Luís

ルイス

Born and raised in the city of Santos, Brazil – the birthplace of tattooing in the country – he was exposed to tattoo culture from an early age. Living among and seeing tattooed people was common for him, even in the late 1980s when tattoos still carried significant stigma in Brazil. While he always appreciated tattoos, becoming a tattoo artist was not something he had initially considered.

Over the years, he entered the world of art through graffiti in the 1990s, which eventually led him to pursue a career in creativity. He graduated with a degree in Communication and shortly after returned to school to study Graphic Design. He worked for 13 years as a designer in advertising agencies, design studios, and television.

At a certain point, he decided to change professions. Since he already had several tattoos, he approached his tattoo artist, who agreed to take him on as an apprentice. He was 31 years old at the time, in 2011. Since then, he has dedicated himself fully to this profession – one that, if it’s up to him, will be his last.

He sees tattooing as the culmination of all his previous careers, but in a deeper and more fulfilling way. He loves working with art, but what he finds most rewarding is seeing the look of satisfaction on a client’s face when he delivers a piece exactly as they envisioned – or even exceeding their expectations. For him, tattooing is about the creative process and the meaningful connection with people.

Some of Luíss lattest work