CORPORATE CHARACTER TATTOO
"In the beginning he had nothing but good intentions, but the more time he spent in the company the more he lost of his original self." ALLERGIES TATTOO
A fellow tattoo artist from Greensboro, North Carolina drove up to get this piece from me. He asked me to put together a piece that would represent all of his allergies so I drew up a cat trying to defend itself from a shrimp and some dust mites with an inhaler. This piece took me roughly 15 hours total. RALPHIE TATTOO
I created this piece as a memorial for my client's late ferret who used to eat all the plants in her house. She flew in from Ontario, Canada twice for a total of 13 hours to get this piece. The Rescue TattooTattooed this piece on a good friend of mine named Heather. Never really been a fan of drawing flowers, but she let me sneak a couple of little critters in there to keep me entertained. New Jesse Smith/Dan Hazelton Collabo
My buddy Dan Hazelton and I just finished up this piece for an upcoming comic book called Bromkah. The story was written and illustrated by a tattoo artist in Atlanta, Georgia named Garrett Adderley. We were so happy with the way the whole collabo turned out that we decided to make some "18X24" posters of it. If you'd like to scoop one up you can click on the image below and it'll shoot you on over to my online store. They're $10 a piece plus shipping and handling. Thank you all for your continued support!
WARPED PERSPECTIVE
Got a new article in Richmond's own RVA Mag. Super excited with how it turned out. If you'd like to check out the full article you can do so here. FOOD CHAIN TATTOOThis tattoo illustrates a day in the life of one of my soccer buddies who is a master chef at the infamous Shafer Court. It took me about 15 hours to complete. TATTOO PRODIGIES
I’m super stoked to be a part of this new book that Mike Devries put together called “Tattoo Prodigies”. This is probably my favorite tattoo book to date. It is Jam packed full of awesome artists and their work. If you’re interested in scooping one up you can do so via MDTattoos.com. Here is a description of the book that I snagged off of Mike's website: SUPER SNAIL TATTOOJust because you were born slow doesn't mean you can't excel. VULTURE CULTURE TATTOOTattooed this piece on my buddy Ryan a couple of years back down in Cocoa, FL. He had originally asked for a vulture on the side of his calf which I was really excited about tattooing. I sat down, started to draw, and got a little carried away. Fourteen hours later, this is what he ended up with. Jesse Smith is now booking for Florida trip!
Dear Friends, Family and Faithful Creatives, Craola's New Clothing LineMy good friend Greg “Craola” Simkins just dropped his new clothing line. For those of you who aren’t familiar with his work, you’ve definitely got to check it out. He’s one of my biggest inspirations and probably one of the most innovative lowbrow artists today. FISHFOOT TATTOODid this tattoo on the beautiful miss Tyler Dobbins as a continuation to the "Little Tyler" piece I did on her a couple years back. Tattooist ArtJust landed this new article with new online magazine called TattooistArt.com. If you get a chance, check it out!! DUMB POLITICIAN iPHONE CASEI just got these nifty Dumb Politician I-Phone covers in (3G/3GS only). If you’re interested in scooping one up you can do so by clicking here. Each case is printed using Thermo-Active Transdermal Technology (a new process developed by a company called “Uncommon”). This particular process ensures durable, long lasting, high resolution imagery on every case. I’m super happy with how well they turned out and I’m confident that you guys will be happy with them as well.
To those of you that are interested in setting up an appointment with me for my Florida trip, I’ll be shooting out an email here in about three weeks. I usually give my mailing list first priority so if you haven’t joined it yet you can do so here. A lot of people have been showing interest in booking with me for this trip so definitely hit me back as soon as you get the email to ensure a spot. SOBER MONKEY TATTOODid this one on Lucas, an old friend from Heidelberg High School. This piece was put together in late '09 at Ghost Print Gallery Tattoo (ghostprinttattoo.com). KILLER KOONDid this on my buddy Devin Taylor, owner of Bleeding Star Clothing (www.bleedingstarclothing.com), in Vegas this past October. Took me about seven hours. ZOMBIE SQUIRREL
SURFACING SERPENTThis was done on a good friend of mine, Tom Sr., owner of Fuzion Ink (http://www.hellhoundmusic.com/fuzionink/) in Norfolk, VA. He originally asked me for a small dragon on his chest and ended up getting this. SLOW COOKER
Dropped this off at Las Vegas back in October of '09. PRAYING HANDS
Dropped this off in San Francisco in August 2009.
