We went to discover this artist specialized in Black and Grey Realism who has already collected 26 tattoo awards (!!!) in a short time and works in the small town of Huddersfield, UK.
Adam, how did you discover you wanted to be a tattoo artist?
I’m from Huddersfield which is a small town in the north of England between Leeds and Manchester. Tattooing was never something I planned as a career, it just kind of happened. I was given an opportunity and I took a chance. It was through a friend of mine – his parents were tattoo artists and were looking for an apprentice. So I thought I would give it a go. And here I am 13 years later.
You’re a master of Black and Grey Realism. How did you come to feel this style was 100% yours?
Becoming a Black and Grey Realism artist was never the plan. I remember when I very first started I had a love for Japanese work. Then as I started to progress I did quite a lot of colour Realism for my first 5 years of tattooing. Over the years following I had the opportunity to get tattooed by some very talented Black and Grey artists and I picked up tips and tricks along the way.
During this period I really enjoyed seeing the healing process of Black and Grey tattoos and how everything lightens and smooths out over time. So being a Black and Grey artist was never what I had in mind but I definitely feel it’s where I belong.
I occasionally see you do big piece Traditional Japanese tattoos. Why? Is it some kind of artistic escape?
Yes. This year I decided I wanted to renew my love for Japanese work and try out some larger scale pieces. I had never done a Japanese back piece and I feel like that is a great career achievement. I also have a lot of close friends that are great Japanese tattoo artists so I asked them for guidance on the correct themes and mythology to get my pieces as accurate as I could.
I find just concentrating on the overall flow and the solid saturated shading therapeutic.
Usually I’m doing large scale detailed Realism pieces so it makes a nice change to not have to do super long sessions and to not worry about stencils smudging. Gives me a day to just relax, take my time with the drawing and do some of the style I loved when I first started tattooing.
You have already won 26 awards at various tattoo conventions in your life. Is it more satisfying or burdensome to have won so many? Or do you simply not worry about these things?
This year (2025) has been the first year where I have properly got my head down at tattoo conventions and started entering the competitions on a regular basis. 26 so far both in the UK and abroad, 20 of which are from this year. I definitely feel it gives me that sense of achievement and gets me more noticed in the industry. With there being so many Black and Grey artists it can be hard to stand out. I wouldn’t describe it as burdensome but it definitely adds a little bit more pressure to competitions. I try not to think too much about it. As long as my client is happy… I’m happy!
We know you’re from Huddersfield. Where exactly in town do you tattoo?
I work at ‘New Mind Tattoo’ (IG: @newmindtattoo) in Huddersfield town centre. I would describe it as a semi-private studio as it’s on the top floor with a single door on the street below, but it is open to the public to walk in. I’ve been there for about 4/5 years now and work alongside my good friends Jonny (IG: @jonnytattoo), Phil (IG: @tgseh_tattooer) and Shed (IG: @shedwolf). Two of which do Japanese and Traditional work while the other does Black and Grey like myself, so we have a nice balanced studio.
Do you have a goal you’ll be working toward throughout 2026, confident you’ll achieve it within twelve months? I’m talking about both tattoo art and other areas of life…
2026 is going to be a very big year for me. I’ve been with my girlfriend Ciara for over 2 years now long distance as she lives in Dublin and I’m in the UK. So she will be moving to the UK and we will be moving into our first home together.
From a work point of view it’s always been a dream of mine to work at the ‘Gods of Ink’ (IG: @godsofinktattooconvention) and I’m honoured that I will be there working with the rest of the Cheyenne pro team (IG: @cheyenne_tattooequipment) in 2026. Me and my friend Shed (IG: @shedwolf) are also travelling to Cape Town for the ‘South Africa International Tattoo Convention’ (IG: @sa_tattooconvention) which is going to be an experience as I have never travelled that far for a convention before.
I’m really excited to see what Africa has to offer in terms of tattoo art.
Others tattoo conventions where we will definitely see you in 2026?
I will be travelling around quite a lot next year as I currently have 11 conventions lined up so far. I’ll be doing a few tattoo conventions over in Ireland including Belfast, Galway, Bundoran and Dublin. I’ll be in South Africa and at ‘Gods of Ink’ like I said before, then multiple other shows in the UK including UKTTA and Brighton.
And your last famous words are… ?
Take your time. Not everyone works at the same speed and tattooing is not a race! All that matters is the end result.
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