, really. And she's like, yeah, yeah, get it down While there's a booth left. And so ended up, you know, booking. And then she's like get the bigger one. You know, you want to make a presence.

Speaker 2: 1:07:15

And so the guy that I was talking to ended up having like a booth actually made for me, because they didn't have any of the size left that I wanted. Oh, wow. And so he's like he goes. I'll tell you what I'm going to take these two small ones and I'm just going to turn them into one big one. And he goes and he goes. I think that's a great spot for you. And so in the section of the fair, I ended up actually having like a 20 by four foot booth. Oh wow, in a section that was all four by 10s and so I was actually like kind of kind of stood out a little bit. I was like, oh, this is cool Actually, and I was right in front of an open area, so I wasn't in an aisle as much as I was like in front of me. There wasn't anything else going on except for like a bar, and it's perfect. Yeah, so it was nice. Yeah.

Speaker 2: 1:08:00

So from there I ended up, you know we went down there and did that, and then, you know, rented the trailer, you know, loaded up you know giant pieces. There's like, oh, you know, you need to do this size piece and this thing had had some stuff already. And she's like, ok, let's do her like game planning, like you know kind of curating with her she was helping me curate an idea. You know like, ok, you know what are you going to present yourself.

Speaker 2: 1:08:25

You have your abstract expressionist stuff and you have these, these Cubist inspired faces that you draw. And when I was working out of the house, one day was when I started drawing these faces that originated from me when I was in like middle school. Oh wow, you know, I used to draw like Cubist faces on my folders things constantly, and once again that was something I didn't know, but I could do anything with it. You know, no one had ever All these talents. Yeah, no one had ever like seen anything I did and like, hey, you know you could do something with that, or Seen the potential, yeah.

Speaker 2: 1:09:05

Yeah, no one I was around was maybe saw those directions either, you know. And so so then we decided like, okay, let's go on this Cubis, this I really enjoyed doing this, and so let's take this. There was more so that there was already plenty of abstract artists at this fair. So we're like, okay, let's stand out. So here's I have these two lanes that I drive in, and so let's take this one down there. And so that's what we did and I put together like a whole series of like this is all gonna go with me to Miami, hell yeah, you know.

Speaker 2: 1:09:46

And went and went down there, had a rad showing, rad reception, like amazing, I had made these little eight by eights that I had like six of those. I sold all those. They were like a real, you know, easy collector piece for someone that just maybe wants to kind of start collecting art. You know like, oh, that's really rad, you know, and sold all those. I sold one of my three foot by three foot pieces. And then I had one of my paintings I had that I literally I think was photographed at least 200 or more times. You know, I got a couple like do a full on photo shoot in front of it.

Speaker 2: 1:10:21

They were like, they were like there about 10 minutes, you know, like, and they had that entourage with them. Oh, wow, terri and I are like, you know, she's like. I don't know who that guy is, but he's somebody, because you can tell he's used to having his photograph. Yeah, yeah, you know the way he was, the way he was. Each photo is $25. You know so, yeah, so I escalated from there. I met. I was standing at my booth when I was talking to somebody, and then I turned around and I saw this, you know, gentleman, looking at one of my paintings, and he was really close to it, you know, looking at my frame that I had made, and then so I just started talking to him and then it turns out he's a gallery owner in New York and he's the one that he basically said. He told me he wanted to start working with me. Yeah, and so that opened up that door and just like, well, it was about a month ago, I drove. You know my first three pieces.

Speaker 1: 1:11:19

What was that like? That was huge. That was for anybody that's been at the local area that's following Terri. I think all of us had the same thought we're all cheering and championing on somebody that's, like you, played a huge role to so many soft professionals, regular Air Force, regular Army. Everybody here that's in the veterinary and military community, like that, has gone through your doors. That follows you. I can honestly tell you everybody's seen those posts and it's like fuck yeah, that's our guy.

Speaker 2: 1:11:53

Yeah, yeah, yeah, thank you. Yeah, it was very surreal, like, and amazing, and I've had a couple of people, like you know, your friend Kyle has said that too, like he's reached out to me like oh yes, go, go yeah dude, you know like everyone else is seeing your potential.

Speaker 2: 1:12:11

Yeah, so yeah, that was.

Speaker 2: 1:12:13

It was a real surreal moment I had. He's like I want, you know, eight foot by three foot pieces. Can you do a series of three? You know? He's like I want to be able to sell them individually or as a set. And he was kind of like you know, fine tuning, like you know, which I don't know if you know, because I've always worked with people in tattooing of, like what is it you're looking for? Yeah, and I know, and I'd find what I can do and deliver in that direction.