SURFER CHICK!
Dropped this off in Denmark a couple years back. THANK YOU!!
LEFTY SKETCH T!
Last Friday I messed up my drawing hand pretty bad playing soccer and unfortunately it has put me in a position where I can't tattoo. So I was trying to figure out a way to supplement my tattoo income and I came up with an idea. I had always wanted to see what would happen if I drew up something left handed and thought this was a good opportunity to try. I sat down with the intention to draw a T-Shirt design to sell to people who were interested in giving me a hand financially and to my surprise it turned out better then I had expected. I ended up sketching a squirrel (go figure:) named Basher who was the sole survivor in the battle for the Golden Acorn. I also wrote a short story about how he ended up breaking his wrist that can be found behind the image on the T-shirt. If you are interested in scooping up a T-Shirt you can do so by visiting the "Store" section of my website (http://www.jessesmithtattoos.com/online-store/stickers/item_42839.html). All shirts will be printed on American Apparel and run $23 a piece. They are available in Men's (Grey or Sepia) and Girl's (Grey or Muave). Thank you all so much for your continued support, Jesse Smith
BABY SKULL!
Dropped this off in San Diego this past July!
DOES NO EVIL!Dropped this off in Cocoa, Florida back in June. Took me about 9 hours. Been too busy to get anything on here lately. I'm gonna try and update a little more frequently here in the next couple of weeks. Got a ton of new stuff to show off. Stay tuned... MUNNKYPut this little guy together for the upcoming Kid Robot Munny show that will take place in New York on Nov. 13-15. If you're in the area and are interested in checking out the show stop on by. The address is: The Eloquent Delinquents Gallery 41 Wooster Street, New York, NY For more info visit the website:) MUNNKY (Close-up 1)MUNNKY (Close-up 2)MUNNKY (FULL VIEW)RAT RACEDropped this off in Vegas at Mario Barth's Biggest show on Earth. Swingin Dick!So I arrived in San Diego last week with a few slots available to tattoo. The first day I walked into Five Two Tattoo there was this fella sitting there waiting for me. After talking a bit he asked me if I would be interested in tattooing a "dick on a swing" on his inner thigh. Initially I was really not feeling the idea so I told him I'd think about it and get back to him. After a couple days of dishin around the idea I decided to give it a try. This is what I came up with. THE BATTLE FOR THE BRAIN!!I dropped this piece off about 2 weeks ago in Miami beach for the first annual Tattoolapalooza. I stayed super busy and got to hang out with one of my bestest friends Jason Stephan. All in all I had a great time! I ended up scooping up "Tattoo of the Day" on Sat. which is pretty awesome being that there were a ton of Awesome tattoo artists there. The collector of this piece had been battling a disease that ended up requiring surgery and changing his way of life. During his battle with this disease he thought that it would ruin his quality of life. So I created this piece to illustrate that although the disease may have won the small battle, there was a bigger battle to be fought. The battle for the brain and his ability to continue a high quality life even with his loss. Today Electric Pick and I are gonna go chill out at a cafe' and release some of this creative energy that has accumulated over the past couple of days. We just spent two full days at the comic-con and are overwhelmed by the inspiration. Hopefully I'll have some fun stuff to show you soon. Till then, stay safe, it's a dangerous world out there!! It's all in your Head!! (RL)The pieces posted below were created for a show called "Pint Size Paintings". We were given two 2"X3" canvas' and told to decorate them using paint (either oil or acrylic). Being that the canvas' were so small my first instinct was to create a composition that would stand up not only as two separate pieces but also as one. While sketching on the canvas' I decided to try and connect them on every side. It took me about 4 hours to figure it out and 21 hours to paint it. It's all in your Head!! (LR)It's all in your Head!! (DU)It's all in your Head!! (UD)It's all in your Head!! (Full)Dan Hazelton Collabo Sketch!Just got back from a week in Milwaukee visiting and drawing with my buddy Dan Hazelton (www.danhazelton.com). The sketch above was one of two collabos that we started while I was there. We started sketching