Meet Nico Vasquez | Painter & Tattoo Artist

We had the good fortune of connecting with Nico Vasquez and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Nico, why did you pursue a creative career?
I pursued an artistic career because I felt lost and I wasn’t happy with what I was doing in my life. I studied an analytical career at college, where most of its success was determined by memory and how you were able to solve problems in a more strategic and logical way. Even though I graduated and I’m really grateful for the opportunity, I felt lost on the path I was going. and my escape from it was drawing in classes, painting with oil and acrylics in my free time, and social life.

When I realized that creating art was a limitless form of expression and while doing it, it made me lose my notion of time, body and environment – something which didn’t happen while studying for other subjects-, I figured out that I had found my passion.

At the beginning I didn’t have much academic knowledge from it, just some art classes when I was young and self taught art techniques during my artistic exploration. But the urge and thirst of knowledge when I opened that window had helped me get better every day and pursue this dream that I find is the only way I can feel completely free.

Let’s talk shop? Tell us more about your career, what can you share with our community?
At the beginning my path wasn’t easy for me due to the decisions I had to make and its consequences in my family. Quitting the path of being a Business Administrator for my family, that had gave me all to be a professional, was a hard thing to take, most of all because they had the idea that being and artist was just a hobby, it wasn’t something that you could live from. Even though that gave me the motivation I needed to show them that they were not right.

When I started getting better at my art techniques and began to recognize my own process, I found that creating art was more about the message and the satisfaction I felt after completing a piece than any other thing. All the gratitude you receive after tattooing a client or handing in a commission made me forget all my personal problems and made me feel complete and thankful for the trust received and for the path I was creating by myself.

I feel everyday comes with a new challenge, that in this process you will be always an apprentice and thats what makes art so interesting. When you create you connect with your inner-self, so every creation you make ends up being a therapy for healing your soul.

Who else deserves some credit and recognition?
Where I am in life right now wouldn’t be possible without the support of my family, close friends, and my self- encouragement. Thanks to my family I had the opportunity to travel to the US and dedicate myself to be a full time artist, if it wasn’t for them my process would have been harder and slower. But before I found myself through my passion, my close friends and my mentor Mario Rivera Lombardi, were the ones who trusted my talent and conviction. And even though I sometimes doubt myself, once I decided that I didn’t have plan B, and that my dream was my only plan, that pushed me forward to keep on going without any type hesitation.

Website: www.tattoosbynico.com

Instagram: instagram.com/tattoosbynico