I always knew that I  wanted to be involved in art. From the time I was 5 years old, I would fill up notebooks with my own renditions of comic book heroes, classic movie monsters, and other sci-fi characters of the time. After graduating from Pickerington High School in 1997, I attended Miami University in Oxford, Ohio. In 2001, I graduated with a Bachelors Degree in Fine Art with a concentration in Graphic Design. At the time, getting into the design field was not an easy task. I spent time working in unrelated fields, while trying to squeeze in the occasional freelance job. After doing this for several years, I was fed up with the way my career path was going. I had enjoyed getting tattooed over the last few years and loved when people had asked me to design tattoos for them. Tattooing was something that really sparked my interest, but I quickly found that not many artists are willing to take apprentices. So, I took matters into my own hands and bought a cheap tattoo kit (this is not a recommended way to learn!). I began to learn by working on myself and some willing friends. Fortunately, a friend of mine hooked me up with his tattoo artist, Troy Falter. Troy was very gracious to allow me to hang out with him whenever he was working and taught me how to tattoo the right way. After spending a year or so learning from others and myself, I got hooked up with Jimmy V. He helped me to keep developing my skills and has given me my first chance to do what I really love. What I find most satisfying about being a tattoo artist is the opportunity that people give me to be creative and use my imagination, all the while using them as my canvas.