around midnight and finished up around 7 or 8 in the morning:) I'm about to pick up a Wacom tablet this week so hopefully we can get this jammer knocked out! AGAINST THE GRAINAlthough the path is rocky it'll make you stronger in the long run:) EVOLVED BODY ART (COLUMBUS, OHIO)Dropped these two little guys off at Evolved Body Art in Columbus, Ohio. Took me about 3 hours total. T-REX TATTOOThe initial idea for this tattoo was to have a T-Rex ripping out of a kids drawing that had a bunch of tanks, jets and soldiers attacking it. But due to time restraints we only got this part done for now. Hell City Tattoo Convention!Hell City Tattoo Convention 2!The Hell City Tattoo Convention was all that I had expected and more. I had loads of fun. To all of you who stopped by my booth and buried me with compliments, "Thank you". It was good to put some faces to some avatars:) I tattooed the piece above on a client who flew in from Ireland to get work by me (I was super flattered!). Took me about 6.5 hours to complete. MINI ARTICLE IN SAVAGE!!If you find yourself browsing the magazine section at Barnes and Nobles and don't wanna look like a total pervoid buying a bunch of porn mags then scoop up the July issue of Savage #101. It'll add a little variety to the mix. New Painting!This is the second of three pieces I am putting together for a series called "Create your own Chaos". Got limited edition prints available in the Store. Scoop one up!! SKWIRL!!As promised, a better picture of the Skwirl piece all cleaned up and ready to wear:) POOR SQUIRREL :'(Apparently he didn't hear about the zombie jellyfish infested waters :'( BEAUTIFULLY BROKEN!NEW INTERVIEW!Got a new interview runnin on Acclaim Magazine's website. Check it out! SKWIRL!!6 Hours of tat zappin!! Sierra sat like a champ!! Got a touch up session in 2 weeks so I'm gonna try and push the SKWIRL logo a bit as well as throw in some baby blue background to cool the palette a bit. I'll post some final pictures when it's done. FOOD CHAIN SKETCH!'09 ITINERARYBelow you will find this years Itinerary. I am currently only booking for the Hell City Convention, the Evolved Guest Spot and the guest spot at Dan Hazelton's private studio. If you are interested in getting tattooed by me at any of these locations please send me an email via the contact section. Make sure to include the location at which you would like to get tattooed (ie. Hell City/Evolved/Dan Hazelton's) and a brief description of what it is that you would like to get. I have been receiving a lot of emails inquiring about this trip so I expect it to book up pretty quickly. COLUMBUS, OHIO HELL CITY CONVENTION (WWW.HELLCITYTATTOOFEST.COM) May 29, 2009 to May 31, 2009 COLUMBUS, OHIO EVOLVED BODY ART (WWW.EVOLVEDBODYART.COM) June 2, 2009 to June 4, 2009 MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN DAN HAZELTON'S PRIVATE STUDIO June 9, 2009 to June 11, 2009 MIAMI, FLORIDA TATTOOLAPALOOZA (WWW.TATTOOLAPALOOZA.COM) July 10, 2009 to July 12, 2009 COCOA, FLORIDA KING ST. TATTOO July 14, 2009 to July 16, 2009 SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA FIVE TWO TATTOO (HTTP://FIVETWOSYNDICATE.COM) July 27, 2009 to July 29, 2009 LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA LOCATION TBD August 1, 2009 to August 2, 2009 SAN FRANCISCO LOCATION TBD August 5, 2009 to August 6, 2009 August 10, 2009 to August 11, 2009 LAS VEGAS, NEVADA THE BIGGEST SHOW ON EARTH LAS VEGAS (HTTP://WWW.TATTOOEXPO09.COM) October 2, 2009 to October 4, 2009 LAS VEGAS, NEVADA MASSIVE TATTOO (HTTP://WWW.MYSPACE.COM/MASSIVETATTOO) October 6, 2009 to October 8, 2009 SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA FIVE TWO TATTOO (HTTP://FIVETWOSYNDICATE.COM) October 12, 2009 to October 14, 2009 And to those of you who are interested in getting tattooed by me at the Miami/California trip, I'll be booking for those shows and guest spots right before I leave for Hell City. If you would like to be notified as soon as I start booking, please join my mailing list. Till then, Take it easy, Jesse SKWIRL!!THEY'VE BEEN BULLIED LONG ENOUGH!! THEY WILL PREVAIL!! ZOMBIE JELLYFISH!!THEY SOON WILL RUN OUT OF FOOD!! ONLY THEN WILL THE OCEANS BE SAFE!! S'MORE X2!!Wasn't plannin on postin twice today, but I just finished up these sketches and figured I'd get them on here before I forgot. S'MORE!Me Cack (Sketch)!!Me Cack!!Can't seem to get a good picture of this. I'll try and get another one and post it later. SURFACING SERPENT SKETCH!So I went down to Fuzion Ink