Hello Martin Sjöberg! Thank you so much for taking the time to answer some questions for our readers. It's a pleasure to exchange some thoughts with you. You bring some really cool style in our industry, very creative. Let's hope we will inspire many people out there with our conversation and maybe some will get into this business too.

Q: How long have you been tattooing? Do you remember your first tattoo? If so, what was it?
A: I have been tattooing for around 8-9 years, my first tattoo was a small dragon tribal on a friend of mine.

Q: What was the most challenging part of becoming a tattoo artist and getting your name out there?
A: When I started I did not have a mentor, therefore it was difficult to see my own progress and how to work with different techniques, shading and coloring. I got to test myself and my development went pretty slow in the beginning before I figured out how to do it. It was just practice.

Q: How much time took to gain confidence in yourself? Would you say that your talent played a huge part?
A: I would say it took 4-5 years before I felt that I managed all and felt that I got the results I expected and wanted. For me it was hard practicing and obviously the talent had something to do with it too.

Q: You seem like you have artistic background or some formal art training like a college etc. Was it hard to learn the process of tattooing?
A: I went to an art education in high school but I started drawing and sketching from an early age and always liked it. When I realized that I wanted to test on tattooing and had done it for a few months it was obvious to me that this was what I wanted to do in the future. It was very hard to learn how to do tattoos, there is so much more that you need to know than you think.

Q: You're very creative. I like your style a lot. Whenever I see a new tattoo in your portfolio I'm like "woooww" truly impressive. Especially when it comes to big tattoos such as back tattoos. Are you the main creator there or do you collaborate with your clients on ideas, color suggestions etc?
A: I can ask my customers for some ideas but otherwise it is me who is the creator, I like to work with pretty free hands.

Q: I guess you're constantly very busy, how long can take to finish a back piece?
A: I finish a backpiece in 6-7 sessions usually, 5 hours per session.

- How long is the waiting line for appointments? Is it all via email?
My waiting time is around 4 years at the moment, yes all the bookings are via email.

Q: There's no "undo" or "edit" option when it comes to tattooing, everything has to be well placed and planned before the session. Have you ever thought like some tattoos could be done in a different way, when you look back at some of your old works? It's all about progress anyway...
A: My works reflect my development and how I worked back then. Of course I can look back at some tattoos and think that I could have done it in a different way instead but with the knowledge I had at the time when I did tattoos I am still happy with what I managed to achieve.

Q: I like how you mix black & gray tattoos with some colors, it gives the whole tattoo more vibrant look. Love it. Is that something you prefer?
A: I think pure black and grey can look a little flat, I like the depth that you can get by adding a little color but I would say that I prefer tattoos completely in color.

Q: Do you travel a lot for work like doing guest spots, visiting tattoo conventions etc? How much is important to gain foreign knowledge in order to grow as an artist? What are your experiences?
A: I am quite comfortable with myself nowadays but I have been around doing guest spots in Sweden. I have mostly been to Sweden at conventions and a few abroad. It has been important for my development to get some environmental change now and then and I have found that it is precisely the conventions that have triggered my development, especially as I compete a lot during the conventions and the goal is to win.

Q: What is your advice for those who are willing to start tattooing?
A: For those who want to start tattooing, my advice is always to go as an apprentice in a serious studio, because it is a very hard journey to do yourself without a mentor. I know that from my own experience.

Please write down your contact info and studio location.
Martin Sjöberg
Martinxsjoberg@hotmail.com
Instagram@martinsjoooberg
Vectorious Art
Sankt olofsgatan 5 Falköping, Sweden
Mr.Martin Sjöberg Thank you so much for the interview.
Kind regards,
The team