Tattooist: A New Kind of Occupation
Abel Flores has worked professionally for nine years in tattoo shops all over Los Angeles but he finds the employees and clientele to be the friendliest and most comforting at Brown Pride Tattoos - it may help that he lives two blocks away.
Here in the streets of Los Angeles, public transportation is very important and the buses that cruise down Main Street and its neighboring streets are no exception. Many inhabitants of the area without a car depend upon buses to get to and from work, school, and even the market. Additionally, the bus system in Los Angeles helps limit traffic in the area while also reducing smog with its low emission engines. In this story, we will take a closer look at the people of Main Street and the role of public transportation in their lives.
Famliy-owned, Word of Life Christian Bookstore, is celebrating 50 years of operations on Main Street. The family owns three location in Los Angeles and is considered one of the largest outlets for Christian literature in Southern California.
LACMA has a special library program where representatives go to libraries throughout Los Angeles and teach art to children and their families for free. At the Junipero Serra Library, children are taught art techniques such as drawing, painting and sculpting. However, the purpose of the program is not just to teach kids art skills; it’s also about exposing the kids to culture and getting them to interact with one another.
Tattoo parlors are peppering Los Angeles, creating a more permanent trend than frozen yogurt or fake tans. This phenomenon can be seen on Main Street, where there are already three tattoo shops within a five-mile span. The saturation of the market and downturn of the economy is creating a struggle for many local shops, but Brown Pride Tattoos has found some successful survival techniques.
Brown Pride opened during the beginning of the economic downturn but made it through by offering specials, lower prices than competitors and appealing to the community. People come from all over Los Angeles, but many of the tattoo artists that work there spread the word through friends and family.
“Everybody is trying to get tattoos, if you look around L.A. they have so many tattoo shops open. I remember back in the day there were only a few in this area and now there are like 8, 9, 10, they’re all over the place,” said Brown Pride tattoo artist, Abel Flores, who has been tattooing professionally for nine years.
After doing tattoos professionally for four years, owner, Luis, opened shop two years ago on the corner of Gage Ave. and Main Street. Due to their past, Luis and a few other employees prefer to go by first name basis to avoid legal trouble.
“I used to have a sound shop, but I’m from the streets and I like tattoos, so I decided to start doing that,” explained Luis.
Being on Main Street has also helped business, said Luis. It’s a high traffic area with a taco stand and restaurant across the street. Flores explains springtime walk-ins are the shop’s biggest form of income.
“During the winter we hardly even tattoo, its more in the spring because people get the tax money and a lot of people don’t have anything to spend it on so they just get tattoos,” said Flores.
The shop’s business also improves this time of year because people start heading to the beach, wearing less clothing, and want to show off their tattoos more. According to Flores, in the off-season they are often forced to lower prices and strike deals.
“There are some days when we don’t even work and people come in and they’re like, ‘How much would you charge me for this?’ I say, ‘Regularly I would charge $300 but if you give me $120 now and I’ll do it,” said Flores. Flores, who has worked all over L.A. -including higher profile parlors on Melrose Ave. –, says Brown Pride has a lot more returning clientele than near-by shops.
According to Frank, one of Brown Pride’s tattoo artists, Brown Pride doesn’t have a typical customer. Most of the customers are under 25 years old, but Frank said one time he tattooed letters on an 80-year-old man’s head.
“We don’t discriminate [against] people here,” said Frank. “We get gay people and transsexuals. And if gangs come they just get their tattoos and leave.”
The most popular tattoo is a money sign or the standard interlaced “L.A.” symbol, according to Frank. He even has an “L.A.” tangled on his right arm sleeve, but his personal favorite is the little devil he has on his upper left shoulder – it’s supposed to represent his 3-year-old son.
Tattooing seems to run in the family at Brown Pride. Flores said he already got his 5-year-old a little toy tattoo gun and hopes he carries on the family business. While the shop has strict I.D. rules the artist’s kids run in and out, tapping the fish tank, collecting change for popsicles and stopping to watch their dads at work.
Luis Fransisco, the shop’s repairman, pointed to a skinny boy, sporting three piercing and a smattering of tattoos, who was lounging on one of the couches.
“He just comes here to kill time, like a lot of the neighborhood kids,” said Fransisco.
Fransisco’s nephew, 16-year-old Mikel Cruz, already has six tattoos – some he did himself, some done by friends at home, since he is too young to legally get one without parental permission. Cruz says the portrait tattoos are better at Brown Pride than neighboring stores and he hopes to work there when he’s older.
Cruz will have to develop a portfolio and hope for some artistic talent because, Luis picks his employees based on impressive past work and how their drawings translate to skin.
“There is a big difference from when you draw on the paper than when you draw on the skin,” Frank explains. “The machine shakes and vibrates so you have to be able to control it and its kind of heavy so you have to be able to move it quickly.”
There is competition to work at Brown Pride though, because of the location and the community.
“What makes this shop better is the artists and how it looks,” said Flores. “I believe it’s cleaner and the guys are real comfortable people to work with. Plus I like the area because I live two blocks away and it doesn’t get any better than that.”