What's in a Tattoo Apprenticeship - Intro

The tattoo education should involve a mixture of text work, lecture and labwork, including time spent in observation and internship working in a studio.

Apprenticeship should consist of thorough training by professional, certified Tattoo Artists in all phases of tattoo art, technique, practice and procedure. Optional training in body piercing is offered according to interest.

The apprenticeship includes internship and culminates in certification of completion of professional apprenticeship and offers introduction as a Certified, Professional Tattoo Artist and Body Piercer to the international tattoo community and official licensing agencies.

The overall term of apprenticeship as accepted by the professional community to satisfy professional certification is five years.

Basic qualifications for apprenticeship include:

Application for apprenticeship should include a letter of introduction and presentation of art portfolio.

Presentation of an art portfolio, demonstrating at least an intermediate level of artistic development. A modest quantity of work, demonstrating several styles and themes, in a clean, professional presentation are expected.

Clean, congenial and client/service centered attitude and appearance are mandatory.

Ability to devote the required time (30 – 40 hours per week) to “in studio” study.

This is a good place to mention that apprentices are students, not employees.

During the internship portion of their training apprentices may earn income as independent contractors and will be required to purchase their own equipment and supplies.

The pre-internship portion of the apprenticeship is not income generating. Apprentices without financial support may need to maintain full or part time employment outside of the studio during most or all of their apprenticeship.

Apprenticeship is an extremely intimate style of learning and the opportunity to apprentice is governed both by the willingness of the teacher to work with the apprentice and having sufficient volume of patrons to satisfy the internship portion of the apprenticeship.

Personalities and personal energies dramatically affect the studio environment and the determination of potential compatibility is extremely subjective.

For this reason, rejection should not be considered an indictment against the individual or their potential for success in the field. All rejected applications include an assessment detailing strengths and weaknesses and reasons for the rejection.

What's in a Tattoo Apprenticeship - Part 1