Well, we actually listened and shot Big 5 some questions about the shop. Read below to find out what makes this shop tick, and how they have such a cult following in Southern California.

Tattoo Snob: First off, for anyone who doesn’t know – can you give us a short bio of the shop?

Union Electric Tattoo was opened by Big5 in 2006 in the harbor of Los Angeles. Big5 had been looking for a location for years in the South Bay area where he grew up. Unfortunately it’s outlawed there. So he looked to a spot where a lot of his clients worked, the harbor. The area where the shop is located has a ton of history. The brick building we occupy was built in the early 1920′s. The street still has cobble stone gutters. We’ve had a few artist come and go over the years, but the staff we have now have been here for years and are very dedicated to Union Electric.

TS: Who’s on the tattoo artist roster currently?

We have five artists. Big 5, Jim Sylvia, Nick Hawthorne, Chuck Hare & Shiver.

Tattoo by Big 5

Big 5 is a Los Angeles native and worked as a tattooer here for many years. Jim Sylvia moved cross country to Los Angeles back in 2007 from Boston. Both Nick and Chuck are also Los Angeles, South Bay natives. Shiver is Big 5′s apprentice, and started here a year ago.

TS: What percentage of your work would you say is walk-in vs. custom work?

We are 100% all custom work. We have a big referral based clientele. Although walk-ins are always welcome. We are open 7 days a week.

TS: The shop seems to have a cult-like following among its clientele. What do you attribute that to? It can’t be easy to pull off in Southern California.

Cult-like following, haha. Sounds kinda crazy, but our clients are awesome. They become close friends and family. Any day of the week you can stop by the shop and there will be a full house of artists, clients and friends. Every now and then we have parties, art shows and concerts at the shop. There are tons of shops in So Cal, we just do our thing and make cool tattoos.

Tattoo by Nick Hawthorne

Big 5 is responsible for the twitter and Jim and Big 5 update the website/blog. With all the online social networking it’s easy to stay connected with everyone while keeping them updated with everything happening at the shop. Our site and blog has everything from new tattoo pictures, videos, events, and some jokes here and there.

TS: Since starting your Twitter page in September, have you seen an increase in traffic? Do customers talk about it?

The traffic on our sites have definitely increased. Our clients always talk about stuff that we have posted. Commenting on the new tattoos.

TS: Tell us something about your shop decor. A favorite piece, funny story of acquisition, whatever floats your boat.

We don’t have anything to float a boat but a month ago our shop did almost flood. We still have the sand bags to prove it, haha. I don’t think there are any favorite pieces. We do have a giant acme-size wooden hammer just incase the Wile Coyote stops by.

The shop’s eleven foot walls are completely full with an amazing collection of art from fellow tattoo artists, some of our own original artwork, skateboards and anything else we think is cool. There is custom pin striping all over the walls, windows, and doors. Through out the shop we have old car parts, photos of present and past cars that Big 5 has built. Big is also the president of the Nukl-Heds car club. We usually have our classic cars parked out front on the street. Big 5, Nick and Jim all own classic cars and regularly attend local car shows. The shop Decor is basically just a reflection of the artists lives.

TS: Does the shop (or artists) plan to hit any tattoo conventions in 2010?

We don’t make it out to many conventions. You probably see us at a couple this year. Jim travels around doing guest spots in shops from Los Angeles to Boston and most recently Europe. You can find Big5 guest spotting in San francisco and in the dirty south on occasion.

TS: Most importantly, how many pages of Cherry Creek flash do you have posted in your shop?

Awesome! We do have some of our own flash in the front of the shop, no Cherry Creek though, disappointing I know. Maybe they can send us some.

TS: Any last words?

Thanks for the interview. We like the TattooSnob website, keep up the good work. Remember to check our blog for everything new and exciting in the Union Electric Tattoo world.

Post from: TattooSnob.com Shop Profile: Union Electric Tattoo

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Thanks again to Russ and everyone at Ink & Daggers!

by Jeremy Sutton

by Kurt Fagerland

by Russ Abbott

by Bryan Reynolds

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As an admirer of Ink & Dagger Tattoo Parlour, I’m proud to bring this interview with Russ Abbott, tattoo artist extraordinaire and shop owner.

by Jeremy Sutton

Tattoo Snob: How about we start things off with an artist roll call? Ready, go!

Russ: Russ Abbott, Kurt Fagerland, Bryan Reynolds, and Jeremy Sutton. With regular guest appearances from Craig Beasley, Nick Wagner, Scott Lukacs, and many more.

by Kurt Fagerland

TS: Does your shop have a motto? (If not, make one up anyway.)

Russ: The phrase “Tattoos Built to Last” comes to mind. I added that phrase to the cover of my Illustrative Tattooing Workshop DVD because I felt it was a good way to sum up the Ink & Dagger ethos. Despite each artist’s individual style, the common thread amongst all of us is that we are constantly striving to create the most solid, well-crafted tattoos.

TS: The shop decor is very interesting. You don’t see many tattoo shops quite like Ink & Daggers. Can you explain the thought behind it?

Russ: I wanted to create a comfortable space that reflected a sense of tradition and wonder. It started with a quirky building on the edge of town with an hourly freight train passing by. From the signage to the art and antiques and copious amounts of taxidermy, I chose to let my love for vintage Americana inspire the decor. Everything is becoming very fine-tuned now. We just added the wheel of destiny to the front waiting area and it looks amazing!

by Bryan Reynolds

TS: The shop has had some unique events such as Tribute to Tradition, and Man Day. Can you break each one of those down and better explain it?