to do a guest spot for their one year anniversary and had all intention of finishing every piece I had started, but just like every other guest spot I do, I ended up getting myself in way over my head on one of the pieces. Fortunately for me, Fuzion Ink is only about an hour and a half from hear and Tom was more then willing to travel. Tom had initially asked me for a dragon on his chest, but before I knew it I had filled the page with a drawing that was ridiculously too big. So I showed Tom the piece and told him that it would look much better on the ribs, but if he wasn't willing to go that route then I'd draw something else up that would fit a little better. He liked the drawing so much that he offered up his ribs and we started crunchin away. I honestly didn't think he'd go for it but after we had finished the first session I threw out the idea of bringing it down and showing everything under water. The first couple of sittings he really didn't say much about it but as we got closer to finishing the upper half he started talking about bringing it down. Below is the sketch of the lower half that I drew on a photo of the upper half that I took before the last session. I'm hoping to have this piece knocked out within the next couple of months. So as soon as I have some good pictures of the completed piece I'll toss them up. CARA'S KILLER KITTY SKETCH!Sketched this up for a girl down in Orlando a couple months ago. CARA'S KILLER KITTY!She thought it was a little too cute so we made a few adjustments and got to work! NEW ARTICLE!Just had a new article drop in Tätowier Magazin so if any of you out there live in Germany go scoop one up! THE CHARISMATIC CATERPILLAR SKETCHTHE CHARISMATIC CATERPILLARThe fella who ended up getting this tattooed flew down from Norway to Copenhagen, partied all night, got 4 hours of sleep and sat for 10 hours straight! Them Norwegian dudes are gangsta! PUMPKIN KINGThrew this sketch together while I was in Heidelberg, Germany a couple months ago. 10 HOURS LATERBLAWG!I've jumped on the bandwagon and started myself a blog. I plan on using this blog to post in progress sketches, paintings, tattoos and any ramblin I feel I wanna share with the world. If you care to follow my blog you can at http://jessesmithart.blogspot.com! Above is a sketch of piece that I'm going to be starting this weekend. Hopefully I'll have another sketch up by the end of the day for your viewing pleasure:) RELIGION VS. SCIENCEHaven't got anything worth showin on the new painting so I figured I'd toss this up here to keep you occupied till then. This is part of the Religion vs. Science half torso piece I'm doin on my buddy Shae from N.E.R.D. Dumb Politician Sketch 1Just wanted to toss this up before I went to bed. It's a sketch for part of a painting that I'll be working on over the next month. Hopefully I can find a little more time tomorrow to start sketchin on some of the other parts. If I get anything done worth showin I'll post it:) RABBIT EATING VULTURE (PART 1)Just finished up this piece that I started on my boy Ryan a couple months ago at the Tried and True tattoo convention in Orlando, Florida. The initial idea he threw at me was that he wanted a vulture on his calf. So I started sketchin and this is what I came up with. RABBIT EATING VULTURE (PART 2)IT'S BEEN A BUSY YEAR!Sorry it has taken me so long to update my site, AGAIN! I've been super busy this year. I spent the first part of the year in Thailand and soon found my way back to Germany to visit my father and Denmark to visit my boy Electric Pick. Came back and was slammed with new projects to start and a bunch to finish up. Did the Tampa Convention and a short guest spot at Fuzion Ink in Norfolk, Virginia. I also had the opportunity to finally get to the Left Coast to check out this years Comic-con. It was Awesome! I don't think I've ever been so artistically overwhelmed in my life. Apparently there was about 200,000 people there this year. Got a chance to work at Guru Tattoo with my boy Adam Hathorn. Awesome shop! Came back just to leave again for the Tried and True Tattoo convention and do a guest spot at my boy Jason Stephan's shop in Cocoa, Florida. I've been back for three weeks and I'm off to Europe tomorrow to celebrate my father's half century Birthday, do the Evian convention and do a guest spot at Conspiracy Inc. I've uploaded a ton of new stuff to hold you guys over until I update my site again in 2021;) Till then, take it easy and vote Obama! Jesse..................
