Hoje o herói da nossa entrevista Igor Mitrenga tem um senso de estilo marcante. Originalmente um artista de direção de arte de rua, ele combina com grande sucesso elementos de grafite e realismo de retratos em suas obras de tatuagem. Nossos editores literalmente se encantaram com suas obras de primeira vista, então estamos ansiosos para conversar com Igor, aprender mais sobre ele e seu trabalho. Vamos lá!
- Olá Igor! No início, por favor, me conte um pouco sobre você e como e quando você decidiu entrar no mundo das tatuagens?
- Olá Alexander! Tenho 29 anos e sou de Praga (CZ). Quando eu era criança, ainda desenhava. Em torno dos 14 anos, comecei a fazer grafite. Foi mais do que paixão, ainda é. Na verdade, isso influenciou minha visão de vida. Há 5 anos, tive a oportunidade de pegar a máquina de tatuagem nas mãos. Fiz algumas letras no meu calcanhar hahaha, mas no mesmo momento senti que a tatuagem seria o próximo nível nesse mundo. Fui fascinado pelo fato de que é permanente, você não pode lavá-la como grafite.
- Qual carreira você deixou para virar artista de tatuagem?
- Não sei. Tenho um curso técnico de formação com foco em design industrial, mas nunca aconteceu comigo (risca).
In fact, it's about the people you meet in your life and the circles you are in. It will affect you a little bit, and it is only up to you. I moved among the people who were creative, we painted graffiti, we experienced a lot of extreme situations and dangers, it gives you a completely different view of the thing. It also affects you in everyday life. So I can hardly tell what I left because of that, but I believe everything is as it should be.
- What does this word means to you?
- Maybe it's a little bit of a kitsch, but the tattoo is life. If you do it only half, you can never do it well. You have to take a lot of time around. Adapt everything around, you know. You have to have people around you who respect that sometimes you crazy, often you are in the studio to night, etc. So, for me it's not a "job", it's life and a lot of passion.
- Tell us about your style. How do you call it?
- I don’t know how to call it. I combine realism and graphic elements using my own graffiti as a basis. I start my designs on a wall and transfer it to skin this way you can see the street art and then on the skin.
- What most important features in your style?
- I love high contrast and colors. I try to break the classical composition with something else and give it a completely different face. Also clean lines and fill a hundred percent of the skin is for my style very important.
- Where do you get inspiration?
- The inspiration can be found all around. At this time of the Internet it's really easy, but I try to ignore it. I often try to find something original in the things we have in everyday life around us.
- What message can your works carry?
- If my work brings to my customers and people around joy, and makes them more happy, so that's what I love and everything is all right.
- Since you work in an exclusive author's style, it imposes certain limits, against than on work in a more pop theme. Can you sign out some peculiarities of people who want to become your customers? What they do in regular life, outside of tattoo shop?
- Yes it is true. A lot of my customers are dedicated to things that are close to what I do, they are creative and they go for their purpose.on the other hand, I have a few customers who work in the office or as director in the bank (hehe). The biggest specialty is that I made a sleeve for two policemen (haha). It's funny because my style is based on graffiti. Graffiti is generally hated by the police (laughs)
- Tell us about your typical working day.
- My day begins early in the morning. every day I wake up at 6:30. I love the morning, it's my favourite part of the day. I go out with my dog, I buy coffee. I'm coming to the studio at 8am. Everyday I do cleaning by myself in my studio, I love then everything is clean and perfect ready for daily traffic. I only do a full day session so every day I only work on one project. My customer arrives at 9am. We talk for a while and drink coffee together. At 10 o'clock, when everything is ready, I begin to tattoo. Every two hours I take a short break. That's good for me and for the customer as well, also for the skin. I usually end up around 8-9 in the evening. Sometimes earlier and sometimes later. It all depends on the difficulty of the design I am doing and also on the customer, you know (hehe). After I finish my tattoo I'm going home. At home I work on other designs for the next days.
- How extensive is your tattoo geography. Where have you already had to work and where will you work in the near future?
- Meu base está em Praga (Tcheco). Aqui tenho meu próprio atelier privado onde passo a maior parte do tempo. Meu segundo base está em Nova York onde vou trabalhar duas vezes por ano. Além disso, passo por convenções por todo o mundo. Este ano foi desafiador e fiz muito. No próximo ano vou visitar ainda mais convenções. Meus favoritos são o Krakow Tattoo Fest, o New York Empire State Tattoo Expo, o Grand Prix Brno, Zwickau na Alemanha por Randy Engelhard e o blast foi este ano's primeiro CTS em Las Vegas.
- Há países onde você sempre está pronto para voltar?
- Sim, é os EUA, Nova York. Esta cidade tem o clima. O Hustle Butter Deluxe me dá ali. Pessoas boas e tudo. Sempre estou pronto para voltar.
- Como você avalia sua popularidade?
- Hoje em dia, é difícil falar sobre popularidade porque o que é popularidade? Todo outro pessoa no Instagram que faz alguma coisa de bobo sente popular (hehe). É sobre likes ou seguidores? Não sinto popular. Deixo tudo natural e não pressiono a serragem.
- Você trabalha com qualquer empresa como artista profissional? Como você se sente sobre esta tendência de equipes profissionais?
- Estou patrocinado por várias empresas: Intenze Tattoo Ink, FK Irons, Hustle Butter Deluxe, Killer Ink Tattoo, Dermalize PRO, Stencil Forte e sou parte da equipe profissional pela Intenze Tattoo ink, Fk Irons, Hustle Butter Deluxe. Acho que é bom. Ser parte da equipe profissional significa que seu trabalho tem um certo nível de qualidade.
Also Together with other artists, we can contribute to improving the products because we use them the most.
I do not want to say that it's important to be part of the team but it's definitely good.
- I would like to know more about you, not only as an artist, but as a person. What else do you do in regular life apart from tattoo art?
- He-he. What else am I doing apart the tattoo art? I think nothing ha-ha. I’m just kidding.
I love dogs. I have one crazy whippet. Being with him out there is really fun. When I do not work, I enjoy spending time together with my girlfriend and enjoying the time spent at home, because there is really little. At least once a week I try to paint a wall. If there is some time left, I like to make some furniture at home, I love handmade pieces.
- What about music / movie preferences?
- In terms of music, only rap / hip hop. I'm listening more old school, sometimes new things, but everything until 2005 you know...he-he
Do not ask me for movies, I'm really amateur in this. I always have better things to do than watch the movie (laughter)
- How do you see the future of the tattoo world in the next 5-10 years?
- I often see the tattoos I think they are from the future hehe. The level is very high and I like it. I just can not imagine where it can go. Maybe in ten years we will buy all the laser and we will remove tattoos that we were doing to hehe.
- And finally - what advice can you give to newcomers in the tattoo?
- Thanks for the interview bro, was my pleasure.
It's important to do it with love, if you don't love it, don't do it. The moment you are satisfied with your result, it is your last level. But art don’t have last level, it can be always better...
- Thank you very much Igor!
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