Russ: Tribute to Tradition was basically a chance for our artists to enjoy a day of tattooing the way it used to be. We collected a bunch of Vintage American flash designs and as long as they weren’t too big, we would put them on you for $50. With a deal like that, people came out of the woodworks! We lost count of all the tattoos we did. We ended up getting a huge response from other tattoo artists as well. They all wanted to be a part of it too. So we hosted another one, and another. The last time we did Tribute to Tradition, it was the 4th of July. We gave all the proceeds to a charity called Operation Homefront. They help out the families of American soldiers. After so many Tribute to Traditions, we decided we needed a new event. Plus we had some new artists to showcase so I started thinking about having a huge party.

The idea for a “Man Day” celebration came about when I was brainstorming with my good friend and amazing pin-up artist Tyson McAdoo and his girlfriend Amanda. She told me how they like to celebrate Man Day so that he has a day to himself and she can make all of the decisions on Valentines Day. We already knew the $50 tattoos would drive people in the door, so we decided to make a poster of “manly” tattoo designs. Then the ideas started flooding out. Tyson would create the poster art and help promote the event.

When “Man Day” finally happened, it had grown so big that we now needed the tattoo shop, the parking lot, and the giant event space that belongs to the restaurant next door. With the help of major sponsors like Yeungling, Steadfast Brand, Stone Mountain Harley Davidson, King Gorilla, and local heroes Fox Brothers BBQ, we were able to entertain over 300 guests! Besides the tattoos, there were manly contests throughout the day such as arm wrestling, hot wing eating, and manliest beard. We even had an almost hour long sideshow performance from Capt. Stab-Tuggo! Planning for next year’s “Man Day” is already underway.

(Editors note: The official Ink & Daggers video of Man Day 2009 is at the bottom of this post.)

by Russ Abbott

TS: What is the shop involved with aside from tattooing?

Russ: Now that the Wheel of Destiny is complete and it occupies a permanent space in the studio, we want to host another day of cheap tattoos not unlike the “Tribute to Tradition” days. Except this time, collectors will spin our wheel and let destiny decide which tattoo they will get. This is obviously not intended for anyone who is not already covered in tattoos. I wouldn’t expect newbies to be willing to spin a wheel to pick their tattoos but I’m sure we can find enough people out there who are willing to take the plunge. If you want to be informed about our upcoming events, convention dates, and guest artists you can visit our website and sign up for our newsletter.

TS: Tell us about some of the side projects/interests your artists have going on outside of tattooing.

Russ: We are always participating in local and national art shows. Working in other mediums gives us a chance to explore our artistic interests without the limitations of the client’s ideas and budget getting in the way. Kurt Fagerland has been working tirelessly on completing the final illustrations for his first book. It’s an illustrated children’s ghost story and I can honestly say the drawings that he has completed so far are really incredible. Jeremy Sutton has been working on hat designs for Quinton and Estate. From time to time, Jeremy does storyboarding and concept art for Zoic Studios in Los Angeles. Bryan Reynolds is currently working on a line of skateboard decks for Substance Abuse.

by Jeremy Sutton

TS: What percentage of your work would you say is walk-in versus custom work?

Russ: We are almost 100% custom. Even if someone comes in with a design in hand, there is usually some amount of tweaking that we will have to do to the design. We have flash on the walls in the studio, but our customers rarely even look at it. I wouldn’t hire an artist that wasn’t completely comfortable designing custom tattoos.

by Kurt Fagerland

TS: How far out in advance should clients be trying to schedule appointments with your artists?

Russ: It got pretty out of control for a while, I’ve personally had people wait over a year to get tattooed. But the artists I’m working with now are all at the top of their game. Clients that may have previously felt the need to wait for me to be available are realizing that between Jeremy, Kurt, and Bryan, there is going to be someone at the shop who is perfect for their project. In general, I would suggest planning ahead at least a week for a larger custom piece. If you are just looking for a smaller design we may be able to work with no notice at all. We have a spot on our website where clients can email an artist directly about their idea or they can just come by the shop anytime.

TS: Do you guys have any guest spots coming up you’d like people to know about?

Russ: I’m trying to put together a trip to New England in the next few months. Joe Capobianco invited me to work at Hope Gallery for a week. He’s such a huge influence on me and on tattooing in general so I’m really excited for that.
Ink & Dagger has an impressive lineup up guests coming through as well. If you’re in the Atlanta area or anywhere close, sign up for our mailing list on the site. We will be posting dates for guest artists such as Jeff Ensminger, Nick Baxter, Nate Beavers, Sean McDonald, Nick Wagner, and Scott Lukacs.

by Russ Abbott

TS: During longer sessions, I’ve seen some humorous situations in shops. Obviously with artists being around each other so much, and then random people walking in, it’s the perfect opportunity for some good stories. Have any you’d like to share? Any legendary incidents that will go down in shop history?

by Bryan Reynolds

Russ: We had this random incident a few months ago where a homeless type crazy lady came in the shop with some flowers. She went up to a guy waiting on the bench, put a flower behind his ear and then proceeded to plant a huge kiss on him. Mouth to mouth. The guy was so stunned he just let it happen. She told us she was a porn star on the internet and that Ludacris was putting her in his video. She gave us a business card so we could find her website and see her nasty porno online. Once she left, naturally we tried to find the website, but the card was for the florist down the street.

TS: Most importantly, how many pages of Cherry Creek flash do you have posted in your shop?

Russ: That would be ZERO! I don’t have anything against flash but Cherry Creek??? The idea of tattooing that stuff sends shivers down my spine. My theory is that if you don’t want your customers to make bad decisions about their tattoos, then you don’t give them any bad options.

Thanks Tattoo Snob! These questions have been a lot of fun to answer. It’s nice to get a break from the typical “How did you first get into tattooing?” type questions. Best wishes on the new site. -Russ Abbott

Man Day 2009 from Ink & Dagger Tattoo on Vimeo.

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