I’ve known Michael Murolo for many years, since he started collaborating with tattoo conventions in Italy. In a relatively short amount of time, Michael has carved a relevant spot in the tattoo community. Chances are that if you have been involved with tattoo conventions, you may have crossed paths with him. Let’s dive into his unconventional tattoo journey.
For the readers who are not familiar with you, how would you introduce yourself?
I’m Michael Murolo, and I was born in Bari (Italy) in 1984. I’ve got an artistic background, as I graduated from Bari at the Art Institute in Visual Arts.
I have 9 years of experience as a shop manager in several tattoo shops and 7 years of experience working with Tattoo Conventions as an artistic selector and talent scout. In total, I’ve been involved with the tattoo industry for the last 21 years.
Where did your fascination for tattoos come from?
The passion for tattoos started many years ago when I came into contact with one of the first tattoo shops where I got tattooed.
The passion for drawing and art I had since I was a child, and not by chance, I chose to embark on a school artistic path.
The real passion for tattooing occurred at the age of 17.
By starting to get tattooed in one of the first tattoo shops, I came into better contact with the world of tattooing, continuing a long journey of experience and apprenticeship before starting to work at the Tattoo Convention.
What do tattoos mean to you?
Tattoos for me mean primarily an art form on skin and also a lifestyle.
They can also represent many significant memories of our lives, whatever they are beautiful or not.
Do you remember your first tattoo?
Yes, I remember very well my first tattoo. It was a beautiful feeling that I had as a minor, experimenting with a new form of art on skin.
How would you describe the tattoo scene in Italy these days?
The tattoo scene in Italy these days is constantly evolving, as in other nations or the rest of the world.
New, talented artists are born in every style of tattoo, especially in realistic and surrealistic styles.
How did you start your career in the tattoo industry?
My career in the tattoo industry started 21 years ago, as a client in a tattoo studio where I was getting tattooed. From there, everything unfolded, as later on I became a shop manager at that shop.
What have been the most important moments and highlights of your career?
The most important moments of my career started when I realized one of my dreams: collaborating with tattoo conventions in Italy and abroad.
I’m also very proud and honored by my role as a judge in several events in Europe.
You have been collaborating with several conventions in the last few years. What can you tell us about your journey with them?
In the last seven years, I have collaborated on the artistic part and on the jury at different events where I have met many artists and colleagues from all over the world.
I also got to know great artists of the world scene that I personally invited to events where I collaborated with Carlos Rojas, Teresa Sharpe, Big Sleeps, Boris, Roman Abrego, Valentina Riabova, Big Meas, Dana Brunson.
What kind of collaborations do you usually do with tattoo conventions?
It depends. I collaborate on the artistic part by inviting artists to buy booths and asking the organization to invest by inviting great artists for free.
Sometimes I collaborate with the jury, and for the artistic part, I sell booths imprinting the medium, high and very high artistic level that I have selected over the years.
Sometimes I collaborate with an event only in the jury part, introducing with me in the jury my trusty and very prepared artists who know how to evaluate the works that will go up during the contest.
Before starting a collaboration with an event, I evaluate several technical and organizational aspects, having my own work ethic and vision.
I do not close the doors to any event I want to collaborate with, but still, having little time in my life, I do thorough skimming for different aspects of work and technical aspects of an event.
What does your dream tattoo convention look like?
The Tattoo Convention of my dreams has an aspect not strictly linked to marketing but rather to artistic culture, giving space to great legends of every style of tattoo and involving even the most coveted artists of the moment and new talents of the world scene.
What’s the most challenging aspect of your job?
The most challenging aspect of my work is to put together a group of artists to invite to every event in which I collaborate for the artistic part, take care of everything about their registration for the event, and understand in advance what they need.
Every head and every ethnicity have a different way of thinking, but with the experience gained, many aspects that seem difficult in my work today are much simpler for me.
Making a person or a tattoo artist feel good is a very important thing, and for years I have been engaged in my work, continuing to improve with seriousness’, dedication, professionalism’, strategy, and human side.
What do you like the most about the world of tattoo conventions?
There are many beautiful and interesting aspects of the Tattoo Convention, including getting to know new people and artists, creating new connections, and being able to admire artists of every tattoo style expressing their art.
Surely the tattoo conventions are also places where you see old friends and colleagues even after months and years.
You have been travelling at countless conventions in Europe. Which conventions are your favorite so far?
Yes, I have 30 juries behind me right now.
Every event has always struck me so much; every nation has its particularities’.
There are no tattoo conventions that have affected me less or more.
In every country, there are many good artists who have well-defined characteristics and styles in which they differ in many technical artistic aspects.
In the last few years, you have also been a Judge at many conventions. How would you describe your experience so far being a Judge?
Yes, as I said in the previous answer, I have taken part so far in 30 jury across Europe.
The jury role is a very important and very responsible one that is not easy.
My experience as an artist selector of different styles of tattoos, my career as a shop manager in the tattoo studio, and my artistic school career have influenced my maturation in knowing how to evaluate with different requirements the works that go on stage.
Obviously, in life, as I think in every field, you never stop learning.
Observing always and constantly many artists of every style of work, my artistic eye in different years has been matuarto from a theoretical point of view and not practical.
What advice would you offer to someone considering a career in the tattoo industry?
My advice to those who would like to pursue a career in the tattoo industry is obviously to understand many aspects and what we want to go on.
As you well know, in the tattoo industry, there are not only tattoo artists.
My advice is obviously that first of all, you have to love the art in general, the art of tattooing, and have a small formative artistic base.
Who are the people you admire the most within the tattoo community?
Among the artists for me legends in the Tattoo Industry that have made history are Bob Tyrell, Paul Booth, Freddy Negrete, Steve Soto, Filip Leu, Horiyoshi, Jose Lopez, Teresa Sharpe, Jeff Gogue.
What’s your biggest achievement in your career, that you are most proud of so far?
There are so many successes, goals, and dreams that I have achieved in a short time, burning the stages very quickly.
Surely my successes are when I manage to set an artistic level, as I say, and I have succeeded in several events and even come to be known in the world for different events in jury.
What are your goals or dreams for the near future?
I have new dreams and projects in the drawer or new collaborations in other countries, but at the moment I cannot reveal anything because I am very superstitious and have not made it official.
What I can tell readers is that I would like to visit new events in new countries, and for those who like to stay tuned on my official social channels.
Is there anything else you would like to tell our readers?
I would like to end my interview with thanks to you first of all, Alex, for giving me space in your magazine and thanking all the artists and experts who daily support my work and way of thinking and building new collaborations and connections in the tattoo industry.
For those who like it, you can stay tuned on my social media channels for my upcoming collaborations.
Great post. Thank you for sharing!