Today we’d like to introduce you to Ericka Bates.
Hi Ericka, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I went to art school from 2017 to 2020 and have a BFA in fine arts with a focus in painting and printmaking. I later realized I should’ve majored in printmaking all along, but thankfully I also have the skill of painting in oil and watercolor (which helps translate to tattooing plenty!) So, I graduated and had 2 apprenticeships; in the middle of my sophomore year, I met my first mentor. And it didn’t up going where it was supposed to, but thankfully, I met my second mentor I asked her to teach me the ropes, and it ended up working out a lot better, her name is Krysta Robertson, and she’s located in Nacogdoches, TX. The same town where my college is located, SFASU. I studied under her for about 7-12 months, and after a bit, I decided I wanted to sail the ship to Houston to a larger city and explore something a bit more diverse! I honestly think it’s one of my best decisions I’ve taken as an adult and as an artist in general!
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not, what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Art growth is very difficult; having to look at each tattoo/ drawing every day and pick it apart to get better really is frustrating but it helps us realize what we want to eventually become as artists, tattooers and I tend to do this with a lot of other activities I enjoy, I’m always drawing and I try to always push myself to create and tattoo my flash a-lot. I try to get advice from others as much as I can so that I can get critiques and progress as much as possible; in college I had critiques every 2 weeks and it definitely helped me get better as I progressed from freshman to senior year. It’s been at least 7 years of being an artist and until now, it’s been the only time I actually enjoy viewing my own art more often than not, which should be a good sign!
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar, what can you tell them about what you do?
I’m a tattooer, I specifically seek out doing traditional and neo-traditional tattoos, I recently started trying out Chicano/ single needle tattooing and lettering, it’s something I’m trying to challenge myself with and learn to do, I’m known for doing a lot of erotic art in the past few years I loved doing fruit vulvas and odd objects involving vulvas for tattoos, I’m most proud traveling out of the country as an adult and getting to see some of the most beautiful art in the world it was one of my goals, doing this as an independent artist and only having this job is very difficult, especially when people always say artists never make money just by doing art! I believe being half Colombian and half American has set me apart a bit, but the fact that my mom moved me there from 13-18 years old definitely changed my personality, perspective, worldview, and culture I’m very grateful my mother gave me that experience and I’m able to speak another language fluently, had fruit maybe some people haven’t even heard of, and was lucky enough to explore a lot of the country she was born in.
Can you tell us more about what you were like growing up?
I was definitely more quiet and shy, I was very interested in reptiles, oddities, art, cartoons, I really liked being active, I played softball, basketball, volleyball, ultimate frisbee, soccer, I did hurdles in track, you name it I probably played it at least once, I always tried to be a good kid and was a huge teacher’s pet, I hated reading and it was super hard for me to focus on activities like writing or reading, but I loved math, art, science and I loved athletics.
Pricing:
- 150 an hour for sleeves/leg sleeves/ ribs/ stomachs
- 150 an hour for back pieces/ chests/ large thigh pieces etc
- 80 dollar minimum
- 150 for paintings/drawings/ commission art
Contact Info:
- Website: Batesbites.com
- Instagram: Batesbites
- Facebook: Ericka Bates
Image Credits
Batesbites Tattoos
