Ah, February… the month of LOVE 💗! What a better way to kick off the month of February than to show some love to one of our local artists. Josh tattoos at Studio 21 Tattoo here in Las Vegas and has been tattooing for quite some time now!
Fun Fact about Josh, he did his tattoo apprenticeship while being on a National TV show called “Inked”. It was also the first tattoo shop in Las Vegas to get permitted to be housed inside a Casino, which helped pave the way for other tattoo shops to be opened on the West Side of the Las Vegas Strip (Thanks Carey Hart and Partners!).
If you ever meet Josh, grab a drink, sit down and visit, he’s got some pretty fun stories! He is truly a kind and magnetic human being.
Tell us about yourself? Where can we find you/ Social media @’s?
I am a Las Vegas native that loves to surf. I grew up near the beach in the summers and fell in love with the ocean. That’s where I feel most natural but still love the desert and mountains. Obviously a huge outdoors person and am passionate about exercising and cooking. I spend most of my time drawing, painting and tattooing. Two of the most important things to me is to travel and listen to music. That is my medicine. I am a lover of life and am always in awe of how we exist on a ball floating through space.
What do you love about Maverick?
I love that maverick is tattooer owned and operated. I think the eco-friendly route that has been taken with all of the supplies is great too!
What are your favorite groupings /or Maverick supplies you use while tattooing?
So far the 35 curved mag has been delightful. (These are some samples Josh tried that we have coming soon 😉). But pretty much everything I have used needle-wise has been great! Also the sticker labels, razors, bottle bag covers are pretty cool to use.
The penguin is the Maverick founder’s spirit animal. What’s your spirit animal and why?
My spirit animal is a bird. no specific type. I’ve always been in love with the idea that birds get to fly around above everything else and it just seems so peaceful, especially by the beach.
Can you describe your first tattoo experience? How old were you? What was it of? Who was the artist?
My first tattoo experience consisted of my mom taking me to some guys house in Mesa, Arizona. I was probably 16-17 years of age and I wanted to get the Pennywise PW logo on my calf. This was a birthday present, we got there and the guy said he didn’t do band logos and that I was going to regret it as I got older. So I picked something out of his book of flash. It was a 3d tribal design. Not sure who the artist was but I still want my pennywise logo haha
Top 3 artists you admire? Can you give us a brief description?
-Steve Moore out of Canada- full color full body suits with a very unique approach to the way he draws his artwork.
-Jeff Gogue out of Oregon. Lots of fun Japanese style designs. Mostly large scale.
-Aaron Della Vedova out of San Diego. Also large scale color pieces. his artwork is hard to explain.
What are some funny tattoo moments you have?
I have ton but a few are me tattooing a guy and then he throws up and shits his pants at the same time. I didn’t realize my nose was running one tattoo and it dripped on this clients arm. The client had a quick freak out reaction but didn’t say anything and pretended it didn’t happen. It was super hard not to laugh out loud.
If you were to choose a band to describe your artwork, which band would you choose and why?
The Red Hot Chili Peppers because they started off not really being that good when they were younger but weres so passionate about their craft that they kept doing cause it made them feel good and made other people feel good. As they kept at it, their music got better and better and that’s how I feel about my art.
If you were to win ‘best tattooer in the world’ who would you thank and why?
I would start off by thanking Carey and my cousin Jason who went to high school with Carey and was the first manager at HnH. That’s how I got the job there, and from there I would thank Ben Corn for getting me started in an apprenticeship for tattooing that led to being taken over by Thomas Pendleton and then finished off with Twig. Also Clark North was a huge help and influence on me. Those were the primary people and mentors that I would say thank you too that I wouldn’t be tattooing today if it weren’t for them. Also my family and friends for supporting me for the last 20 years of my career.
Secret hidden talent? What is it?
Being able to do math in my head on percentage conversions in groups of 10 very easily.
What is your kryptonite?
Lately it has been sweets. Especially with the holidays just passing. But on an overall scale of life, probably women.
Any person or animal that you would like to change places with for the day?
I would love to trade places with a bird for a day. I know they have their problems too like predators and such but the idea of flying around birds eye view sounds amazing.
What book or movie would you say everyone should read or watch? Why would you choose that specific one?
I would say everyone should read a new earth and/or a power of now. These books really teach you how to kill your ego and to live in the moment. Very eye opening. Also the four agreements, not taking anything personally and not making assumptions. Just two of the four but those two are the most powerful in my opinion.
What state are you located in? What do you love most about where you live and why?
In Las Vegas, NV. I love living here because we are central to the beach and mountains. Everything is just a few hours away. We are spoiled with the convenience that we can get whatever we went whenever we want as the city is always open. We get a bunch of great music coming through and now we have sports. But also cause my family lives here.
What is something weird you do before bedtime?
Scroll on my phone. Although normal now a days, it’s something I don’t like and is weird to me that its a thing we do.
What would you say is the best way to deal with stress that the busy tattoo life can bring on?
The best way to deal with tattoo stress and any stress is doing hot yoga and yin classes. These make you really focus on your breath work which relaxes you which then carries over into tattooing. Deep long slowly breathing will heal anything and anyone in any situation.
Do you have a moment that changed your life? Do you mind sharing?
A moment that changed my life was getting a job at Hart & Huntington tattoo co. It’s Carey Harts’ shop that opened in 2004 in the Palms Hotel. We had a T.V. show on A&E that blew up and was a big deal at the time. I was apprenticing at the time and long story short, it was the start of my career and got me to where I’m at today.
Who is the most unique client you’ve ever met?
I honestly couldn’t pick one client! I have met so many different awesome and unique people that not specifically one person can out more than another.
Does the constant pressure and challenge of having to promote yourself on social media exhaust you or is it second nature?
It’s right in the middle for me. I like filming and editing, I enjoy being on camera but it’s a lot of work and I actually go out of my way to balance it so I don’t get burnt out on it.
Do YOU have anything in common with Josh? Let us know 💭
& Don’t forget to keep up with Josh ⬇️
IG: @fitz_tattoo
FB: @ Joshua Sutcliffe