Speaker 2: 1:12:43

So I wasn't didn't feel weird at all for the gallery person to be like you know, this is what I really want to sell. And I'm like, okay, I can do that, you know. So I went and you know, and he wasn't giving me direction on, like what it is to create. He just I like your Cubist stuff. So this is what you, what I want to sell, and I wanted to be my representative.

Speaker 2: 1:13:05

So, yeah, so I had, like these eight foot by three foot paintings was like first was okay, we're going to run a trailer to get it up there, and we looked at shipping, you know, it's like wow, that's, you can't afford that. You know it's like I'm not going to. You know, after they sell, I won't play a game of your game, you know, you know, you know. And so Terry was like why don't you just drive home? She goes, you know we don't need to go, I'm working, you know Sailor's working. So she goes, just drive them, just drive up there, drop them and turn around and head home. And so I was okay, so I packed them inside our Ford Flex, which is, you know, there's eight feet of space in there, but it comes into the front, yeah, yeah, the front seat. And so I visualized that.

Speaker 2: 1:13:53

And so I was like, okay now, had they been six foot would have been no issue, they would have fit right behind the back seat and been fine. But yeah, that eight foot perimeter was like okay. So I went in there and I measured the car out one day and I'm like you know what eight feet would fit in here? You know, I can get it in here, I just need to build up something. And I was going to build a rack, you know, originally for the slide into in the car. Well, like I was, I spent so much time like painting because I had a deadline I was like I don't have time to build a rack, so kind of makeshifted one with some cushions and padding. But after I got them in there then I had to take all the headrests off the car, all the seats, you know they came down, all the headrests came off.

Speaker 2: 1:14:38

Then I had. Then, after I got them in there, I, like you know, have my son like, okay, I'm gonna, I want you to just lift them up, hold them right here. And then I shimmed out underneath them on the seats so that they were high enough, so they really weren't like right on my shoulder, you know, so I could actually still turn to the right and see the rear of your mirror. And then then I was like so I was like you know, but then Terry likes out of the next day she's laughing. She's like well, you know, you're gonna do it, you know. And so you know.

Speaker 2: 1:15:09

So then I, yeah, hopped in the car and took off. I ended up driving like and I was probably just on sheer energy of AMP, yeah, that I was like taking some stuff to New York. So I, you know, was like, because I feel like, you know, it's like, it's like an ultimate dream of any art, yeah, that's like you know that's a hub of the world for art and so like, oh, I'm going to be represented there and be able to show my work there.

Speaker 2: 1:15:35

Yeah, you know. So I literally like drove like all the way like four hours shy of Manhattan, like straight through. You know, and I stopped because I had family in Maryland.

Speaker 1: 1:15:48

Oh nice.

Speaker 2: 1:15:49

So I was like, okay, maybe I'll just stop there, terry's, like I just stopped there taking that. Yeah, you know, I was like that sounds and then just get up. And then I, so I could time myself to come into the city at the right time, yeah, and then so I just literally drove straight there. I slept in this house for like four hours, got back up Yup, you know, got in the car, drove straight in and then and then dropped him off and you know it was like great experience. Yeah, you know, good, I mean it's, it was once again. I was like surreal, like speechless yeah, While I was happening, like, okay, this is cool. Yeah, you know, like it's a huge win.

Speaker 1: 1:16:23

Like that's something that we tell ourselves that, okay, once you get to a certain age or certain period in your life, you're not going to have these big wins. Like that's not true, that's not fucking true. No, you can have these wins throughout your life. You just have to be committed to what you're passionate about. You have to be committed to something. Yeah, if you're just flying out there in the ether, just bouncing from one thing to another and not feeling passion or that drive to create something, to do something, like it's going to be hard, it's going to be difficult, it's going to be slightly impossible at times, but that's where the payoff comes from. That's where you will have the payoff. If you're just engaging with just everyday comforts, everyday lifestyle, scrolling through your phone, playing a video game nonstop, you're never going to get those moments where, like, holy shit, I made it, yeah, did it.

