"There definitely seems to be the immediate judgement that tattooing isn’t a formal career because it’s not corporate"

So tell us who is Chanelle Jasmin? 

Oh gosh.. who am I? haha  I’m a tattooer and painter. My art is very much inspired by strong female characters and I base a lot of my work around capturing the essence of female beauty and inner strength. 

When did you know you wanted to become a tattoo artist? Did you have a formal art background?

I knew I wanted to become and tattoo artist after having my first tattoo done when I was young and I remember loving the vibe of the studio and thinking tattoo artists were just the coolest people on earth. I always liked art but i didn’t know what career path I wanted to go down so after having that first tattoo done it just made sense to me and felt like my calling. I didn’t have a formal art background per say, my family are all within the music industry so I was the only one interested in art. However I did study art in college after leaving secondary school and used to do a lot of painting/graffitiing in my younger years.

Do you think there are challenges in being a tattoo artist that artists of other genre's don’t face?

I would say there are definitely challenges that tattoo artists face that I feel artists of other genres don’t face. Such as the very old school stigma against people that are heavily tattooed. There definitely seems to be the immediate judgement that tattooing isn’t a formal career because it’s not corporate. But I do believe things have come a long way and people are now more educated on the art of tattooing and what tattoos mean to people in terms of expression.

How do you evaluate success as a tattoo artist?

To me the success of being a tattoo artist is measured by your ability to stay consistent in adapting and growing with your work. You never stop learning in tattooing and as an artist you will always change and you will always critique your own work. But mastering your craft and being confident in what you do is more important to me. 

What advice do you have for young artists trying to get into tattooing? What was the best advice you received when you first started?

For young artists trying to get into tattooing the best advice I can give is first and foremost, draw everyday. Even when a drawing doesn’t look like it’s going to turn out great, keep going with it. Don’t compare your art to other peoples because it’ll dishearten you. Try various styles of drawing to see what you enjoy most and build a good portfolio of drawings and art work before approaching a tattoo studio for an apprenticeship. The more you draw, the better you will get. 

Who or what do you draw inspiration from in your pieces? 

I draw a lot of inspiration from strong female characters in mythology and fantasy. I like putting my spin on these characters and doing my interpretation of them. I often spend time researching different goddesses and their meanings and making art based on them.

Is there a celebrity past or present that would you love to put a Chanelle piece on? 

If I could put my art on any celebrity it would be Pink. I’ve always been a huge fan girl of her. 

Here at The Hobo Journal we love to travel hence the name, where is your favourite place on earth?

My favourite place on earth is Los Angeles. I love the tattoo culture out there and a lot of the people I’ve looked up to during my career are from there. I would definitely consider relocating there one day.

More images below from Danny Woodstock Photographer