Paul, a tattoo artist based in Italy, has spent years perfecting his craft. He believes tattoos should age with the wearer, evolving over time rather than chasing fleeting trends. Each piece begins with truly understanding the client’s story, intention, and emotions, ensuring the tattoo has meaning that lasts. His studio is more than just a place for tattoos; it’s a space where stories unfold and art takes shape with purpose. After years of traveling and guest-spotting in studios worldwide, Paul has reached a place of clarity in his work. No longer seeking validation, he focuses on the deep connections he builds with his clients and the lasting impact of their tattoos.
In this interview, we dive into Paul’s journey and his philosophy on tattoos – not just as art, but as personal stories that evolve with time.
How would you like to introduce yourself?
I like to introduce myself as a creative person, an ambitious individual, and a tattoo artist who tries to bring out the best in himself and in every client with each tattoo.
Where can your customers find you?
I am mainly based in Italy. After several years in Northern Italy, about a year ago I moved to the South, to Puglia, in Barletta: A beautiful area rich in history. I am currently opening my new studio here, with the opening planned for early 2026. It will be a solid reality, with multiple artists and a space dedicated to all tattoo enthusiasts. I have also recently obtained my U.S. Visa Card, so I plan to travel and work in the United States as well.
How would you describe the tattoo scene in Italy today?
I believe the Italian tattoo scene is one of the richest in terms of talent. If you consider the number of skilled artists compared to the size of the country, it is impressive. In Italy, art is part of us: In our culture, in our streets, in our history. We observe it and absorb it from a very young age. We have internationally recognized artists in every style, artists who have been, and still are, a reference point for both past and current generations.
And I’m not only talking about tattoo artists, but also about historical figures who have lived tattooing since its early days, people who made our path easier today, when in the past the environment was much tougher. These are figures I deeply admire and believe deserve gratitude for what they have done for the industry. Italy also hosts high-level events, recognized worldwide, where you can see some of the best artists in the scene. The Italian tattoo scene works, and it is at a very high level.
What does tattooing personally mean to you?
Tattooing is something that has become part of my daily life. If I tattoo for twenty days straight, I don’t even notice it; it’s only when I stop that I realize I need to rest. But if I don’t tattoo for more than two days, I start to miss it. Some people will understand what I mean, haha. For me, it is an act of faith, respect, and gratitude. Looking back, at the beginning of my career I tattooed mainly for myself: To improve, to grow, to always aim higher.
Today, with the same dedication, I live it much more as a gesture toward the client: A sign of gratitude for choosing me, for carrying my work on their skin for life, and for the opportunity to exchange stimuli and knowledge with every person I meet. And I believe that without that first phase more ego-driven and focused on personal growth, I would never have reached the awareness of the second one. I love connections, and tattooing allows me to receive them every single day.
Do you usually do guest spots? If yes, what has your experience been like?
I traveled for about ten years before returning to my place of origin. I worked in many Italian cities and in several countries: Germany, Switzerland, Spain, England, the United Arab Emirates, France, the United States, and many others.
Traveling changes you, enriches you, but at the same time it takes away important pieces of your private life—the one everyone would like to build. I had beautiful experiences and met people who helped me grow both artistically and personally. Today, regarding travel, I believe I will mainly focus on discovering the United States while also concentrating on my new studio in Italy.
What does your daily working routine look like as a tattoo artist?
I wake up early, have breakfast, and rework the design prepared the day before. Then I go to the studio, take care of daily tasks, and meet the client to talk about the work we’re about to create. We start tattooing and, after a few hours, take a lunch break together—with the client and colleagues. We continue in the afternoon until the tattoo is completed. At the end of the day, I dedicate time to myself and my personal relationships, and I prepare a sketch or an idea for the following day.
What is one surprising aspect of being a tattoo artist?
The most surprising aspect of being a tattoo artist is getting to know people, and how this inevitably expands your own identity. You spend entire days with completely different people, each one there for an important moment in their life. When you truly know how to listen, you come into contact with stories, fears, dreams, fragilities, and motivations that are not yours, yet somehow shape you. It’s as if every tattoo leaves not only an artistic mark on you, but also a new awareness.
And sometimes something even more particular happens: other people’s experiences, even if you haven’t lived them yourself, prepare you for the day you might live them. Their emotions become an extra lens through which you see your own. Their falls, their excitement, their choices teach you something in advance, as if they give you a life perspective that’s already been “tested.” So while they take a piece of you on their skin, you take a piece of them with you, and you become a more complete person.
Ultimately, tattooing becomes a true human observatory.