Speaker 1: 1:17:16

Like your success is inspiration to all of us. Even if you're not an artist, even if you never wanted to pick something up, if you're just working a job in the hopes of getting that promotion to go on to do something else, this is a tale of inspiration for you. Just keep moving. Keep moving forward to whatever you're striving for. Like you can't live a life and just say that you're not going to have these successes, like that's not a life worth living. You got to have aim towards something. Yeah, there's going to be something that you want. Figure what that is. Like, figure it out. Like I'm almost 40 and I'm just now figuring out what those goals are. That's okay.

Speaker 2: 1:17:54

Like, yeah, yeah, exactly, yeah, it is. And yeah, that thing you hear you hear many people say it over and over when they're public speaking or whatever like if you're still breathing, there's still an opportunity for you to do what you want to do or to do anything that you want to do. So, yeah, so that was just going in that direction, taking off. Then, after that one, I got back into town and there's a place in Pensacola called the Brent Lofts and it's a new development there, beautiful building no, it's over a hundred years old that they renovated. It's into like loft departments they have, I think one floor is like short-term rentals and then the other floors are like full-time residents. And I had emailed them like pre-construction because I was like thinking of ways this is not an abundance of galleries in our area. Yeah, no, so it's not like I had open, I can go and mingle. My friend does that all the time in San Diego because he can drive to LA, san Diego and he's able to exist in that world and meet people face to face. So here is not that much. So I was thinking, what are directions? I can show my work. So I emailed this place and was like, hey, I think that my work would work well with your brand and I think we could help cross promote each other. And so I'd love to talk to you about putting work in your lofts as well as in your gallery lobby space.

Speaker 2: 1:19:39

Well, then they opened up and then they had an artist in there showing their work and I was like, oh wow, that's like what I was trying to present him and I, you steal my idea, yeah. And so I reached back out to him hey, I'd love to get a ball. And so then the guy who was his assistant called me and was like hey, are you available? We'll just take a phone call right now. The director wants to talk to you about putting your art. We want to have your art in the building. And I was like, oh, okay, thank you. And I turned out I had actually already missed an email from them. Oh, went straight to my junk and I didn't see it, and so they had already, like, tried to get in touch with me. Like you know, I've played two, three weeks prior to that. So I liked to like the guy that wasn't responding, he's played hard to get.

Speaker 2: 1:20:28

Yeah, and so I'm talking to the guy. And then we went over and met him and I told him about my son painting as well, and he's like, oh well, maybe he goes. I would be interested in having you and your son do like a group show with the two of you, he said. He says, and he really wants it to be a space where, just like one or two artists show. He's like I don't want the whole thing to be a group show. Constantly he goes. I'm trying to create where I'm showcasing somebody. And then, and so we went and talked to him, well, turned out, the first artist that was there was someone that he knew from like 30 years plus of his life.

Speaker 2: 1:21:08

He was a painter. And so he basically, when the place was finally open, he goes. I just call my friend, because I knew he had a bunch of paintings and I knew we could put it together real quick. And he goes. And then I still had your email. So I was like I'm going to reach out to that guy. And so I was like, and he was talking about how he wanted to do something with this space and that was his kind of idea. So when he saw my email he was kind of like, oh, this is cool that somebody else saw this as well. And so he. So we're getting ready. Sayler and I are doing like 40 pieces or more Like in this space. The downstairs lobby is probably about 1200, maybe more square feet of space.

Speaker 2: 1:21:52

Well, it goes up four floors and each floor is going to be like at least like four to five pieces on each floor going up, and then we're going to it's going to be up for four months and we're going to have a gallery night in Pensacola. It goes on on Palo Fox, third Friday of every month and so we'll be down there manning it during gallery nights, having the door open to kind of a public space, because it's set as more of a private space. There's certain times of the week that the doors are open to the public, and then there's also the short term renters come through there and then. So we're going to try to put together some events like reception night, multiple receptions.

Speaker 2: 1:22:37

That's pretty awesome, but that opened up. That opportunity opened up for me. While I was in Miami. I had a lady in Long Island give me her card and I was like I love your whole brand here. I think that I run a she's like a design firm and she does kind of curates people's business spaces, they're homes there. She'll be like, ok, this is I think you should probably collect from this artist, and she recommends artists for them to collect from and then gets the work framed if needed, or that's another service that her company does. So she reached out to her and that's kind of the beginning of the relationship OK, how do I get you my work, how do you show it? And so that's another avenue.

Speaker 2: 1:23:29

Had a gentleman out of Texas who's originally from Mexico City who reached out to me and he just signed a contract with him for him to be my representative in Texas and he's in the process of in the next year or so, actually opening up his own gallery in the Houston area, but right now he's doing pop-up events and so while he's building his relationships there, so that was another avenue, that so the momentum happened really quickly after Miami of like some opportunities. So, and it's real exciting to do Because, once again, it started out as something I just dove into because I wanted to do it and my wife pushed me into it. You got to take that leap.

