Fourteen years of career in the world of tattooing, an “obsession” with Japanese style (and Yōkai in particular), but also a huge passion for drawing and painting: here is Arran Burton, who spoke with us about his eBook for Tattoo Life, where he reported “basically just drew all the things I like”.
Would you like to introduce yourself to our readers?
Hello! I am Arran Burton. I work at Comic Tattoo in Colchester – Essex (England). I am obsessed with Japanese Art, nature and the magic it holds.
When did you start tattooing and how would you define your style?
I’ve been tattooing for around 14 years now, after being an apprentice under Leigh Oldcoin, the owner of Cosmic Tattoo. I am specialised in Japanese tattoos, on the odd occasion I’ll do other styles if the customer really wants me to.
Did it change over time?
I started off tattooing all styles, as I think every tattoo artist should do – until you find your way, you learn so much from all styles, and then in time I focused my attention on developing my Japanese tattoo style.
Is it important for you to also paint and draw, beside tattooing?
It is so important for me to paint and draw, evolving each image the more and more I draw it over the years keeps it unique. I like to explore different mediums for my Japanese art, tattoos, watercolour, marker pens and sculptures.
What are your favourite subjects and techniques?
My favourite subjects are always the Yōkai, the supernatural world fascinates me in all cultures, so many stories, always finding new ones, it’s brilliant.
Where did the idea of this eBook come from?
In this eBook I basically just drew all the things I like, so every page was something fun to do for me. I would just sit down and imagine I was getting a tattoo each time and had to think of a design.
What are your projects for the future?
Projects for the future would be always trying to evolve my style, and I’d like to draw some more gentle designs and explore that road.
