Candescent Color, Inclusive Illustrative Realism Tattoos: Think Before You Ink’s Q&A With Tattoo Artist Adriana Hallow

By Sidra Lackey 

Adriana Hallow (she/her) is a self-taught tattoo artist from South America’s Colombia. She originally started tattooing “for fun,” with her first tattoo machine bought from Amazon.com in 2011. Years later, she began tattooing professionally where she eventually became an award winning tattoo artist. She is skilled in color illustrative realism tattoos and currently is an advocate for achieving color vibrancy on clients with melanated skin. She also specializes in scar cover up tattoos. She can be found at New York City’s Inkology Tattoo Art Gallery. 

Think Before You Ink had the pleasure of picking Adriana’s brain for a stimulating interview:  

THINK BEFORE YOU INK: Where did you grow up? And did that have an impact on you becoming a tattoo artist? (ex: Were you around tattoo culture via your family / friends / people in your neighborhood?)

ADRIANA HALLOW: I grew up in Bogotá, Colombia. I was always drawing growing up, especially because my grandmother was an artist and I spent a lot of time with her as a child. Tattoos were definitely frowned upon, but I was always edgy and eclectic. I knew I wanted tattoos from a very young age.  

TBYI: How long have you been a tattoo artist?

AH: I started tattooing in 2011 just for fun, on family and friends. I finally started doing it professionally a couple years later in 2015. 

TBYI: Did you choose to be a tattoo artist or did tattooing choose you? (ex: did you always want to be an artist or did you fall into it?) 

AH: I have been drawing all my life, but I’ve always been very self-conscious, so I didn’t have the confidence to just go for it, even though I kept talking about it. It was my partner back in 2011, who bought me a cheap $99 tattoo kit from Amazon. After practicing on pig skin, I tattooed my roommate and immediately fell in love with it. 

TBYI: Did you have a tattoo apprenticeship or were you self-taught?  

AH: I’m mainly self-taught. Even the first shop I worked at that was supposed to teach me, barely showed me how to use a machine. It was up to me to learn and to grow. 

TBYI: As a woman, especially a queer woman, how has your experience as a tattoo artist been? Have you experienced sexism within the tattoo industry? What are some things a female tattoo artist can bring to the table, tattooing wise, over a male artist?

AH: Luckily because I started tattooing in NYC, I don’t feel I’ve had any setbacks for being a female tattoo artist, but I have heard many horror stories from colleagues from other states or countries. Things like being called degrading names, asked for sexual favors in exchange for an apprenticeship, sexual assault, refusing to hire them for being female etc… I think female tattoo artists work harder because we feel like we have something to prove, or just to be considered at the same level as our male counterparts. I think we also naturally provide a better experience to our clients because we are more self-aware. We tend to want to make people more comfortable in a way, so clients feel safer going to a female tattooer, especially those who have disabilities, trauma or simply want a more pleasant and professional experience. 

TBYI: Who are the tattoo artists you look up to or who inspires you? And why? 

AH: My favorite artist is Theresa Sharpe. I randomly found one of her tattoos way back in like 2010 before I even started tattooing. I immediately fell in love with her style. I also got to see her grow as an artist and even had the privilege of being tattooed by her back in 2019. I particularly like her use of color and composition. I’m always amazed at how she uses the body as a canvas and how her pieces always flow so seamlessly. 

TBYI: Do you think tattoo artist’s tattoos should be regarded as art, even if the tattooist doesn’t have a formal art background? Why or why not?

AH: I think not all tattoos are art. Some tattoos are just like graphic design, an execution of an image with the purpose of communication. It doesn’t have to do with the artist’s background. It has to do with what the artist is trying to communicate and the meaning behind each piece. I have pieces of my own that I consider art, and some pieces that are just the execution of an image. It depends on the emotion behind it. The stars kinda have to align. 

TBYI: What is your style specialty when it comes to tattooing? Is there a style you feel you want to get better at?

AH: I do color illustrative realism. I would love to do more neo traditional but I hate tattooing line work lol. I still try to incorporate it in the composition a bit.

TBYI: Your colorwork on brown skin tones and darker shades is beautiful. How did you perfect achieving color vibrancy on these skin tones? 

