DTM

Hi I'm Dan, your Tattooer, and this is my backstory. I grew up in Hawaii, where I went to college for electrical engineering. I lived in the spare room of a piercing shop in Waikiki. They eventually opened up to tattooing. This is how my tattoo Journey germinated. I've have always done art and was in the local newspaper three times as a kid for my art. I've always steered towards realism as a safe base to expand my form. I have gone to Japan and visited all the shrines and temples as a young adult, and even learned enough Japanese to get by. I was obsessed with Japanese poetry and the incorporation of a “Kigo” or a word to set the season. Japan is very seasonally oriented, and I still to this day do my Japanese traditional pieces set in a session.

 My favorite things to tattoo are small realistic pieces, and portraits. I like doing insects because of all the iridescent effects and different sheens.Portraits I enjoy in a painterly fashion if possible because of how much more it can make you feel as opposed to traditional realism. 

I love doing oil paintings,  and can be seen around Hilton Head Island with my easel painting the natural beauty of the Lowcountry. My  biggest passion is being a Dad. My kids show me all the beautiful things in this world and help me to be inspired by; the sparkle of a rock, the lure of a puddle, the mystery of a pine cone, and everything in between!