About NYARTMAN!

NYC tattoo artist Jeremy Garrett is NYARTMAN

NYARTMAN tattooingOwner, operator and licensed tattoo artist, Garrett has been tattooing professionally in NYC for a quarter century. Raised in Memphis, Tennessee Garrett received a scholarship and graduated from one of the country’s most acclaimed institutions, The School of Visual Arts in New York City. While in college, he started tattooing underground. After graduation, Garrett operated his own commercial and fine art studio located in New York City's East Village.

Although he is trained as a classical fine artist, Garrett's style lends itself to a unique mix of urban grunge, comic book art with a touch of post-surrealism and his work has continued to define that which is American underground art. Affluent collectors and top executives from Fortune 500 companies such as FedEx, ABC and members of the Grand Lodge of New York's Masonic Order are only a few collectors who enjoy his diversity as an artist. As an accomplished graphic designer, he has worked with clients such as Kodak, Ralph Lauren, Johnson & Johnson, Lockheed Martin and ABC News. His work has also been featured in publications throughout the country and he has been recognized in the internationally acclaimed Japanese GQ as one of NYC's premier tattoo artists "Where real New Yorkers go for tattooing". From 2000-2006 he taught commercial art at the High School of Graphic Communication Arts which is New York City's leading commercial art public high school. Garrett's work has been shown in galleries in New York City and Jerusalem. He has been recognized by the Israeli government as one of today's cutting edge artists.

NYARTMAN's Influences, Goals and Philosophy

Continually striving for perfection both technically and artistically, while maintaining his bedside manners, Garrett has remained true to that which is “American” underground art. Being a contributing member of the American underground art scene, e.g., comic book art, graffiti/street art as well as tattoo art, means not forgetting where he came from or getting lost in trying to perfect other cultural work. Garrett has been influenced by an array of artistic and cultural styles; however, he has continued to define his own. While Degas, the Orientalists, Japanese art, tribal art and the incredible work of Alphonse Mucha have been an influence on his work, it's the good-ol' U.S. of A and artists like Ralph Bakshi, Todd McFarlane, Joe Madureira, Robert Crumb, Robert Williams, Malcolm T. Liepke, Richard Mirando a.k.a. Seen, Aaron Cain and Chris Dingwell who have shaped him as an artist.

NYC is crammed with many talented artists. The creative energy this generates is fantastic. Unfortunately, many tattooists get lost in this and their individuality as artists suffers. They get trapped in the never ending quest to do the most photo-realistic piece or baddest Asian art tattoo and in the end they marginalize themselves. It becomes difficult to tell one artists work from another's and it's the customer who suffers most. Instead of the customer getting that special, unique piece they were envisioning, they, like the customer before and after them, end up getting a rough version of their idea mixed with whatever trendy style the artist is hooked on at the time. NYARTMAN feels this is unacceptable, especially when so much time and money is being invested, only to be left with a permanent tattoo that falls short of your dreams.

NYARTMAN strongly believes the tattooing process is deeply personal as well as spiritual and it's not about the artist but about the customer. His goal is to make sure that every customer's vision is fully developed and accomplished.  It is his philosophy that the client's vision comes first. Certainly there is nothing better than having that unique customer who places few restrictions on the artist and allows the artist the freedom to do his own design. Skill and experience alone doesn't carry tattooists very far in New York City, one needs more. It's not simply skill and experience that has allowed NYARTMAN to persevere in this industry. Old fashioned skills of listening and treating clients with respect combined with a formal arts education are what makes NYARTMAN Gotham's Inkslinging Superhero.