AH: It’s all about understanding the physics behind it, of how light travels through skin, as well as a bit of basic color theory. 

TBYI: What interested you in learning how to perfect colorwork on darker skin tones as a non-Black / brown tattoo artist specifically? 

AH: It all started with my client Claudia. She told me I was the first person that agreed to do color on her. I didn’t even know that was a thing, that tattoo artists refused to tattoo color on melanated skin. My boss back in 2016 was very experienced with all skin tones and taught me the basics. I tattooed Claudia with all the colors I thought would work. Her tattoos still look great to this day. I keep hearing clients say that I’m the only one that didn’t refuse them or try to talk them out of it. I thought my color tattoos on dark skin looked great so I just kept doing it. Now I’ve become an advocate for it because we need to break the stigmas surrounding it. 

TBYI: How did you get into specializing in scar cover up tattoos? What is the biggest difference and hurdle in tattooing someone with a scar over a client without scars? What are the positives of doing these types of tattoos?

AH: I think as a queer female tattoo artist, many people in my community had scars that they wanted covered up for various reasons. I just fell in love with the big impact that tattoos had on someone’s life so I started advertising for it more because I realized there is a large need for it. I don’t think there are significant hurdles you wouldn’t expect. Surely the skin is sometimes different and might require additional sessions. I think the biggest thing I try to keep in mind is to make my clients feel normal. I never want them to feel uncomfortable about their scars, because most are already self-conscious about them. I never ask about scars except for things that are strictly pertinent for the application, things about how old they are and how they feel, but that’s about it. I also refrain from posting “before” photos.

TBYI: What types of tattoos do you enjoy and dislike doing most? 

AH: I really enjoy portraits and creating tattoos that tell a story, that feel breathtaking. I also enjoy fantasy, florals and animals. I really dislike tattoos with too many meanings that try to incorporate a bunch of elements that don’t normally go together. Birth flower bouquets for example, sometimes those flowers would never be found together and just don’t look good next to each other. It’s a recipe for disaster. I always talk clients into different ways of representing what they want, or simply embracing the tattoo itself as the meaning. Like instead of a bouquet of nine different flowers, maybe we pick 1-2 of their favorite flowers and know that the tattoo represents their loved ones, even if each person is not represented individually. 

TBYI: How do you collaborate with a client on a piece who has no / little idea what they want? Do you prefer that or do you prefer if a client already has a set idea on a piece?

AH: Sometimes I have ideas and I’ll start listing elements until something sparks their interest, like bridging a gap. We start building the idea from there until we narrow it down enough. I like a little of both worlds. I don’t like having to come up with every idea, but I enjoy the freedom most of the time.  

TBYI: Do you have any advice for tattoo artists in training or those just thinking about entering the tattoo industry as a tattoo artist?

AH: Definitely take seminars. Don’t wait to attend conventions, as they are really important to make connections. Never get complacent and always strive to be better. Everyone starts somewhere and every journey is different, so don’t compare yourself to others. 

TBYI: Do you have any tattooing advice for tattoo artists who are not of color? (Who often buy into the notion that people with darker skin tones “can’t” get color tattoos — and therefore won’t do color tattoos on darker skinned clients.)

AH: We need to think of skin itself as the baseline and not white skin as the baseline. The application does not change. The only thing that changes when applying a design to melanated skin is the contrast and your choice of pigments. There is absolutely no excuse for you to be refusing clients based on the color of their skin or because you think that color looks better on white skin. I invite you to think about what “looks better” actually means, because when a tattoo is well applied, the color of the skin is never an excuse. 

TBYI: Lastly, what are your thoughts on the European REACH (Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation, and Restriction of Chemicals) regulations that ban the use of pigments blue 15 and green 7 due to health concerns? Do you think The American tattoo industry can face a similar fate with banned inks? Are you and your studio prepared if that happens?  

AH: I think that these allegations and regulations came from fear and not from fact. I think there needs to be further research before making such drastic decisions on something that impacts such a large industry. The US doesn’t really care as much about its people and their safety compared to Europe. I don’t think the USA would head in that direction. It’s not really in their best interest.

You can follow Adriana on IG @adrianahallow & TikTok @https://www.tiktok.com/@adrianahallow