Today we’d like to introduce you to Daniel.
Daniel, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
I’ve been tattooing professionally since 2002, unprofessional since 1994. An artist my whole life, since sitting with my grandfather drawing bugs bunny while watching Saturday morning cartoons. Growing up in a poor neighborhood in north east LA in the 80’s & 90’s had many obstacles. Made many bad life choices, in the end tattooing saved my life, helped me find a way out and find a way to make a honest living. In the early 2000’s I moved to a military navy town, port hueneme, in ventura county. Where I worked in my first tattoo shop. With shows like Miami ink tattoos becoming mainstream, I became super busy and super known locally. Then I opened my own shop in Ventura in 2008, La Bella Vida tattoo and art gallery. At the same time the recession started, one of my daughters was diagnosed with cancer. She’s in remission and doing well. But the stress from that, from raising my daughters on my own, and my tattoo shop dream tanking, I found myself with a drinking problem,that I didn’t realize I had for several more years. Fast forward, eventually finding a program of sobriety, I gained some balance with life, my kids, my business. Ive raised my children on my own, while tattooing out of a private studio, to keep an eye on my kids as they grew up,and have the freedom to come and go as I need to for after school sports and activities. I think I’ve successfully established myself as one of the top tattoo artist in this town specializing in black and grey, portrait realism, fine line, religious imagery, Chicano culture, dark art, and lettering. And when not tattooing I make other forms of art, painting, charcoal, pen ink etc. my instagram is danielmedina_art for my full portfolio
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?
Life is a rollercoaster. Lots of ups and downs. Working for myself I’ve had to learn difficult lessons from lack of self discipline. This business has a lot of negative elements that took me years to distance myself from. I struggled from not having any business education, I had to learn about work ethic, producing a quality product, consistency, and marketing, all on my own, from just years of trial and error. And then on top of that being a single parent, and making sure to put my children first.
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’m a tattoo artist of 23 year’s professionally. I specialize in black and grey, fine line, portrait realism. I do a lot of religious catholic imagery, Chicano themes, portraits, dark art, and lettering. I’ve traveled all over the country attending tattoo conventions and expos. And have won many awards for my black and grey works. But what I’m most proud of is I’m a custom artist as well. People come to me with ideas, visions in their head, and I’m able to put their vision to paper. What also separates me from some is my customer service. I try to be pleasant, communicative, and give an enjoyable experience, so that you’ll want to come back again and refer me to others looking for a tattoo artist.
Any big plans?
Right now I’m called to stay local. One day I’ll travel again. My dream is to take my art overseas one day. And maybe finish my career by opening a shop/school.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://Danielmedinatattooart.com
- Instagram: Danielmedina_art