What is the most challenging aspect of being a tattoo artist in 2025?
The hardest part of being a tattoo artist in 2025 is that you can no longer afford to “just tattoo.” Today you need to know how to use social media, communicate, create content, and manage an image, it has practically become a second job. Focusing only on the artistic side is no longer enough, because public taste has changed. Most people follow trends more than real artistic depth. You can be the best tattoo artist in the world, but if only your mother knows you, you won’t be able to work the way you want. Quality alone is no longer enough: you need visibility, consistency, strategy, and the ability to tell your story. It’s a challenge that requires balance—protecting your artistic identity without falling behind modern communication dynamics.
What is the most rewarding aspect of being a tattoo artist?
The most rewarding aspect is the union of the two dimensions from the previous questions: when you manage to combine artistic integrity with the ability to communicate and sell your work. At that point of balance, you can achieve truly exceptional results.
Please walk us through your process when you start a new tattoo for a customer.
For more complex projects, I prefer to meet the client in person: even a quick conversation helps me understand personality, posture, and intention—key elements for proposing a coherent design.
For clients traveling from far away, I ask for a written text and some reference images, so I can gather as many inputs as possible and build a well-structured design.
For simpler tattoos, where the concept is already clear, we solve everything on the day of the appointment, but I still always ask for a short text explaining the meaning.
How do you balance client requests with your artistic vision?
I balance client requests through knowledge. I explain my vision and the reasons behind certain choices. Usually, with a good explanation, people understand without feeling forced.
Are there any tattoo styles you would like to explore more?
Yes. I’m fascinated by bodysuits, Japanese style, and all ornamental blackwork. These are styles that have attracted me for some time, both for their characteristics and for the placements and flow movements on the body.
What is the most underrated tattoo style?
In my opinion, one of the most underrated styles today—especially among beginners here in Europe —is Traditional (Old School). Many people who approach tattooing without real passion consider it a simple or outdated style. Traditional tattooing represents the roots: respect it, my friend. I consider it one of the most difficult styles, and still one of the most fascinating. Since it’s a traditional style built around recurring subjects, standing out is much harder because the creative margin is restricted by its own rules.
On top of that, the design must be two-dimensional, precise, and instantly recognizable. And let’s be clear: Simplifying subjects is one of the hardest things there is. You can always add, but subtracting is the real challenge—and you’ll realize that over time.
Are there any tattoos you prefer not to do?
Yes, I avoid Geometric tattoos. They are not part of my character: I am instinctive in my gestures, while that style is extremely methodical and rigid. It doesn’t allow me the kind of expressive freedom I need when I work.
As a tattoo artist, what kind of tattoo ethics are really important to you?
For me, the fundamental ethical values in tattooing are respect for culture and interaction with the client. Tattoo culture is rooted in ethical and moral foundations that often don’t align with the industry’s innovation. If we could respect cultural concepts while applying innovation, the industry could grow in a healthy and positive way. On the other hand, if innovation ignores ethical aspects, we risk a “factory effect” that can damage the industry. When it comes to the client, it’s essential to treat them as a human being, not as a canvas serving my ego. Tattooing is an exchange, not an act of superiority.
Do you like to teach or mentor upcoming artists?
Yes, very much. I’ve felt this need strongly for a few years now. Throughout my career, I’ve had several apprentices: some became very strong tattoo artists, others chose different paths. That’s part of the process and also depends on how much drive someone truly has. Today I feel ready to teach and to give back. I have big plans for the future related to education, and little by little I will make them all happen. Maybe we’ll talk about it again in a few years.
How do you stay at the top of your game?
Partly through work habits and routine, and partly by constantly updating myself and exchanging ideas with colleagues.
What do you think separates a good tattoo artist from a great one?
Attitude, first of all. The drive to grow and the ability to communicate face to face with the client: what you transmit, the empathy you create, and the ability to choose what is truly best for them—not for your ego. Paradoxically, what’s best for the client always ends up being best for you as well. Of course, knowledge and real-life experience make a huge difference.
How do you feel about the growing acceptance of tattoos in society?
I am clearly in favor of the growing acceptance of tattooing in society. At the same time, tattooing has always had two sides. In the past, when only a few people were tattooed, there was a desire for expansion and acceptance. Now that acceptance has arrived, some say it was better before, when tattooing was a more conscious and meaningful choice. Exclusivity is being sought again. I believe our role today is to educate clients, guiding them toward more personal choices rather than purely commercial ones.
I often see greater acceptance of having a “brand” on the skin because it’s trendy, rather than a desire to search for something truly unique and personal. And that’s where, in my opinion, the tattoo artist can really make a difference.
