We recently had the chance to connect with Mike Wright and have shared our conversation below.
Mike, we’re thrilled to have you with us today. Before we jump into your intro and the heart of the interview, let’s start with a bit of an ice breaker: What is something outside of work that is bringing you joy lately?
Outside of work, I have really been enjoying spending time with my family; I’m a total foodie, so cooking has been a ton of fun. I also like to work on music in my spare time; I am a musician, currently working on a new album.
Can you briefly introduce yourself and share what makes you or your brand unique?
New to the area, my family and I relocated to Georgia in 2022. I am a black and grey realism/surrealism tattoo artist with over 20 years of professional experience. I specialize in portraits and dark artwork, custom, original pieces that you won’t see anywhere else. I have a huge love for fantasy, the obscure, basically anything original in concept-anything that I can really use my artist’s eye to create. Quality over quantity is huge for me!
Great, so let’s dive into your journey a bit more. What part of you has served its purpose and must now be released?
A part of me that has served it’s purposed and has been released was the part of me that cares about other’s opinions. I like to live authentically; not super into what is trending or what society deems as the norm. I think too many people are really worried about how others view them, and honestly are afraid to really be themselves-and that sucks. When you meet me, there is no fake bs, no weird pretense, you are meeting the real me-and I think that is rare these days.
What did suffering teach you that success never could?
Suffering in life, while nobody wants to suffer, I think is huge, as far as shaping your personality, and really bringing perspective into your life. Life is full of peaks and valleys, some good times, some bad-some of which you think you might never come back from. Like most people, I have experienced some pretty rough times that have really shaped how I look at the world, not necessarily in a negative way, but in a way that has made me very grateful for the good, positive things in my life. The good, positive people in my small circle.
I think our readers would appreciate hearing more about your values and what you think matters in life and career, etc. So our next question is along those lines. Is the public version of you the real you?
I would say that the public version of me is the real me, though I honestly don’t put a lot of my personal life out there. If you meet me, yes, 100% real, but I don’t usually blast the internet/socials with details about myself. I am huge on having my art speak for itself, and that is what I think more people should focus on, just my opinion. Too many people are consumed by the drama and trash talk within the industry, and that stuff really doesn’t matter, that’s energy that could be going into positive things-things that will improve your career, your art, you, as a person.
Okay, so let’s keep going with one more question that means a lot to us: If you retired tomorrow, what would your customers miss most?
If I were to retire tomorrow, I would like to think that people would miss the time spent in my chair having some real conversations, making some real connection. So, I guess I could say that that is one thing that I would miss, for sure. I’ve met some really interesting people throughout my career, heard some pretty insane life stories. It is wild to hear some of these people’s character archs, hear some of the stories that I’ve heard, and to see these people in a great place in their lives after some pretty serious struggles. I will constantly come home after a long day, telling my wife how cool my client was, how insane of a back story they have. Those conversations and experiences are irreplaceable, a huge perk of my job, in my opinion.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://share.google/so45Mjvu71ToMGbiq
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mikewrighttattoos/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/p/Mike-Wright-Tattoos-61575948543444/
Image Credits
Artist photo; courtesy of Seth Cordell/OwlSixPhotography
