HINTER MASKEN INTERVIEW

What’s up?! Thanks for doing this! Tell the people who you are and what you do.

Hey! I’m Hinter Masken. I'm a tattoo artist and Bay Area native that lives in Phoenix Arizona.

How did you start tattooing? Can you tell me a little about your art background?

Believe it or not I was never really an artist growing up. I was a homeschooled kid that used my shitty art to draw make believe friends. I was bullied growing up and art was my relief and go to outlet. Once I got old enough and realized tattoos were a thing I was hooked on getting them. Things were still pretty gate kept though so it wasn’t until 2018 I got my actual start with tattooing. Me and my friend started stick and poking in our living rooms and my personal career evolved when I bought a tattoo machine created a portfolio and faked it til I made it at a walk in shop in Seattle. Best choice I ever made.

That’s awesome. I love seeing self taught artists killing it. How difficult has it been to break through the tattoo world. You mentioned gatekeeping, do you feel like it’s as bad now as when you started?

Thank you!! I love representing. And Nah I wouldn’t say gatekeeping is a prevalent thing anymore. I think people have learned to be shitty in other ways lol. Like I said I got my start in the Pacific Northwest which is a notoriously pious area with people who act fake and overly nice but are really the biggest bullies on the planet, so my start to tattooing was just as hard as if gatekeeping were still a thing. I’ve overcome so many obstacles I don’t even know where to start. Sexual assault by men, gossip and exclusion by women. It makes my success that much sweeter though. I’m very proud of myself and the relationships I’ve built with my wonderful clients across the globe!

Hell yeah. All that shit is so difficult to navigate. I’m glad you stayed persistent and pushed through because I love your work! Do you find it harder being a woman in tattooing or does the work normally speak for itself?

Honestly my work speaks for itself! I push myself literally every single day to learn something, do more difficult work, accomplish more than I had the day previous and my gender has never played a role in people booking with me. If anything I feel it has helped me. I love being a safe place for people to come and feel comfortable to get tattooed.

Love that. Your work is very unique. Where does your influence come from and tell me a little bit about your design process. I trip out on some of your work trying to figure out how you did it lol.

HAHAHA. Thank you. Doing my job well then! I love designing pieces. I’m an avid book collector. I have everything from original press French illustrative novels from the 1920s to Ilona Staller’s pornographic 80s campy picture collection to Hajime Sorayama’s fantasy futurism collectors edition Naga book. I find inspiration in everything. Mostly erotic feminine surrealism and reflective surfaces.

Using books as references is something I hope never goes away. I know you can get everything on the internet but there is something special about owning the book. So how did you get to Phoenix and what is the tattoo scene like out there?

Like I said I was born and raised in the Bay Area so sunshine has always been a big part of my life. I moved up to Seattle for my ex husband but given that title you can probably deduce why I moved back down to a sunny place lol. He and I are still actually great friends but I’m such a lizard I needed to be back in warm weather. The tattoo scene out here has been a hard one to crack. Places like New York and LA have big art scenes. Phoenix is kind of the opposite. It’s definitely been a challenge trying to grow here. I’ll figure it out though. I’ve gone through bigger hurdles

I feel like a smaller scene can lead to some very cool shit that can get overlooked in bigger scenes where people are just copying trends. Have you noticed a different tattoo culture in all the places you’ve worked? It sounds like you have been pretty adaptable.

Yeah definitely! There are large trends that people are into globally but there are definitely niche styles in different pockets where people live. People are really into the traditional style and motifs here in Phoenix. Something that I have not made part of my art identity at ALL. So like I said it will take some getting used to and maybe adjusting things or doing some more digestible pieces for people. However I still want to stay true to myself and hopefully more people jump on board!

That’s exciting. It’s a good opportunity for growth that’s for sure. So you mentioned creating a safe space for people to get comfortably tattooed. Do you have any cool opinions on the art of being tattooed or tattooing someone and how unique and personal that experience is?

Absolutely! The experience of getting the tattoo is just as important and can be just as important as the tattoo itself. My favorite tattoo is done by our mutual friend Bobby Bertolini. It says “Hessel” the road he lives on and he did it in his barn. Shittiest and best tattoo I have by far!!! Having an intimate experience and energy exchange reflects how you’ll feel about that tattoo permanently. Being tattooed by a best friend is by far way better than the most professional experience.

