Get to know: Joe Macigno
Joe joins us at Three Kings London after working in the industry for the last decade. After travelling and working throughout Europe (with pit stops in Brooklyn, USA) he finally settled in Camden, London before joining us in South London.
Three Kings: Hey Joe, Tell us a little about yourself, where are you from?
Joe Macigno: Im from Palermo, Sicily.
TK: What did you study before becoming a tattoo artist?
JM: I started to study Languages and then I decided to go on and follow my passion of studying art instead.
TK: Fun! Big change there for you. What made you change to something to drastically different?
JM: Because it wasn't in my true interests and I love and have so much respect for art and artists.
TK: What ended up bringing you to London?
JM: After experiencing New York I fell in love with larger cities and wanted to be around compition to push me into becoming a stronger and better artist.
TK: Fair! What do you like about London compared to where you are from?
JM: I love how multi cultural London is as a city, I found it so open and welcoming to all walks of life and I enjoy being around new people.
TK: What got you into tattooing?
JM: My brother in '98 brought a big annual about tattoos and from then I fell in love with tattoos and the lifestyle.
TK: What do you like the most about tattooing?
JM: I love being able to design and tattoo a piece of work on someone who has come in with a specific idea and I use my skill set to create the perfect piece for them.
TK: How would you describe your style of art/tattooing?
JM: I follow a lot of American school styles within my work.
TK: What sort of things inspire you?
JM: Tattooists from the USA greatly inspire me and my work as well as a lot of underground cultures.
TK: What was the first place you hit up once self-isolation was over?
JM: I went and walked around the city centre to feel a sense of normality after everything was on hold for 3 months.
TK: Yeah, that's fair! What did you miss the most about the outside world?
JM: I missed normal hang outs with my friends and spending time with people - lock down was pretty isolating so its been nice to be able to see people again as its slowly been lifted.
TK: I felt the same, it was so nice to see new faces again! Is there anything about self-isolation that you particularly enjoyed?
JM: Absolutely not, I love spending time out of my house and with other people so isolation for me, was quite boring.
TK: Did you stay in good health?
JM: Yeah! I was fine throughout.
TK: Who do you most admire in the industry?
JM: There's many artists I truly admire and love within the industry - for example @bensiebert and @brianbruno are two artists I admire along with many others.
TK: What are you looking forward to most in the next year?
JM: I want to grow as an artist to better become more like the artists that I love in this business.
Joe will be working with us as a resident artist at Three Kings along with Amanda and Colin. Email appt@threekingslondon.com to enquire about a booking or consultation!