Interview with Niccolò Priolo

I was born and raised in Trieste, Italy, on the Adriatic Sea, right by the border with Slovenia. I was never a very artsy kid. During art or music lessons, I felt miserable because I couldn't make anything as cool as my classmates. But I never lacked creativity. It came through in solving problems and finding a different perspective on things I wanted to do or communicate. Finding an interesting angle on something that could have been boring is where creativity helped me most in life.

My first encounter with tattoos was through one of my cousins. I was around ten when he showed up at a family dinner with his full name tattooed on his forearm. I remember thinking, “Why would anyone tattoo their own name on themselves?”

In high school, around fourteen or fifteen, I started enjoying making art, and tattooing came up as a possible path. When I eventually got my first tattoo, I finally understood why my cousin had tattooed his name on his arm. It was never about the name. It was about freedom.

It was the first time I made a decision fully on my own, against my family's wishes, ready to face the consequences. I felt free to do what I wanted with my body & my life. I felt like an adult.

I've been tattooing for about ten years. I was around nineteen when I approached it, studying something that didn't appeal to me.

My first tattoo was by a talented artist who was a friend of friends. It was my first time in a professional studio. I was nervous, and none of it felt real until the needle hit my skin. “How can people take this for more than three seconds?” was my first thought.

During the session, I told him about my interest in the job. At the time, I felt special about it. Now I realize he must have heard that many times before.

A few weeks later, we met again with mutual friends in a dive bar. I found the courage to show him my drawings and tell him I was serious. We ended up in a club, where a fight broke out. His glasses shattered, leaving glass splinters in his face and around his eye. I took him to the bathroom, washed the blood away, took the glass out of his eye, and we left safely together.

The next morning, he messaged to thank me and said I was welcome to come to the studio that day, see how it worked and help with basic tasks. I quit my studies, left home and had to fend for myself. My family didn't really approve, and I didn't want support. Through all of it, I never stopped showing up for my dream job.

You could say my apprenticeship was forged in blood.

Tattooing was the first thing I truly enjoyed. It took some adjustment to take it seriously as a job, especially since I'd never had a conventional one. I was young and stubborn, and being surrounded by older, cooler guys didn't help. But they showed me what I wanted for myself & what I didn't.

I wanted to have fun, but I knew I didn't want to go back to doing things I disliked. After a while, I adjusted and approached tattooing with discipline.

My mentor had the biggest impact on how I work. He wasn't much of a teacher in the conventional sense, but I witnessed a great artist at work. Technically, I owe most of what I can do to him. He demanded a lot of me, at work and outside it, which gave me a strong work ethic that I'm really proud of.

We're no longer on good terms, but I'm grateful for the door he opened. Everything after I stepped through it, I owe to myself.

I'd describe it as folky/funky traditional. Traditional tattooing is the backbone of my work, and over time I've given it my own twist. I have a distinctive colour palette & my own way of drawing things. I'm far from perfect, but for the last few years I've been content with what I'm doing.

Most of my drawings are still inspired by vintage traditional tattoo imagery. I love having that grip on tradition. If those flash designs have survived so many years and so many new things, there's something special about them.

My work has changed, but not dramatically. You can see different stages in how I use the same colours in different places, or how I use black, but the tattoos have stayed fundamentally the same. My work resonates with my customers, so I've never felt trapped between what I want to make and what they want.

In the past two years, I've started tattooing mosquitoes, mostly on tattooers. I can't believe how many people ended up getting them. They're now my trademark and what I'm known for.

I've tattooed mosquitoes in endless positions & ways, and I absolutely love it. I've never wanted to stop doing them, and I don't think I ever will.

Mosquitoes are my lucky charm for people. Nobody likes them. They're the rejected, the last ones, like many of us, yet they're so present in our lives and important. For me, they've become a sign of good fortune. I believe getting one from me will favour you as much as they've favoured me.

Maybe I'll find something else to obsess about that people resonate with.

Healed work is what truly shows your skill, and I've had to change a lot about my setup and how I work.

I had to downsize needles, even though I liked the bolder look, because the healed tattoos weren't as crisp as I wanted. I also changed inks to find ones I liked that performed well over time. There's still room for improvement there.

I tried a lot of machines before finding a setup I liked. I'm a big coil machine lover, and I still add to my collection now and then.

I'm satisfied with what I use. I know it works, and I don't feel the need to research it much at the moment. I'd rather invest that time in the creative side of the job.

I take time to get to know people and understand what they want. I try to make a tattoo that reflects who they are or who they aspire to be. I want them to feel good energy during the session and to see the sides they like about themselves in me and in what we're doing.

If someone is uncertain about a design or asks for changes, I try to accommodate them without losing the tattoo's identity & story. If we can't get on the same page and I feel I've done everything I can, the options are to take more time or point them toward someone better suited to their needs. That basically never happens, though.

I've seen other people push their vision onto someone, and that doesn't lead to a happy person.

I also want people to have fun. I've had sessions with tattooers I really liked where the vibe was off. I still like those tattoos, but the memories aren't as good as others.