WWW.MYSPACE.COM/JESSE__SMITH
WWW.INKEDNATION.COM/JESSESMITH Guest Spot at Fuzion Ink June 13th-15thGonna be doing a guest spot at Fuzion Ink's one year anniversary located in Norfolk, VA from June 13th-15th. I'm already booked up, but if you're in the neighborhood, stop on by and say what's up. They're gonna be blocking off the whole block. There will be Alchohol, Food and Live Music. It should be fun. For more info go to Fuzionink.com. P.S.S.-Should be updating my website here within the next month. Keep your eyes peeled, Jesse I HAVE, ONCE AGAIN, RELOCATED!!I am now tattooing at Ghostprint Gallery located on the artwalk in Richmond, Virginia. This studio is unlike any studio I have ever worked. It is mostly gallery space and features some of the top artists in the“High Art” and “Lowbrow” genres. I’m really excited to be a part of such a studio. If you’re in Richmond, please stop by and check us out! It’s located at 220 W. Broad St. Richmond, Virginia 23220 TRAVEL PLANS! This past year I have taken a break from traveling in order to tighten up a bunch of back end business type stuff, however ’08 is already beginning to fill up. As of right now I have plans on going to Germany, Denmark, France and Thailand. I’m also going to be doing the Tampa Tattoo Convention with Jason Stephan and possibly doing a mini US Tour with Electric Pick. If you would like to stay up to date with my travel plans, please join my mailing list. UPDATE! Definitely one of my biggest updates so far. Both the "Tattoo" and the "Art" section are maxed out with tons of new stuff. I also got three new articles. One in Scandinavian Tattoo Magazine, one in Tattoofest and the other is on a website called Tattoo Inkt. I’ve added a few new sites to my Links section that I think are pretty sick. After your done checkin out my site you should definitely roll through theirs. I’d like to thank all of you for all the wonderful emails and support.. Thanx…………Jesse
Winter is Finally Over!Winter is finally over and the tat season is about to kick into overdrive. Although this Winter slowed down a bit, it gave me the opportunity to pick up a few illustration gigs and get started on a couple of paintings. Among the illustration gigs, I finally got the opportunity to put together a T-Shirt design for my buddy Dave G over at Methods NYC. If you haven’t had a chance to check out their Spring line, you should, they’ve got some really great designs. If anyone is interested in picking up my design, they are currently available at www.MethodsNYC.com. For all you local Richmonders who don’t like to order stuff through the internet, you can scoop one up at Turnstyle, located at 102 West Broad St.
I’ve also got a collaborative T-Shirt design coming out within the next couple of months with a fella named Devin Taylor, a graphic designer for Bleeding Star. It’s gonna be pretty tight so keep your eyes peeled. This update I’ve uploaded 15 New Tattoos and 3 New Illustrations as well as a few new Sticker Spots that you guys have sent in (some of them are pretty creative). Thanx! Aside from that, I got interviewed by this site called UnderSpray.com a couple of months ago. It’s a pretty interesting site with tons of great artists. Got a ton of stuff on the horizon line, so please keep checking back. If you would like me to keep you informed on any new travel plans as well as any site updates for the future, please join my Mailing List. Also, if you've got Myspace, hit me up on my Myspace Profile. Till next time, stay safe and thank you all for your support, Jesse Out with Old, In with the NewI've come to the conclusion that updating my website every couple of months is not a feasable goal. So my new goal is to try and get it updated every 6 months or so, that way I'll have a ton of new stuff for every update, rather then just poppin up a few tattoos here and there. To those of you who have been following my progress over the past couple of years, you may have noticed that I've stripped my portfolio of about 75 tattoos. I've done this in hopes to raise the overall standard and to give my portfolio a little more continuity. I apologize if I've taken down any of your favorites, but I really feel as though it was necessary in order for me tighten things up a bit. Hopefully the new tattoos that I have added will make up for the ones I've taken down:) I've added a ton of new stuff! 