Working within this wonderful industry, I get to met some really talented people including a lot of tattooists, many of whom are great artists in their own right. Many producing eye-wateringly beautiful paintings and drawings as well as stunning tattoo work.

Sometimes I have to stop myself from getting too complacent about other peoples’ artwork as I do see quite a lot (perks of the job!). On a recent visit to Thou Art tattoo and art gallery in Sheffield, I was literally stopped in my tracks by an exhibition of paintings by an unknown artist by the name of Vicky Morgan. This was Vicky’s first ever exhibition and she had fifteen of her creations on show. Many had sold stickers on them, which was not surprising at all as her work is wonderful. Vicky manages to somehow blend classic new school images with a certain femininity and an attention for detail that I had not come across before.

Each watercolour painting has a whiff of Oriental-ness touched with a hint of Mucha and a nod to Ed Hardy to great effect. Vicky will soon be starting on her tattooing career as an apprentice and judging by her paintings, she will be a name to look out for in the future...

I believe you work in a tattoo studio in the front of shop. Have you been there for a while?
About 4 years now. I started off on the reception and decided that I wanted to be a tattooist; it just takes a lot longer than you think!

Have they offered you an apprenticeship?
There has been an offer but it hasn’t quite worked out that way; I’m so busy doing the reception work, it’s quite a busy studio.

Are there many artists there?
We have four people working there - the owner, a couple of new young guys, and then myself and a few others on rotation. Tattoo people travel a lot nowadays so they don’t often stay that long.

What sort of work do you do at the front of the shop?
Booking people in, and everything else as well! It’s more than a reception job, but I enjoy it.

Do you get much time to do your drawing there?
Well, they don’t really like people drawing on the desk so I do most of it at home.

Have you had any college or University training, anything like that?
No, I did an Art AS level but I was told that art wasn’t going to get me anywhere!

That’s what every art teachers says isn’t it? ‘You’ll never make any money out of art!’
Well, I’ve enjoyed it, and I’ve always done it anyway. My grandpa was really into pottery so I suppose he’s been my biggest influence. He’d do anything, paint anything…

He was naturally gifted then?
Oh, definitely.

And you’ve been painting since… you can remember?
Yeah, I can never really say when I started. I always liked colouring books and it kind of went from there, but this year I’ve really been doing it a lot just to keep the art side up with the apprenticeship, and doing something that I really enjoy along with all the day-to-day stuff.

So you do all your painting at home?
Yeah, I try and get it done between work and looking after the dogs!

Do you get much time to do anything else?
No, my interest is tattoos! I go home from the studio and I’m lucky that I have time to draw. It completely takes up all of my time. I’d like to do more travelling with the same idea; I just love it.

That’s the great thing about tattooing, it’s something that you can take with you worldwide.
I do love it here; like in Hong Kong, you don’t see anyone with tattoos, there aren’t that many, but everyone is interested in it. It’s an automatic conversation.

Absolutely, it’s an instant topic!
It’s definitely changed my mum’s perception. She didn’t like them at all so I kept them low-key, but then found that people like to talk about them and it changed her mind. So yeah, I think she appreciates it a little bit more.

Looking at your paintings it’s obvious that you’re really talented and a progression on from this would be tattooing?
I’m just waiting for that option, just see how it goes. There are lots of people who have apprenticeships and aren’t going anywhere, but I’d rather have a good one and wait for it than step into anything. Obviously I want to wait and see where the apprenticeship will lead me and I want to do more painting. At the minute I’m trying to get more focused.

I presume you’ve started selling your paintings now?
Yeah, there’s lots of people who started trading with me, quite a lot on MySpace, where people say, “You do a painting for me and I’ll do one for you”. I really enjoy that side of it; I love getting stuff through the post and I’m really lucky to get things from really good artists. I’ve met some very nice people too; a lot of tattooists have been really encouraging.

