Meet Jasmine Jade
Please introduce yourself? Name, and whatever term you’d use to describe your occupation?
-Hello, my name is Jasmine Jade. I am a tattoo artist.
Originally from Nashville, or a transplant? If a transplant, where from and when?
-I was born in Columbus, Ohio and moved to Tennessee at the age of 12. We moved to be closer to family.
When did doing art show up in your life? What age? And in what way?
-I remember getting more seriously into art when we moved to Tennessee. I was a big gamer and the artwork in video games inspired me. I would trace drawings of my favorite characters and hang them around my room. I also always had an interest because my grandfather was a painter and we had several of his paintings in our house.
When did tattoos and tattooing show up in your life?
-Tattoos started showing up in my life through my sister. She started getting tattooed and took me to schedule her appointments since at the time you still had to walk into the studio to do so. I always liked the environment since the walls were covered with artwork. I quickly took an interest and started envisioning myself having tattoos when I was old enough.
What was your first tattoo, and what was that experience like?
-My first tattoo was from my favorite video game, Zelda. I got a korok in color on my ankle. My experience was pleasant since the tattoo didn’t take long and I got to ask questions about tattooing to the artist. I remember asking him what else he had planned to tattoo that day, and he told me he had a Mr Potato Head scheduled for after me.
When did you start tattooing?
-I started tattooing midway through my apprenticeship in June of 2022.
What did it look like getting started? Getting someone to take you on as an apprentice? Doing your first tattoo?
-Getting started was hearing a lot of “no’s” before I got my first “yes.” After discovering email doesn’t make a good first impression, I took my portfolio in person to tattoo studios that I liked their work. I luckily found a studio who had the time to apprentice me and balanced apprenticing with working full time as a barista. For my first tattoo, my boyfriend was brave enough to volunteer. We did a simple linework candle on the back of his arm. Such a simple design took several hours, and he even came back in to get it colored later when I was learning color. I was nervous doing my first one, but since all my firsts were on my friends and family, it felt nice knowing they would give me the opportunity to learn on them. A lot of them still come back in to get tattooed by me and it’s nice seeing my first tattoo vs my most recent.
In what ways have you felt yourself progress since that beginning?
-I feel myself progress when I look back at my old art and see how I would do it differently today. When people say they see a style in my work, I feel myself getting more confident. Everyday though, I still learn something new. Especially being surrounded by more artists. I am very happy I put myself in an environment I can continue to learn.
How would you describe your style of tattooing?
-My style of tattooing is very illustrative focused. I enjoy the different ways you can draw something from life but bend the rules to make it more stylized. I think a big part of that comes from my early days of drawing when I imitated anime style characters. My favorite things to tattoo currently are medieval and gothic imagery, botanicals, anime, and surrealism.
Any particular artists, in or out of tattooing, that inspire you?
-Right now I really love Japanese and Korean inspired designs. My favorite tattoo artists currently are Heeno and Onyo in Korean, Gb Kim, and Jasmine at Ennui Studio in NYC. Outside of tattooing I love the styles of luoman art and the painting style of Emily Dunlap on instagram.
Do you have any other art forms you like to partake in outside of tattooing?
-Painting and ink have always been my favorite. I like using microns and acrylic, most of my portfolio is ink drawings. Making paintings digitally on my iPad I really enjoy as well.
Any hobbies to clear the mind? Something that lets you step away from tattooing even just mentally a bit?
-Currently I got back into reading. Anything from romance to adventure series. I’ve also began catching up on different anime series with my boyfriend, I like that it really tunes us in since we prefer to watch with the subtitles. To mentally step away from tattooing, anything outside my phone works well for me. Even going on walks where I listen to music or podcasts gives me a break.
Anything interesting about yourself that you’d like to share, that hasn’t been asked?
-I am always down to play tennis. I used to play all the time in school and still like to go when it’s not melting outside. It’s one of my favorite active activities.