18 New Tattoos 2 New Illustrations 16 New Sketches 2 New Prints 1 New Aerosol Piece A couple New Interviews A couple of New Awards and a ton of new sticker spots that you guys have sent me from all over. Thank you! I'll have a bunch of new stuff in six months! Till then, take it easy and thank you for all of your support,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,Jesse Out with the Old, In with the New!I've come to the conclusion that updating my website every couple of months is not a feasable goal. So my new goal is to try and get it updated every 6 months or so, that way I'll have a ton of new stuff for every update, rather then just poppin up a few tattoos here and there. To those of you who have been following my progress over the past couple of years, you may have noticed that I've stripped my portfolio of about 75 tattoos. I've done this in hopes to raise the overall standard and to give my portfolio a little more continuity. I apologize if I've taken down any of your favorites, but I really feel as though it was necessary in order for me tighten things up a bit. Hopefully the new tattoos that I have added will make up for the ones I've taken down:) I've added a ton of new stuff! 18 New Tattoos 2 New Illustrations 16 New Sketches 2 New Prints 1 New Aerosol Piece A couple New Interviews A couple of New Awards and a ton of new sticker spots that you guys have sent me from all over. Thank you! I'll have a bunch of new stuff in six months! Till then, take it easy and thank you for all of your support,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,Jesse SUPER SLACKIN!I apologize, once again, for the super delay in the updating of my website. I really have no legitimate excuse. Hopefully the new flix that I have posted will be worth the wait. I posted about 13 new sketches, 4 new custom pieces and 1 new realistic piece. Aside from that, I've also streamlined my store a bit so that it is easier for you guys to spend money:) There are 4 new shirts up for sale, as well as 3 new prints. And because I've been receiving a bunch of pictures through email of my stickers in random places throughout the world, I've decided to start posting them. So if you have any flix of my stickers in odd places, please send them.................................To you Floridians, I'll be working this years Tampa Tattoofest with my boy Jason Stephan from March 23rd-26th. After the convention I will be shooting over to do a guest spot at Jason's Shop, Electric Eye, in Cocoa, Florida. So if you're interested in getting tattooed by me, hit me up. I've only got a few spots left...............................That's about it for now. I will definitely try to get the next update up a little sooner. Till then, take it easy and keep in touch, Jesse SLACKIN!I apologize for the super delay in the updating of my site. Although I had a wonderful time in China and Germany, it set me behind royally. But all is now caught up and it's back to tat zappin in good 'ol Richmond, Virginia...............NEW SHOP: I've moved shops once again. I'm now working at a place called Tattoo 702 with a great artist named Drew Manley. I really enjoy this shop so hopefully I'll be hangin out for a bit..............NEW TATS: Loaded up a bunch of new Tattoos (6), Sketches(7) and a new Aerosol piece I dropped off in Germany. I also put up a couple more kick-ass links. Electric Pick (Tattoo Artist), Michael Hussar (Painter), and Rygar (Graff Artist). Tons of New News and few New Tattoos!HEADIN TO CHINA: I'm leaving for China in a week to work the 2nd Annual Bei Jin Tattoo Convention. If anyone is in Bei Jin from Sept. 9 through the 11th stop on by. I'd love to see you! After China, I'll be heading to Heidelberg, Germany to tattoo and visit. If you're in the area, hit me up.......... PRINTS: Thanx to the fellas over at Artwerk Flash I now have a couple of Prints up for sale. They can be viewed at my Store along with my new Sticker design............ CELLPHONE WALLPAPER: Some of my art was chosen to be used as cellphone wallpaper on this site called Workhorse Wireless. If you wanna check it out go to Workhorse Wireless and search for Kaotic Enzymes............. NEW INTERVIEWS AND ARTICLES: I've got a bunch of new interviews that have come out recently. If you are interested in checking them out you can do so under my Recognition page, all the way at the bottom............. NEW TATTOOS: Got 1 Realistic and 2 Custom along with a new Aerosol Production I did at this years Scribble Jam.............. Wish me luck, I'll see you in about a month, Jesse New Tattoos!I Added four new tattoos, 3 Custom and 1 Realistic. Gotta ton more in the works that should be up on the site in no time so keep checkin back.................. Jesse |