What is the biggest misconception customers may have about tattoos?
Aside from the classic mirrored text mistake (laughs), I think the biggest misconception is related to quality of choice. Often, choices come from not knowing: many clients can’t distinguish between medium-low quality and high quality simply because their artistic reference level stops at an average perception. As a result, everything gets reduced to choosing an artist based mainly on price or a few hundred euros difference. In my opinion, one of the biggest limits today is the inability to recognize the difference between average quality and excellent quality.
What’s your view on the rise of AI in tattooing?
Just like what happened with social media in its early days, some innovations can’t be stopped. That’s why you need to make them your allies and integrate them into your daily life in a healthy way.
Do you work on other projects within the tattoo industry?
Yes. I organize “Nice to Meet You – Art & Talk,” a one-week intensive workshop focused on painting and studying anatomy from life. It’s designed to forget what’s superfluous and break bad habits. This year will be the second edition, and I’m receiving very positive feedback so much so that many people from the first edition have already signed up for the second. Renowned tattoo artists and artists from across Europe participate, and I hope the project continues to expand.
The event is organized in collaboration with master Carlo Alberto Palumbo, who is not only a great artist but also an incredible person I deeply admire. He is an extraordinary painter and anatomy teacher. We created a path where, for once, tattoo artists don’t tattoo: they study, draw, paint from life, do graffiti, attend seminars, go to the beach, and go out dancing. It’s a week where you step away from tattooing while remaining immersed in a creative environment made of tattoo artists, exchange, and shared growth. I’m very proud of what I’m building, because I already have a clear vision of what this project can become.
Do you do other forms of art besides tattooing?
At times, I write. I mostly do it for myself, and maybe one day for others.
Who are the people you admire the most within the tattoo community?
There are many people I admire within the tattoo community. Even though it’s often an interest-driven environment, there is an underlying ethic that carries important values. Within those values, I’ve met people with whom I’ve built real relationships over the years that, through ups and downs, continue to exist. One person I feel compelled to mention is Alex De Pase. He’s now a friend—we’ve known each other for about ten years, and I consider him a reference point in my journey. I followed him first as an artist and then as an innovator. Behind great results, there are always great motivations, and that’s something I’ve always respected and admired in him.
What’s your experience at tattoo conventions so far?
Tattoo conventions are extremely useful, especially during an artist’s growth phase. They allow you to gain experience, travel, and confront yourself with others. They make you realize that your studio isn’t the only world that exists—there are many other realities, just like yours, trying to grow. Every convention, in some way, puts you back in perspective and that’s healthy.
What’s your primary reason to attend a tattoo convention?
To confront myself, break routine, and travel.
How do you think tattoo conventions could improve for both artists and the public?
By having fewer of them and restoring the exclusivity they had in the early 2000s. When conventions were few per country, clients truly waited for them, quality was higher, there was enough work for everyone, and the balance between supply and demand was healthier.
Is there any tattoo that you have created that you are particularly proud of?
Yes—the tattoos I never post. They are usually connected to loss, grief, or very strong emotions. These are works where the client cries, hugs me, and finds comfort in the memory they will carry on their skin for life. Those, for me, are the most important tattoos.
What is your greatest accomplishment as a tattoo artist?
At the moment, I would say jury experiences in important contexts, both in Italy and abroad, and some small circles that are starting to close. But I believe I still have to achieve my greatest accomplishment. What I’ve achieved so far is simply the result of time, work, and sweat dedicated to this path.
What advice would you offer to someone considering a career as a tattoo artist?
The first advice is to trust yourself.
The second is to be meticulous in your work and choices.
The third is to think outside the box, now more than ever.
What are your goals or dreams for the near future?
First of all, to launch properly the studio I’m creating, which is very important to me in my homeland. The second goal is to get to know and expand into the American market and everything it can offer in terms of knowledge and innovation, both professionally and personally.
What legacy do you want to leave as a tattoo artist?
A healthy legacy, made of teaching and respect—for people and for what we do.
To close this interview, what’s your last message to our readers?
If you want to become part of this world, or if you’re already part of it, I hope you can be as impactful as possible and, above all, be yourself in showing the world who you really are. Be passionate about tattooing, be healthily obsessed, and surround yourself with people who have a constructive and positive vision. I’d like to thank the readers of WORLD TATTOO EVENTS and the magazine’s editors for asking me and giving me the opportunity to answer these thoughtful questions with my own perspective. I hope this conversation can be an inspiration for someone.
Thank you.
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