Today we’d like to introduce you to Gray Washington
Hi Gray, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
My tattoo journey began when I was pretty young, about 18 years old. I was in school for animation at the time and never even thought of tattooing until my aunt, who was a tattoo artist for most of her life, gave me her old machine since she was retiring. I didn’t take off tattooing a bunch right away but I would do little tattoos here and there on myself and other willing victims haha. I started taking it really seriously a few years later, and little did I know it would turn into my full time career before I even graduated college. Life is funny that way…
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?
The road is almost never smooth. I definitely faced some challenges when I first started that discouraged me. I mean, when I first started tattooing I thought the transfer from drawing on paper to tatting skin was so scary that I didn’t try consistently until about 20 years old. I’ve always been good at drawing but tattooing someone’s body permanently definitely freaked me out a little bit at first. Anything like that is always going to have its ups and downs but it’s certainly worth the ride because now I have a very fulfilling career that I love! Super blessed and thankful to be trusted with being an important part of such a permanent art form. I’d say another challenge that I often face is how my art could possibly be perceived by the world, and whether or not I feel like a real artist. Sometimes the imposter syndrome hits hard and other times I am so in love with what I create that I can’t believe that I made it. That’s all a part of the journey though, and that’s what makes it so beautiful!
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 am an artist of various mediums, but I’m known most for doing freehand tattoos that I call Aura Spills. I call them that because most of them actually look quite similar amongst first glance, but they are each entirely unique, like each one of us. I believe that every person that comes to get a freehand piece from me walks away with the piece that they were meant to have, a piece that represents their aura in that moment. It’s a super sweet experience and I’m super grateful that I get to share it with the people that trust me to tattoo their canvas. I’m definitely proud of the fact that I found my own path in creating and I can’t wait to see how it continues to develop over time. I am more private with my personal artwork, so I hope to actually start sharing some of my other creations soon too! I’ve been really into glassblowing and sculpting and I want to start incorporating more of that into what I share with you guys!
Can you talk to us a bit about happiness and what makes you happy?
Being able to create art and really show up in this world as my authentic self with people that love and support me and my art makes me happy for sure. I’m so blessed to be able to do the work that I do and to have the people around me that helped mold me into the person I am. I am forever grateful for that <3
Contact Info:
Image Credits
(Photo 1) Juan Pablo Orozco
