Today we’d like to introduce you to Ashley Dahl.
Hi Ashley, we’re thrilled to have a chance to learn your story today. So, before we get into specifics, maybe you can briefly walk us through how you got to where you are today.
My name is Ashley, I was born and raised in NE Minneapolis and I have been an artist my whole life. I knew that I wanted to be a Tattoo artist when I was 15 years old. However, since I was 15 years old I was completely ignorant of the tattooing world, I had no idea how to go about getting into the industry, and what steps I was supposed to take, and admittedly because of that, I ended up going about it the wrong way. I started tattooing friends out of houses trying to “learn” and to “teach” myself how to tattoo and I was just so unaware of the risks that go along with tattooing unprofessionally. I was about 17 years old when I found out that not only was I not going about the right way I also found out that it was illegal to tattoo without a license and outside of a licensed establishment in the state of MN. After finding that out I stopped completely.
I got rid of all of my “equipment” and just focused on drawing and putting together a portfolio. As soon as I turned 18 I started looking for an apprenticeship – this is probably a good time to add that I only have one hand. I was born with only one hand and many artists out there believed that I wouldn’t ever be able to properly tattoo because of that, so finding an apprenticeship was difficult for me. Fast forward to age 22 and that’s when I finally landed my first real apprenticeship, they looked at me as an artist and believed in what I could potentially be rather than immediately pointing out why I couldn’t be, and I will forever be grateful to them for giving me that opportunity. My life wouldn’t be what it is today if it weren’t for that first shop.
I met one of my best friends/mentors there and I met my partner with who I have 2 beautiful children. Since then I have worked at a few different shops, and each one helped shape me into the artist that I am today. I have been tattooing for about 7.5 years now, and I proudly own Black Sheep Tattoo and Art Collective in St.Paul MN with my partner and mentor. This dream of mine started 15 years ago at 15 years old, and I couldn’t be happier with the life I have today.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
The only real struggle I had was trying to prove that I could tattoo even though I only had one hand. And although I could understand where they were coming from, they didn’t seem to understand where I was coming from. I only have one hand but I was born that way, I literally don’t know a life with anything other than having one hand.
Everything I do is normal to ME. I always joke about how the only 2 things I can’t do are 1.) the monkey bars and 2.) itch my right arm. If I want to do something I figure out a way to do it. And is it hard? No. It’s not hard it’s just not how you would do it, it’s how I would do it.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I am a tattoo artist and I specialize in black and grey illustrative lady faces. My absolute favorite subject matter to tattoo is lady’s faces, if I can put full lashes and pouty lips on it I’m happy!
I mainly stick to black and grey but if I do color I really enjoy doing monochromatic color fades within my tattoos. If anything I’d say that that’s what sets me apart from other artists. And being just shy of 8 years into the tattooing industry it’s really an amazing feeling when I get recognized for and sought out for my style.
What matters most to you?
Oof, I guess I’d have to say what matters most to me is connecting with my clients. The artistry and the finished tattoo are just a small part of the process. Getting to know my clients on a deeper level is very important to me. Now I’m not here to say that every tattoo must have a story or some strong meaning behind it, because I’m a firm believer that you can just get a tattoo because you like how it looks.
But even with that, liking how it looks is provoking emotion and whatever that emotion maybe I feel that that instantly makes that tattoo meaningful to that person. And I just really love connecting with my clients and building relationships with them whether it’s over a meaningful story or just bonding over the artistry, those relationships are very important to me.
Pricing:
- $150/ hour
Contact Info:
- Website: www.blacksheeptat.com
- Instagram: @Dahlfacetattoos
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DahlFaceTattoos
- Other: https://dahlfacetattoobooking.square.site/
