Transforming dreams into tattoos and bodies into works of art – tattoo artist Maxime Etienne, owner of Leonart studio in Bondi, Sydney, Australia chats to us about his humble beginnings, the process behind his designs and his charity work…
I have been getting tattoos since I was 18 and always loved art in terms of creation. Painting, sculpting, drawing and tattooing have always been industries I’ve wanted to work in. But, I never thought I could have the skills to do any of them until I tried to draw in late 2016. I started drawing with a lot of geometry pattern and in an abstract version of realism.
I started tattooing in late 2016 at home when I realised I could actually draw a little. I wanted to get more tattoos but couldn’t afford them. So I ordered a $40 tattoo kit on eBay and started to practice on my legs, my arms and even my chest and stomach before tattooing some friends.
I never thought I could be a professional artist of any kind. But after tattooing a decent number of friends for the about eight months loads of people contacted me via Instagram and my follwers increased. I realised that maybe I could become a real tattoo artist one day. One night I met a bunch of tattooists that loved my chest piece that I did myself. They told me “if you can do that on yourself and it heals that way then you can definitely become a tattoo artist.”
So, after roughly 10 months I decided to apply for my licence here in Australia and started in a studio as soon as I received it. After 10 months working in that studio, I opened my own and now it has been two years and I work more than I ever expected.
After some researc I discovered so many artists that inspired me and realised what I like is already there and what I could do would be appreciated by a certain audience. I pushed my creativity further and came up with what I do today. Realism, abstract and detailed pieces that are done to tell a story or express a feeling. I am inspired by everything that comes into my mind and what I love. Nature, animals, astronomy, women’s features, architecture and scientific research illustrations.
Most of my designs are from my clients’ stories. I am trying to turn their feelings, dreams, or their past into images. I design everything one day before the appointment and finalise it on the day after asking further questions. I work that way because I really put myself into their story or project and so I don’t work on several designs at the same time. I only book one client a day to ensure we can get the best out of their future tattoo.
I see myself as a designer more than someone who draws, as I often mix up several elements all together.
I try to give my designs the best contrast and shape for the placement that is given to me. I cannot freehand my designs as they require great details and geometry. Floral and extra small pieces in a piece can sometimes be free-handed, but I prefer having a stencil on to ensure the result will be the best and let my client really visualise what it will look like.
My style is really hard to describe in one word. It is composed of micro realism, abstract and geometry. A dream project would be a full body covered of many designs that would express the wish of freedom and the love for nature and earth. I love the diagram patterns used from engineers and would attach all designs together that way to turn the body into an actual book of human feelings and perception of life on our planet. What we are doing on earth, thanking it for the beauty of it and mixing different feelings most of us are going through to express our strength and fragility.
I see my art lasting through time as I am constantly trying to evolve, learn and create. I am a dreamer and a hard worker at the same time. I always give everything I have to achieve my goals, but if one day my art isn’t appreciated any more and I am forced to only execute clients’ thoughts without having the opportunity to create on my own, then I will do something else.
Tattooing became a passion, it’s more than a job. It has never been a way to make money for me, but a dream that became true – to live by doing what I love and making people happy.
Tattooing is an industry where we are in contact with people for hours and deep conversations occur during the process of tattooing. I’ve met so many incredible people that have told me real stories of what they have been through and their issues. Which are unfortunately not mentioned enough to a general audience, including domestic violence issues. I have been raised by my grandmother and my mother and grew up with one sister. Women are everything, they made me who I am today.
I work with an organisation called Karmagawa created by two really close friends of mine, Mat Abad and Thimoty Sykes. I travel with them and help them on different events around the world and design clothes for charity. They both inspire me not only with their charity work, but with their personalities and open minds. They showed me that we can do more than just work for ourselves and we must all help when we can.
Domestic violence, which isn’t always physical, on children and women is something I would really like to help with. Organisations are here to help those in need and money is often necessary to ensure they can keep running. Doing a tattoo fundraiser isn’t only for the money but to reach people that might be in need or even to help them realise what happens to them isn’t normal.
Social media as a platform is powerful, me doing a tattoo fundraiser with posts and stories might push other artists to do so too. I have done similar with the Australian bush fires and given the money to people that were helping those on the spot not just to the organisation.
That’s what I would like to do here. I would like to raise money of course by giving all the profit to organisations, but I am sure that just posting about it could help to raise awareness and I will do that a couple of times every year. My future project is to open a studio in Amsterdam and work with artists that will be willing to do some flash days every year for different causes.
