interview with tattoo artist Piotr Olejnik
Hello Piotr Olejnik! Thank you so
much for
taking the time to do this interview. Please start by telling us
something about yourself, how long have you been tattooing? How it all started?
An idea of being a tattooist was born already in secondary school.
After I left, I tried to work in many areas, just be able to earn
money for equipment. It was over 10 years ago when the knowledge of
tattooing was something hardly accessible. I never thought I'd be tattooing. In secondary school my friend made me a tattoo, my
another friend saw that and constructed a machine. One day he came
to me and asked if I could do something on his body. I think that
really was the impetus, by which I felt a pleasure to try. Real tattooing started about 10 years ago, when I
opened my own studio.
Q: How did you learn the basics? Did you
have any help?
A: Nowadays we've got really easy access to everything. With
funds we can buy equipment from lowest to highest quality. But
the new artists have a big challenge because the quality of work is so
high that it takes a lot of effort, talent a little bit of luck to enter in
the pro scene. Although every year there are new names which
can surprise you. When I was starting that wasn't so easy. I had to
solder and sterilize needless by myself. There were very little
companies that produced tattoo equipment. To get some knowledge on this topic
you had to pay a lot or search for a long time for someone who could teach
you basics for free. However, I learned on my own.
Q: You do all styles. From realism to
surrealism! Every tattoo is a unique masterpiece. Tell me about the
creative process. Do you have a
sketchbook?
A: There are some differences in my tattoos, because I still look
for new inspiration. I wouldn't stop with one style, although my
favorite is surrealism. In regard to
projects, I always have several prepared which I show to my clients
or after we talk. I try to do the project similar to their own
preferences. Of course they have to like my style. It's natural that every tattooist have his own specific style. I
can't stand when people bring already made designs and want to
multiply them and treat us like xerocopies. I usually don't
work with them.
Q: Your color work is impressive. Do you prefer color
tattooing?
A: Definitely I prefer color as you can see on most of my works.
However, lastly I work a lot with black, just adding some colorful
elements. For sure, I will never stop color tattooing.
Q: Tell me about your paintings. How do
you get inspired?
A: Painting is very important to me. It is the second thing
next to tattooing that I could do professionally. Unfortunately, because
of the busy schedule, I can't devote as much time as I would
like to, although I try to do that everyday. For inspiration, I look
at Zdzislaw Beksinski and Tomasz Alan Kopera. He surprises me every
time I see a new painting.
Q: Many "dark" themed tattoos, do you have any special reason or it's just for
fun?
A: It is hard to explain. I never thought about it.
Maybe it's because I watched a lot of horror movies as a child. I want my
tattoos to look good either way.
Q: How important is to have good drawing skills?
A: When I started tattooing I was in
a technical school so surely, I could do straight line better than
something artistic. Seeing a lot of defects in my work I spend
enormous amount of my free time just to perfect the drawing skills.
You can't be good at tattooing without good drawing skills. I
practice all the time and stil have impression that it could be
better.
Q: You live and work in Kalisz, Poland. Tell me more about
your tattoo studio and how we can book an
appointment.
A: I work in central Poland, Kalisz, is medium size
city. After ten years since the studio opened, I decided to
do some significant changes. I'm currently building a new place which I want to adapt for tattooing
and painting. It's two stored, which I want to divide in two parts
and be able to do both things without a hoop. The studio is second
home to me. Two people are working there. One
responsible for client service and technical support and second for
piercing, tattooing and laser removing/lightening.
www.eviltattoo.pl
tel.: +48 660 781 355
email: eviltattoopiotr@o2.pl
Q: How often do you visit tattoo conventions?
A: From next year I hope I'll
begin a convention tour. They are important for promotion, great
opportunity to meet new people, make new friends and share knweledge
with other professionals.
Q: Would you change something about your style?
A: I try to analyze every artwork from photos I take and search for
defects and flaws to be able to fix them. I experiment all the time. With regards to themes, I'd rather
stick to my style, but you never know whether I do radical changes.
Q: Any motivational words for the new artists?
A: I still feel like I'm a beginner, so I know how important
motivation is. If we don't find motivation in our hearts we
won't be able to do this right. Being an artist, one must be aware
that constant learning is very important. In moments like winning
something or doing interviews makes us happy and we feel like we did our work
well and somebody appreciate us. Nothing goes to waste.