Today we’d like to introduce you to Amanda Garcia.
Hi Amanda, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today.
I’ve been an artist my entire life, but I never thought I would be able to make it my career. As someone who always made art, I was naturally intrigued by tattooing, but like most people, I thought it was well out of my reach. However, when covid hit in 2019, I started working a remote finance job. Mundane tasks and what seemed like never-ending workdays led to me constantly drawing on sticky notes, company reports, and even MS Paint. I became extremely bored with my day-to-day life. That’s what led me to explore the city around me on my off time. I met so many new people, explored so many new areas, and found an incredibly talented community of local artists – one of those artists being Vito Torres (Tattooer 13 years – Focused on black and grey realism). We met through some mutual friends and all I can remember is being almost starstruck while trying to mumble out questions about himself and his career. Once I realized that the lifestyle I really wanted wasn’t so out of my reach – I began to invest money and time into supplies and teaching myself how to tattoo. Many artists do not agree with the way that I approached the industry – and sometimes even I wish I could go back and do things differently, but at the time I was so hungry for it. Nothing and nobody could stop me from exploring the world of tattoo. I made half of my tiny 600 sq. ft studio into a tattoo parlor. It was such a passionate time in my life – working from 8-5 at my desk job and taking clients from 5 pm to midnight and sometimes even later. Doing tattoos that came out not so great, and then learning from those experiences and coming back stronger for the next one. About a year passed like this, and then through what feels like pure luck – I ran into Vito again. I felt less shy this time, more comfortable and confident in my skills. I showed him the work I did, and he seemed pleasantly surprised; he was asking me questions and seemed very interested in my growth. He invited me to the shop to come take a look and learn some tips – and I haven’t left since. He took me in for an apprenticeship – and then I graduated to resident artist. Somewhere during that time my company went through budget cuts and my department got cut, it wasn’t really a seamless transition, but I haven’t had or needed a job since then, and for that I am forever grateful to my mentor.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Like I mentioned before – the transition from full-time job to full-time apprentice/artist wasn’t very easy. I found myself broke – struggling with paying bills and even considering another job to cover my expenses. But with patience and effort – my clientele started to grow – I went from 2 tattoos a week to 2 tattoos a day, sometimes more. Of course, there were other personal speedbumps and I feel like those don’t ever stop happening – It’s about learning how to overcome and accept that we as people cannot control every circumstance we are handed. One thing I’ve learned that’s helped me overcome my stress and anxiety is learning to shift my mindset. It’s not particularly about “I have to” but rather “I get to”- So many people live with much worse circumstances, yet here I am – living, breathing, walking and given the ability to create what I love and get paid for it at the same time. Life is good.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
In both my tattoos and my paintings, my work has a heavy distortion aspect – a wavy sort of perspective, which I think you can see from my photos. I love to give my work a twist – almost literally. In terms of tattoo style, I am open to everything – but my specialties right now are letters and distorted blackwork. The letters and script stem from my family always having beautiful handwriting and as a young girl, I always loved making up fonts and writing in journals. Now I use that in my art, I love creating script in all kinds of styles and sizes. Within that, I love to give my work a twist – almost literally, haha. The skill I am most proud of has to be freehanding. Freehanding is when I draw the tattoo in marker directly on the skin, and we tattoo right from there. I love this skill because it makes every piece perfectly unique and tailored to the client’s body. I think what sets me apart is my ability to adapt – I love being challenged, learning a new skill, and then moving to the next. Translating to tattoos, I feel that I am much more open to covering up tattoos than most other tattoo artists are. I love the process of transforming an old tattoo into something with new meaning and making the client feel good and excited about something that previously made them feel upset.
So, before we go, how can our readers or others connect or collaborate with you? How can they support you?
I work mainly through Instagram. I am working on building a website so that those without social media can still connect, but for now, a simple direct message or an email to Shroomtattooco@gmail.com can get us in contact 🙂
In terms of collaboration – I’ve been searching for artists willing to collaborate! Whether it’s painting, tattooing, drawing. Send me an email with your work and let’s do something fun!
Support comes in many ways – every follow, like, comment makes a difference! I also sell my paintings and would be more than willing to make prints of any painting I have – If interested, you can always shoot me an email or a message, and we can go from there.
I would also love to encourage everyone to check out the tattoo shop I work at, It Always Hurts in Downtown Houston. All of our artists are extremely talented and deserve some praise. I learn so much from just being around so many diverse tattooers!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.italwayshurtstattoo.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/shroomtattoo/
Image Credits
Max Hummels
Drea Karolina