Speaker 2: 1:24:17

You got to take the leap, you got to do it. So we did.

Speaker 1: 1:24:21

That's a lesson for today. If you're out there and you're creating or doing something that you're passionate about and you love and you're scared about putting it out there in the world, take the leap, be willing to put it out there. Yet you're going to be vulnerable, you're going to be subject to somebody else's opinion on it, but you never know, it could be the thing that kicks off your next great adventure. Oh very well, you're never going to get to that end point unless you're willing to be vulnerable. Jerry dude.

Speaker 2: 1:24:51

That is true.

Speaker 1: 1:24:52

Thank you for being here, thank you for sharing your story, thank you for being the amazing person you are, because you've not only helped us become a little bit cooler with awesome tattoos, but you've helped so many of us get that outside perspective and just understand it Like oh man, I need to be more well-rounded and you'd be able to be more like Jerry and live a life. That's just not being honed in and being in a box. Oh, thank you From all of us.

Speaker 2: 1:25:21

Thank you that you want to aspire to be me. That's really humbling to you. But in the sense of you talking about wanting to take that leap, it's important I think of it when I'm painting is that these are just things that I feel that I want to create, and it's up to the world to decide if they like it. But I'm not trying to convince them. I just am doing it because it's a passionate about creating it and that part is the enjoyment and I get fulfillment out of it and then, when it goes further, it's even a more elevated sensation.

Speaker 1: 1:26:03

It's cool, but it's cool that I'm doing it. Yeah, exactly, dude. Thank you so much for being here, man. I really appreciate it. Before we close off, what's the name of your website? Where can we look at your art and if you're looking for a tattoo in Northwest Florida, where can people go?

Speaker 2: 1:26:22

Well, the tattoo shop saleoatatoocom, and you can type that in as one word on Instagram as well Saleoatatoocom and it'll take you to our profile page. You can DM from there. I usually shoot my cell phone out to people after I start DMing and I see cell phones the fastest, the text I see the fastest and I can respond and see on top of those, my art website is gerardfrankart and that's actually my Instagram handle as well. Nice.

Speaker 2: 1:26:52

So, I made them the exact same so that you could make it simple. Yeah, and from the shop. Instagram also has a link to my art page. I have that on there as well. And then my business card now actually has nothing to do with tattoos at all and when I hand it to people, I'm like, and I'm talking to them about tattoos At the time I'm like, oh, here's my card.

Speaker 2: 1:27:18

And I'm like that's just my painting, that's my painting stuff. I said, but that's how you can reach me. And then a lot of them I find when they get in that say up, their followers, become a follower on Instagram. It's weird that that's a thing in life followers and from that generation right out. But I find that they're like going to the follow shop and then they start following my paintings as well, because both realms interest them. And then I've had some people now that come in to get work from me, that do eyes that are like oh yeah, next year I'm going to get a painting from you, or I'm buying a house next year and as soon as I buy the house I'm actually going to collect a piece of your work as well. But they want that realm. Oh heck, yeah, yeah. And I say it has a lot to go with what you describe about you saying me as a person Because they just want that piece of this whole story that went along with Exactly.

Speaker 1: 1:28:20

Yeah, you did it by design. You did a damn good job.

Speaker 2: 1:28:24

Oh, thank you, and that's the. I'm trying to take the brand. As a painter, I call myself my real name's Gerard Real name, so I always go on my Jerry. So I went, gerard Frank became my first and middle name Became my painting brand. So that's why Gerard Frank Art yeah.

Speaker 1: 1:28:44

You were destined with a name like that. You were destined to be an artist and a successful painter.

Speaker 2: 1:28:49

Well, thank you.

Speaker 1: 1:28:53

Well, thank you all for being here today, thank you for tuning in and we'll catch you all next time. Till then, take care All right. Thanks for having me. Absolutely, man, that was easy.

Speaker 2: 1:29:02

Yeah, just got to make sure you're recording everything. Let your camera down and die a lot.

Speaker 1: 1:29:09

If you like what we're doing and you enjoying the show, don't forget to share us. Like us, subscribe and head on over to our Patreon, where you can be part of our community and get access to all of our episodes as soon as they drop. And remember we get through this together. Take care Bye.