Meet Ghis, owner of the ‘Half Wolf Tattoo’ in Montpellier (a clever play on his surname) and a specialist in styles like Traditional and Japanese.
Ghis, is it true that you owe your career as a tattoo artist entirely to your sister Marie?
Yes, that’s right, Marie – my little sister – started tattooing before me. She did an apprenticeship and then I became her apprentice. We had a studio together called ‘No Limit Tattoo’ in London back in 2009.
How important was it to travel between London, Australia and New Zealand to learn and decide once and for all that Montpellier would be the right place to create the ‘Half Wolf Tattoo’?
Travelling was very important in my career. I had the chance to meet lots of good artists on my way, in studios and at guest spots and conventions too. I learned something from almost each of them. Moving from one country to the other was challenging also because I had to create a new customer base every time.
I had to adapt and try many styles to get busy as I was new in town each time.
Tell me you story…
I lived in Bristol when Brexit happened. I’m French and my wife is Polish, our first child was born and we decided to go back to Europe to feel secure as we didn’t know how exactly the Brexit could impact our lives in the future. South of France sounded good and we just started over in 2017. Luckily, I already had a portfolio with lots of big pieces and tattooing started blooming in France, so it was fairly quick to get busy again.
Would you recommend it to everyone who does this job?
Yeah! I definitely think that travelling should be part of every tattoo artist’s life at least from time to time.
Why that name for your tattoo studio? Who is the “Half Wolf” in this case?
My last name in French (Melou) almost spells “half wolf”, hence the name of my studio (IG: @halfwolftattoo). Most French people don’t get it straight away… which is funny! (laughs)
I believe you’ve mentioned that you love working in Japanese and Traditional styles because you want your tattoos to stand out, even from afar. Do your pieces always need to catch the eye.
Yes, this is exactly what I’m looking for in my pieces. I like each of my tattoos to be easy to “read” from a distance and to age well because they are bold, simple, solid and contrasting.
I like each of my tattoos to be easy to read from a distance and to age well, thanks to their bold, simple, solid, and high-contrast design.
How has your relationship with travelling, guest spots and tattoo conventions changed since you became a father?
Since I live in Montpellier I travel way less. I still participate to a few tattoo conventions (4 per year in average) but I don’t do guest spots anymore as I’m busy at the shop. Last but not least, I like to come back home to my girls in the evening and be present on daily basis as a father.
Does music inspire you?
I couldn’t say that music inspires directly my work… but I listen to music all the time obviously when tattooing or drawing. I tend to prefer American hip hop for tattooing (A Tribe Called Quest, Wu-Tang Clan, Non Phixion etc.), but I listen to a bit of everything like rock, jazz, blues. Anything not too angry or slow really. I still listen to a lot of British music also (The Clash, The Streets, Roots Manuva etc.)
And your last famous words are… ?
Be humble but confident enough. Always try to progress and be kind to everyone!
