Luke Wessman
| Luke Wessman | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Born | Summertown, Tennessee |
| Residence | Los Angeles, California |
| Nationality | American |
| Occupation | Tattoo Artist, Designer, Television Personality |
| Style | Gangster Traditional |
| Website | lukewessman |
Luke Wessman is a tattoo artist and designer. He was featured on the TLC reality shows Miami Ink and NY Ink.
Wessman was born on a communal farm in Tennessee where his parents had been living and working as part of a hippie community. Shortly after he was born, his family hitchhiked across America and settled in Oceanside, California, where Luke grew up.
Wessman received his first tattoo when he was sixteen-years-old from a family friend tattooing out of his house. He continued to acquire tattoos and eventually befriended a group of tattooers who had opened a shop named About Face. It was the only shop in town because tattooing had been outlawed in the area for decades prior. Wessman began to learn a variety of styles at the shop, where the clientele included sailors, pimps, and prostitutes. One of the About Face artists, Milford Barnes, moved to Lucky’s, a well-known shop in San Diego, and Wessman followed him there to begin an unofficial apprenticeship. At the time Wessman was working as an electrician. He would work as an electrician in the morning and spend his evenings apprenticing at the tattoo shop. Eventually a spot opened up and he began tattooing full-time. At age 21, Wessman bought Lucky’s, which he owned and operated for ten years with Shane Modica.
From 2005 to 2010 Wessman worked at Love Hate Tattoo and was featured on the TLC reality TV show Miami Ink. After the show ended Wessman spent some time traveling and working in Scotland, Ireland, Italy, The Netherlands and Germany. In 2010 Wessman moved to New York City to help Ami James open the Wooster Street Social Club. The shop and its crew, including Wessman, were the focus of the TLC reality TV show NY Ink. Wessman did the first tattoo at the shop and remains on the roster today. In 2014 He was a guest judge on Spike TV’s Ink Master. He has written for Inked, was on the cover of Freshly Inked, and has been profiled in several style magazines and websites, including GQ, The Coveteur, Bound by Ink, and Style.com, among others. In 2014 Wessman designed a limited-edition postcard featuring the phrase #govote for HeadCount, a nonpartisan organization that promotes participation in democracy. The postcards were distributed at music concerts, including Jay Z and Beyoncé's “On the Run” tour.
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