I wholeheartedly agree. That Hessel tattoo is as sick as it gets lol. Have you seen the demographics of people coming to get tattoos change since you started doing it?

Hahaha I’m glad we have the same taste in fine art✨and yeah absolutely. My tattoo style has evolved a lot over the years which has attracted different types of people. It’s cool to see all different walks of life come through my doors and I love connecting with the wide variety of styles and personalities. My favorite is probably elderly people. If you’re 60+ and getting a tattoo, I want to be your friend!

Haha! That’s rad! What are some trends you dig right now in tattooing and what are some trends you just ain’t fuckin with?

I’d say I really love some of the boundary pushing tattoo artists like pattern__recognition and Cuixi, and some of the trashy 90s tattoo shop flash revival like tribal and dolphins. I hope that kind of stuff always stays in style. Something I’m absolutely sick of is the Pinterest copy paste plant and chrome tattoos and the same crying Mary face. If I never saw those things again it would be too soon. People really really need to stop leaning on the same regurgitated bs. Be creative.. put your own style into it.

I was hoping you wouldn’t hold back on that one. Thank you lol. Do you ponder upon arts outside of tattooing and how often?

Lmao absolutely. Someone had to say it!!! I think I lowkey speak for everyone too. We’re all sick of that face. To those of you reading- stop using it lol, kindly. Thank you. And yes! I’ve been painting clothing and canvases a lot lately. Working with gouache which I hate, and acrylic and fabric medium which I love. Gouache sucks so bad but I felt like I needed to give it an honest try. I’m pretty good with a ballpoint pen and I really like drawing like that. But true to my nature, I love a challenge. I’m also working towards becoming a stained glass maker! Also I’ve been an accomplished classical pianist for 25 years, idk if you’d consider that “the arts” but there’s that too.

I 100% consider that the arts. What a flex lol. Gouache is ROUGH! Funny I was just talking to my wife’s friend about getting into stained glass. She and her husband just made some at a lady’s shop in Arizona I believe. Do you play piano for pleasure or do you ever record or pursue it professionally?

Piano since the age of 4 has always been a professional thing for me. My parents made me competitive in it. I’ve never pursued it for pleasure or self expression. I love writing music that I want to learn sometimes. If I hear a song, I’ll write the sheet music for it and learn it that way. So I guess there’s a little bit of playing for myself especially nowadays since I’ve been retired from that for a while. Music really is the best therapy. Stained glass I’m really excited to pursue though, I have some really cool ideas that involve vellum printed images onto glass. So we’ll see where that takes me!

Wow so you are essentially a prodigy. If you don’t mind me asking did you retire from playing because tattooing is a more joyful/creative experience for you?

Technically I was recognized for that when I was a child. Although saying that as an adult makes me feel a little douchey lmao. But I should be proud of my accomplishments. I retired because it was always something my parents made me do, being a homeschooled kid. I lived and breathed piano since the age of 4 so I craved making my own decisions. To be honest I should have stuck with it. But tattooing has proved to be the best path for me, creatively and financially!

That’s very interesting and speaks to your adaptability it seems like you have a good attitude towards change and new challenges. What are some tattoo goals you have for the near future?

As much as it may seem like that, I’m such a creature of habit. Change has always been extremely hard for me but I have been forced into it so much I feel like I’ve been able to handle it with grace. For tattoo goals, I’ve been able to check a lot off my list so far! But I always leave room for new doors to open! Lately I’ve been working with inked mag and I just got a collab with Gretsch Guitars which is pretty cool! I’m excited to see what this year has to bring. I want to have a kid in the near future too so hopefully I have a really successful year so I can take some downtime and focus on myself and family in the upcoming future.

Hell yeah!! Great stuff. How did those collabs come about?

I got invited to work the Barrett Jackson car show with Inked and the rest have been like dominos! I’ve been very grateful for that.

So cool when you work your ass off and things start falling into place. Okay I got two quick hitters for you. Remove all your tattoos you can only keep one, what one you keeping?

HESSEL HANDS DOWN!!

Fuck yes. Favorite album all time.

Iron Fist Motörhead or Left Hand Path by Entombed or Aquarium by Aqua.

Incredible picks. Thank you so much for your time this has been rad. If there is anything you wanna plug fire away!

Of course thanks for asking me all these questions!!! This was fun!

You can follow HINTER MASKEN @hinter_masken_