Meet Gennadiy Almazov - a talented tattoo artist whose passion for art has led him to outstanding achievements in this field. His fascination began unexpectedly ten years ago when he embarked on the path of tattooing under the guidance of an experienced friend. Over time, he evolved, finding inspiration in anime and striving for perfection in each of his creations. Today, Gennady is a recognized master whose works adorn not only the skin of his clients but also deservedly grace the stands at global tattoo festivals. A conversation with him will immerse us in his amazing world of tattooing, professional growth, and inspiration.
Gennadiy, where and how did your tattooing career begin? Did you have any mentors?
- I've been in this industry for 10 years now. I entered this field quite spontaneously in 2014. I began learning and practicing tattooing under the guidance of my friend, who was a good tattoo artist. He shared his knowledge with me. Then I decided to pursue tattooing professionally. I delved into this profession, gaining knowledge in various tattoo studios and different cities. With each new piece of information from more experienced masters, I gained more experience, confidence, and motivation to create my own individual style and quality.
For you, is tattooing art, a job, or something else?
- For me, it's more of an art combined with a job where I can be myself. Here you can create and design various cool tattoo sketches, be inspired by different artists, nature, or something else. But at the same time, when it comes time to tattoo, you are required to have constantly honed technique, which you develop like in any other job, with perseverance and dedication.
How, when, and what drew you to non-traditional tattooing?
- It's hard to say. I don't even know exactly when I realized that I wanted to do what I'm doing now. Probably when I realized that painting with color wasn't so scary (about 7/8 years ago), that's when I started feeling out the direction of my development.
What themes do you like the most?
- My favorites are anime. I really enjoy bringing interesting characters to life, conveying their emotions, fear, joy, sadness, love, etc. By the way, one of my favorite titles is "Magical Battle". I especially love when people ask me to work on designs from that anime.
Name your top 3 non-traditional tattoo artists. Who do you follow?
- I'd rather highlight those I generally like, both as people and as masters whom I look up to: Alexander Futrblack, Dmitry Harley and Tatyana Green.Vesper.
When did you realize that your career was taking off rapidly?
- About two years ago. When I started actively attending various tattoo festivals and tattoo artist gatherings, I felt that I was moving in the right direction.
In recent years, we've seen you at almost every convention among the participants and winners. How many awards do you have in total? Which one is the most important to you?
- At the moment, I have 13 awards, not counting the judges'. The most important award for me is receiving the SMM Grand Prix. It was one single place for the entire festival, with a selection from 200 masters, and I won it.
You also judge at many conventions, both in Russia and abroad. Where have you judged already? Do you find the approach to organizing conventions different in different countries?
- My most recent judging was at an online event. There were two categories: non-traditional and anime, and my colleagues and I judged everything without any problems. Judging experience abroad is also interesting. Last year, I tried China for the first time, judged twice at different conventions. The evaluations of works there are on a 10-point scale with decimals. For example, 8.56/6.26/9.73, and as judges, we give the overall score accordingly.
Do you travel a lot for work? Where and with whom have you had the opportunity to work? Can you tell us about the most significant experience?
- I often travel around. Moscow is like a second home, where I regularly work. Also, for the past six months, I've been going to Penza every month. There, my colleague and I are leading a project for a festival. We're doing a collaboration on a full back piece, and we have one session left. There were a total of 12 sessions over two consecutive days, with two artists.
You're a member of Runa’s ProTeam. Tell us what this membership gives you and whether you manage to influence the development of this branch of the tattoo industry?
- In addition to various consumables, the guys help with festivals, sometimes provide places to work at booths, give us some new tools for work that haven't been released for sale yet. Our team tests all the products and selects the best.
What else are you passionate about besides tattooing?
- Cycling. It really helps me unwind. During workouts, you don't think about much, and there's time to be alone with yourself. I can also add watching anime here. Often, watching a favorite title motivates and inspires me.
What is the main goal of your journey? Share your plans for the future.
- I have many plans to travel abroad. I want to lead a tattoo blog about tattooing worldwide, as this industry grows and develops everywhere. I've slowly started implementing this, and I hope it will only get more interesting from here.
Comments (4)