Meet Rachel Catchings of Hinter Masken

Today we’d like to introduce you to Rachel Catchings.

Rachel, let’s start with your story. We’d love to hear how you got started and how the journey has been so far.
I first picked up a tattoo machine in 2015 while I was living in Portland, Oregon. I was attending vet school at the time and had to really buckle down and spend time at home studying and dedicating my time to the path I had chosen to take. This meant being a good kid and staying away from partying, going out, and other distractions. While taking breaks from long hours of reading and homework, I started drawing. I found it therapeutic and a form of escapism from the stress of school and a rocky relationship with my live in boyfriend I was with at the time. As I started filling up a portfolio with drawings I was accumulating, my boyfriend at the time, who was a tattoo artist took notice and was impressed with the work I was putting out and asked if I had ever considered a career in tattooing which actually took me by surprise. I’ve been getting tattooed since I was 17 and throughout all the years, I never thought that opportunity would come my way.

The industry is very gate-keepy and any time I had ever expressed interest in this field it was always laughed off or discouraged by other tattooers. I decided to take my ex up on the opportunity and started going into the shop in my spare time and working on art, practicing tattooing him, and read as much material I could get my hands on including his old tattoo school books. During this time, I deeply fell in love with tattooing and knew this was what I was supposed to be doing. It gave me such a sense of fulfillment that I had been seeking in other career path but never got. I decided to drop out of vet school and focus all my time and energy into tattooing full time for about six months until the relationship hit a point where it was very unhealthy and I decided to part ways with him and move back to California where I am originally from.

Without any guidance, I pursued cosmetic tattooing in Simi Valley and got my official start there, where I was certified in microblading and paramedical tattooing. I did this for about a year but I felt something was missing still. It didn’t give me the sense of fulfillment that the creativity in tattooing did. I moved to Seattle at the beginning of 2018 and got a job at a street shop, which I jumped headfirst into this career and I consider my official start. I learned everything I could and got good quickly but it wasn’t a good match for the direction I felt I was going in. During my time at this shop, I developed my own style and brand of art, which I now exclusively tattoo. I worked at that shop for about a year before parting ways and now work in a studio where I can exercise my creativity to its fullest. I painted the walls and made the space my own, adoring the walls with my own art and art of other fellow artists and gifts that clients have given me. It is a safe and welcoming magical little space where I work by appointment only and have the freedom to travel whenever I want!

Great, 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?
My journey into tattooing has been anything but smooth, but has made me strong and appreciate everything I have overcome and accomplished so much. As I had stated in the previous question, I got my start learning from my ex, which I am extremely grateful for but it was a very turbulent relationship. After that ended and I moved back to the Bay Area, I took a break for a couple of months to regroup and start on a new note. Once I was licensed in paramedical tattooing and had decided to continue to forge ahead in my pursuit to being a full-blown tattoo artist, I crossed paths with a shop that I thought I could get a start in but was cut short when I was sexually assaulted by the shop owner. I won’t get into too much detail about that but that left me feeling extremely vulnerable and depressed, questioning my worth and if I could truly make it in this industry. That aside, I have been propositioned by multiple male tattooers which had also magnified those feelings of self-doubt. All of that seems so far away now with how far I’ve come and it feels good to have made it all on my own. I wanted to prove to myself that I could do it and I have. Everything I’ve accomplished has been me. No help.

Please tell us about Hinter Masken.
I operate under the name Hinter Masken on Instagram, which has sort of become my little tattoo brand. I got the name from an album of one of my favorite bands, Fliehende Sturme, a post-punk band from Germany. I really love post-punk, punk, and all things heavy metal which is a big influence on my art. The band The Chameleons is one of my biggest influences and played a huge role in when I first started developing my style. I work in fine line surrealism, drawing inspiration from old album art, vintage 1920’s and 1980’s. Patrick Nagel is also another huge influence on me and the artist in which my work probably gets compared to the most! I’m always so flattered when people compare my art to his. Sometimes I have a hard time describing my style with words and always really love to hear people’s take on it. Because that’s kind of what I ultimately want, people to interpret it in their own way and take from it what they want. I think that’s what makes this job so fulfilling for me, creating personal pieces that resonate with each individual the way they want it to. It always blows my mind when strangers know who I am when I tell them my Instagram handle, which has been happening more and more. Or when my friends tell me they are stopped in public by someone who recognizes my art on them. It’s so humbling and flattering!

Do you look back particularly fondly on any memories from childhood?
Ah this is a tough one, there are so many. I grew up homeschooled and extremely sheltered and cut off from the outside world. From the age of 4, I dedicated my life to classical piano and actually became a very accomplished pianist by the age of 13. (I took private lessons for 20 years!) I’d have to say one of my biggest accomplishments, and also favorite memory of mine was when I was 12 years old I scored in the top 5 percentile in a musical competition which ranked me one of the best pianists in California at one point, and I got to play a convention in Monterey, California. I memorized and played all three movements of Beethoven’s Moonlight Sonata in front of a huge crowd which was extremely nerve racking but exhilarating. I just remember when I finished and I stood up to take my bow, feeling on top of the world and so proud of myself for accomplishing that without any mistakes! I felt like I could do anything.

Contact Info:

• Email: Rscatchings@gmail.com
• Instagram: @Hinter_Masken_

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