Today we’d like to introduce you to Greg Tacomonster.
Hi Greg, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I started trying to tattoos out of my house in 1997. Tattooing was a little different then. Very little information for public consumption was available about tattooing besides Spaulding A to Z. After a year or so I got offered an opportunity at a little local shop and the person who was selling me my equipment and showing me a few things about tattooing urged me to decline the offer. He told me I wasn’t very good (admittedly at the time I was not) and that I should go to school and get a career with guaranteed income and then see if I could get back into tattooing. After some thought, I sold my equipment and bought my first semester’s books for college with some of the money. Eventually, after graduating college and working a few years to pay my bills off I was ready to start tattooing again. Ignorantly enough I found a kit on eBay and started tattooing a few friends. I also thought to myself I wanted more work done and found everlasting tattoos in San Francisco.
I started hanging around and getting tattooed by everyone and became fast friends with the group. I wasn’t shy about the fact I was scratching out of the house and they were all very gracious with me and would help with things on occasion like getting needles or help with a drawing. Eventually, those friendships afforded me the opportunity to apprentice with my mentor George Campise and another tattooer who I consider a mentor Jason Kundell. During my apprenticeship, I was a little shit and ended up getting fired. I spent the next few years working out a couple of different tattoo shops in San Francisco trying to figure it out on my own. Eventually, I landed a spot working with Mike Pike in Southern California which was such a great experience. After that, I was considering moving back to the Bay Area and George offered me a job at War Horse Tattoo and I’ve been there ever since.
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?
Absolutely not! Nothing worth doing comes without struggle. I had to be stubborn enough to not quit for the first couple of years of my career because I was aimlessly trying to figure it out as I went.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
Tattoos, paintings, and digital illustrations. When someone asks me what my style is, I usually just say “Weird”.
Can you share something surprising about yourself?
I’m also a licensed and practicing registered nurse.
Contact Info:
- Website: Warhorsetattoo.com
- Instagram: @tacomonster