I know your work is quite tattoo-oriented; do you work in any other styles too?
Not really; I like all sorts of black and grey stuff and the big, bold side of things but I try and concentrate on my niche and go for something that I feel comfortable with. I use watercolours quite thickly and it sometimes looks more like acrylic, really bright. I’ve not been doing it that long, so I’m still working it out.

I suppose you’re trying new ideas out all of the time aren’t you? Do you have any other influences outside of tattooing?
I like oriental work, and I like anything to do with Chinese or Japanese culture. I went to Hong Kong last year and it’s one of the best places I’ve ever been to. A lot of my pictures are based on the old cigarette cases, the Chinese cigarette cards and advertising posters. They just give me a bit of an idea and help me try out something new. I really like the Chinese-style artists and I see a lot of good artists on the Internet. My tattoo influences would range from Cody Meyer, Derek Noble, Cory Lenherr, Sabine Gaffron, Shige and Filip Leu.
It’s really great in that your artwork isn’t a particular style, it’s something that you’ve created yourself.
I do use a lot of reference stuff, but a lot of it does come from my head and I love drawing a lot of the old tattoo stuff and I use a lot of Victorian photography – I do like that style too. I like to make them really bold, especially the hair.

Does each piece take a long time, or is it quite a quick process?
I’ve just started doing two bigger pieces and I’ve found that they are taking a lot longer. Time-wise, the majority of it is getting the sketch right to start with and I’m quite a perfectionist, so I end up taking some lines out and doing it again and again, so that takes the longest. Once you’ve actually got the drawing down it’s not too bad.

So is this the first time you’ve exhibited paintings?
Yeah it’s my first time for this sort of thing, so it’s all pretty new.

I think the work speaks for itself, and especially here at Thou Art; it’s such a lovely environment.
It’s one of the nicest studios I’ve ever been to and I really appreciate what they’re doing here.

Yes, it puts a nice focus on the artwork as well as the tattoos.
I think there used to be a lot more opposition from some people to it (tattoo artwork), but you get a lot of tattooists that can paint and everyone appreciates what they’re doing.
And you get a lot of constructive criticism, which should be taken on board.
That’s it, you’re expecting some sort of response, whatever it may be.

Do you get a lot of encouragement from your folks?
Yeah, I’ve always drawn anyway and they’ve always been supportive and especially now I’ve shown them; I’m a grown-up and I can do it!

You’ve got quite extensive tattoo work yourself, who’s that by?
It’s mainly from the studio I work in and I’m so happy with the work. The majority of my work has been done by a very talented artist called Lee, who deserves a lot more credit as a tattooist than he gets.

Have you come across any sexual boundaries yet?
Not at all where I work, and not here either, but there’s been the odd person that won’t take your work seriously because you’re a girl. They think you’re going to get further because you’re female.

I find it quite weird that people still think like that to be honest; it’s like a caveman’s approach.
If people are going to think like that and have that attitude, then they’re going to have it, but if I paint what I paint and people can appreciate it then that’s everything.

Do you paint everyday?
Not always because I’m working everyday, but with the weekends I spend the time painting as much as possible. If I start a painting I start getting into it and it keeps me up until 3 in the morning sometimes!

So you’re not happy until it’s finished then?
Yeah, I’m quite a patient painter; before I finish a bit, I start outlining another bit of it. I like to go back and finish up little details.

You mentioned that you exhibit quite a lot of your work on MySpace. The problem with MySpace is that it’s almost copyright-free. Do you find this a problem?
Yeah of course, I mean, I look at pictures and get inspiration so it’s give and take. I can’t hide all my stuff away and pretend that it’s any better than anyone else’s. You’re always going to get people who’ll take it; one of the people I know used it for (a tattoo) inspiration. I like it, I like that someone wants to put something you’ve drawn on them forever.

Do you see yourself working full time in a studio?
Not really, I like to be able to travel and once I’ve done what I need to do I’ll see how it goes then. I like the travelling side of things because when you get guest artists, you learn a lot more. I think I’d get tired of being in the same place.

Itchy feet?
Yeah!

Anybody you’d like to thank for helping you so far?
There are so many people…I’ve been really, really lucky!