Working with a different kind of canvas

Artists at Prior Lake’s Canvas Tattoo Studio apply high-brow vision to what was once considered a low-brow art form

Posted: 11/9/07

by Brooke Walsh
Thisweek Newspapers

Jay Jay DeLeon and Chris Owen sit discussing the origins of contemporary art — how much of Leonardo DiVinici’s and Michael Angelo’s works were derived from Greek inspiration, which some theorize was derived from Egyptian inspiration.

As they wax and wane philosophically, the familiar hum of a tattooing needle emerges in the background. This isn’t a college art class; this is Canvas Tattoo Studio in Prior Lake.

DeLeon, the owner, speaks from behind a dental grill. Owen is his most recently hired employee.

“When you hear music, it gives you feelings; when you look at art, it’s the same,” DeLeon says.

Conveying that feeling from behind a vibrating 9-ounce pen onto a stretchy, moveable surface, Owen says, is definitely challenging.

But DeLeon, who has studied painting, drawing and sculpting, has been most fascinated by artwork that is placed onto the skin.

“It just added a whole other dimension to it,” he said.

He says part of his fascination with body art has to do with the challenge of placing tattoos in areas that accentuate the image’s power and meaning.

One of Owen’s own tattoos is of a raven that emerges as feathers from under his shirt sleeve, creeping up to an alert face that rests on his shoulder. A second wing wraps around his scapula. The tattoo moves with his skin as he positions his arm in various ways, bringing the bird to life in harmony with his own movements.

His raven, which was inspired by historical accounts that place the raven in high regard, is a far cry from what many think of as a stereotypical tattoo.

And DeLeon, Owen and the others at Canvas Tattoo Studio are a far cry from the stereotypical tattoo shop employees of yesteryear. Though DeLeon said it was difficult to get his shop into Prior Lake, passing by only one council vote, he’s since grown to feel more welcome in the community.

“I think they were worried about the type of people that it would bring in,” he said.

He said he thinks television shows about tattoo artists — such as TLC’s Miami Ink or L.A. Ink — have helped people realize that tattoos are no longer taboo. As a result, his clientele has changed considerably.

“People that you would not think come into a tattoo shop come in,” he said.

Doctors, lawyers, police officers and other professionals come through his doors often. His own lawyer is a frequent customer with calves covered like canvases.

The pastor from nearby Crossroads Church, which DeLeon attends, often stops by, though not to get a tattoo.

“He’s a pretty hip dude,” DeLeon says.

The shop caters to its fair share of older tattoo consumers, as well, some in their 60s and 70s.

DeLeon said he’s had customers who always wanted to get a tattoo but always felt it was too radical. He’s done many tattoos in honor of cancer survivors and memorials to family members who have died.

Alex Morse, who has worked at the shop for two and half years, once tattooed a man who had accidentally been shot in the eye with a nail gun. In honor of his survival and recovery, the man had a tattoo made of a skull with a nail drilling into its eye.

Jay Jays said he also gets requests for more common tattoos such as birds, fish or other animals.

“You never stop learning in art; you can’t,” he said. “Art is always constantly changing.”

Jay Jay’s road to tattoo artist was lengthy. Sparked by an interest in body art, he started hanging out in tattoo shops at 13. His mom wasn’t very happy about it.

Over time, though, she became more comfortable with the idea.

“It’s not the old stigma anymore,” he said.

Later he went to art school and then interned at a tattoo shop in the Twin Cities for several years.

“For the first six months, you’re doing nothing but building the muscles in your hand,” he said. It takes a lot to keep from cramping during multihour tattoo sessions.

His longest session was 12 hours, something he says is also hard on other parts of his body. To keep healthy, he gets massages on a semiregular basis.

In addition to contributing to his growth as an artist, working in the shop has turned a once introverted Jay Jay into someone who enjoys hearing the stories his customers share.

“It’s actually helped me socially to just open up,” he said.

When they’re not talking about high art at the shop, they’re joking around or sharing stories about their lives and tattoos they’ve done.

“We don’t have to pretend to be all sophisticated. … You can be yourself,” Jay Jay said.

“All of us that work here, we’re kind of like a family and we have fun.”

Though the atmosphere in the shop is gregarious Jay Jay takes tattooing seriously.

He keeps the shop extremely clean, his instruments sterile and he uses high-quality inks. He has worked to make the shop welcoming to both the 60-year-old getting a first-time tattoo and the 22-year-old getting her fifth piercing.

For more information about the shop, visit www.thecanvastattoostudio.com or call 952-447-1228.