Meet Ruby Croak

Today we’d like to introduce you to Ruby Croak.

Ruby, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
I originally started out as a painter making tee shirts in Brooklyn, New York. I walked into Black Star Tattoo studio and asked them if they wanted to carry my line of tee-shirts with original art on the front. The owner and still my mentor Jaz asked me to stay and learn the trade, that was 2006. Fast forward to years later and big move to Los Angeles, I was still working nightlife and tattooing on the side. I met my wife Jessica Clark working the bar at her movie premier and she really pushed me to focus on my art career again so we opened High Art Tattoo and gallery. Giving me a space to tattoo and display my paintings. We have now been in business for six years and have a second location opening in January 2023 in St. Petersburg, Florida we also have a 3rd studio that is the first luxury mobIle tattoo shop inside a class A RV. Jessica and I fully renovated it during covid by hand and are quite proud of the accomplishment. She is also a piercer in our business now as well as maintaining her acting career.

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?
Owning a small business is never a smooth road we are responsible for so many things, and now on top of producing quality work, managing artists and schedules we also have to be social media experts too. I would say one of the struggles is hiring good staff with the ability to order tattoo equipment online and on instagram there are a lot of private studios opening up in LA and the tradition of being an apprentice or working for a good shop isn’t being taught by a mentor, so it leaves us short staffed, but biggest struggle we faced so far was the covid shutdown, California did not open tattoo studios until last out of all the service businesses. That was a rough time period. I think the stigma of tattoos leaves us vulnerable even though we are fully trained in cross-contamination we actually should have been the safest and first to open as we are health department inspected, but that wasn’t the case and we were still responsible for the rent. This was why we thought of the mobile studio we own that building and can travel anywhere it was our way of investing in ourselves.

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I specialize in painted-style tattoos. I sit down with the client and create something special specifically for them. I am proud of the fact that I have tattooed the same clients for years and several people have flown into LA just for me it’s an honor. They are my own designs and people can spot my work on someone walking down the street its living art.

What do you like and dislike about the city?
The best thing about LA is it has a thriving Art scene full of culture and inspiration everywhere you go, the only issue is getting there quickly. Los Angeles has notoriously bad traffic and it can take a little longer than you anticipated to get to your favorite taco spots.

Contact Info:

• Website: www.higharttattoo.com
• Instagram: @higharttattoo
• Facebook: high art tattoo

Image Credits
@jencastlemedia