I want people to experience the deep feelings I have for tattooing, even if it's only for a few hours. A tattoo I make will only be with me for the time I spend with my customer, but it will be with them forever. I want them to be forever happy with it.

From the beginning, I wanted to travel, meet people and absorb as much as I could from different cultures & artists. I've lived a nomadic lifestyle for the best part of four years.

My first guest spot was at my friend Paul's studio in Salzburg. He often visited us when I lived in Italy, and one day I decided to take the risk. I have very fond memories of the experiences I shared with people in that studio & city. More guest spots followed, first in Europe and then around the world. Funny enough, I was never very interested in working much in Italy.

At first, I chose studios based on artists I looked up to. Many became friends I now visit regularly. These days, I tend to work only with people I've met or who come recommended by friends. It's important to be around people who give honest feedback and whom I respect as artists & humans. Working alongside people who are better than you matters, not just technically, but in their attitude toward work, people and life.

I still travel, but more slowly. I spend longer in each city and split my year between places such as Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand and Hong Kong, and the West. At the time of writing, I'm in Southeast Asia, working with my friends at Pharaoh's Horses Fine Tattooing.

Travelling alone and focusing on what you love is an awesome experience. The people you share your time with can make or break it. Travel can be costly, but I've never cancelled a guest spot because I worried it wouldn't bring a financial return. So far, that decision has paid off.

I live for the love of the game, and I feel the game loves me back.

I've visited the same place many times and learned different things. Some places and people teach you to push harder, others to take the time you need. Sometimes you learn to accommodate customers, and sometimes you learn to say no.

I can't name one place or artist that changed my perspective, but most people I've worked with have helped make me who I am. I've learned small tricks, technical rules and a lot about the human side of the job.

It's interesting to see how people approach me, discuss tattoos and relate to money in different places. Some favour flash, others custom work. Some prefer black & grey, others colour. Some want traditional work, others want to experiment. That variety is refreshing and makes me want to experience more.

My schedule isn't random, at least not to me. I return to the same cities & studios at set times of the year. When I add somewhere new, I try to keep it on my list for a while.

That makes larger projects, checking healed work and touch-ups easier. People know when to expect me back and can plan around it.

I also have things I repeat wherever I am. I carry lucky charms I've collected during my travels. It might sound silly, but I believe they work and watch over me.

Things often don't go to plan. The only way to survive this lifestyle is not to get too attached to your plans. If one doesn't work, you can make another. I'm confident that, whatever happens, I won't fail myself.

I don't like seeing how trendy being a tattooer has become, or people making a quick buck from something I respect so much. On the other hand, I support individual freedom. It's a free market, so I'm not too bothered. I just don't want to be involved with those people.

Many tattooers have no idea what it means to be one. I don't want to sound full of myself, but I've met people who had it easy and weren't appreciative enough. All the people I truly respect in the industry have made huge sacrifices. Leaving people, family & home behind isn't something everyone is ready to do. People outside can be charmed by how it looks without understanding that. Everyone works hard for long hours behind the scenes to deliver the best work and experience, and nobody really sees it.

The profession has become easy to enter and accessible, and I don't see that as an added value. I think it should be reserved for people willing to do what it takes. But at the end of the day, who am I to talk?

Tattooing will be there in the good and the bad, respected or exploited. As long as it's alive and thriving, that's what matters to me.

I have conflicting opinions. I think it's totally detrimental for artists to use AI to assist with drawings and compositions. But it can be a powerful tool for customers who struggle to explain an idea, as long as they let us do our job. It gives us common ground to communicate what's in our minds.

When customers have brought AI-generated images, we've collaborated well. They've been receptive when I've explained why certain things work better than others on skin.

An artist's job is to keep their work original. When AI becomes an excuse not to put in the work, I have a problem with it. I'd have the same issue with someone copying another person's work.

Everyone looks at other people's work. It's important to maintain our identity, but there's nothing wrong with recognizing someone is better than you and wanting to reach that level.

Almost everything I do is connected to tattooing, from painting to the jewellery I've been making recently. I'm happy and grateful for that. Cooking & eating, as a good Italian, are probably the only things I enjoy that have nothing to do with it.

During my last year of travelling, I had to take my foot off the gas with painting. I'm happy to feel motivated and inspired to do it again.

I don't have much time to develop other interests outside work. Having people I love around who keep my feet on the ground and help me enjoy other passions is important. The people I hold dearest understand my point of view but help me ease up and expect less of myself.

I used to think that once I reached my goals, I'd finally be content. Now I realize I've already done the things I thought would make me happy.

I find enjoyment in setting the bar higher and pushing forward without looking back too much. Ironic for someone who leaves permanent memories on other people.

I want my life to stay on the same path, just better. Grow my relationships & my artistry, see more of the world, experience more, live more. I'm hungry for life.

I'm already living my dream. If there's something I want to pass on through my work, it's that everyone I meet can do the same for themselves. Being alive is a privilege, and being free to be yourself is the ultimate gift everyone should strive for.