Today we’d like to introduce you to Davide “Set” Emmanuello
Hi Davide “Set”, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
I started tattooing about 10 years ago in Italy, where I was born and raised. I taught myself the basics and studied the rules of major tattoo styles like Japanese and American Traditional. Honestly, I’d say I’m a YouTube kid—I spent a lot of time watching tutorials and learning from videos.
Early on, I realized my drawing style naturally leaned toward Neo-Traditional, so that became my main style for a few years. But since I’ve always been a nerd and grew up obsessed with anime and manga, I eventually decided to leave Neo-Trad behind and fully commit to anime tattoos. Fast forward a few years, and it’s been the best decision ever—it’s brought me so much satisfaction and even led me to live the American dream.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Obviously, the road wasn’t easy—far from it! I didn’t get much support when I decided to pursue this path. Instead, I got a lot of doubts and questions like, ‘Are you sure this is a job that can actually support you?’
Honestly, today I just have to say that animetattoos.com calls me the Italian king of anime tattoos—that speaks for itself. I make a living, I support myself, and I even manage to save money in a country where the cost of living is way higher than in Italy. That alone feels like a huge success!
As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
As I said, I specialize in anime tattoos, and since moving to the U.S., I’ve been able to improve every single day. I can literally see my progress month after month.
Thanks to hard work, I’ve even won a few awards at major conventions like Anime Ink in Richmond and Villain Arts right here in Atlanta. But what makes me the proudest isn’t the trophies—it’s the people who reach out to me for advice on how to improve their skills because they genuinely respect me as an artist. That means everything to me
Can you tell us more about what you were like growing up?
In Italy, we have a saying: ‘I grew up on bread, water, soccer, video games, and anime’—and that pretty much sums up my childhood! Haha. I’ve always loved playing soccer, watching anime (Sailor Moon was actually the first one I ever watched—honestly, it deserves a tattoo at this point), and gaming, especially on the Nintendo 64 and PlayStation.
Those have always been my biggest inspirations, probably because school was never really my thing. But hey, I still finished high school and got my diploma!
Contact Info:
- Website: https://davidesettattoos.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/davidesettattoos/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/davidesettattooist/
- Other: https://www.tattoolife.com/anime-and-japanese-influences-in-the-tattoos-of-davide-set/
Image Credits
Personal photo:
Diego Lila photographer IG @diegolila
Tattoo photos:
Myself
