Scales, Snakes and Sketches: An Interview With Sophie Rose Hunter

We caught up with Sophie to find out more about her journey, inspirations and future.

For Tattoodo partner Sophie Rose Hunter, the idea of being a tattoo artist felt like an unattainable fantasy when she was young. But a lifetime of passion for drawing and tattoo culture eventually put this dream career in her path. Today, she is one of London’s leading artists for Black and Grey, her signature snake tattoos coiling up the arms of countless enthusiasts. In a nice twist of fate, Sophie now works at The Blue Tattoo in Hammersmith, the same studio she frequented when she was a teenager to sit, draw and imbibe the bustling chaotic culture of London’s tattoo scene.

We caught up with Sophie to find out more about her journey, inspirations and future.

Where did your passion for tattooing begin? Was there a particular moment or time you first felt drawn to the art?

I was never much good at academia and I struggled in school. The only place I felt comfortable was in art classes. There I felt confident and the work came naturally. When I found out there were people out there in the world working as tattoo artists for a living, it immediately felt like a dream job.

My passion for the craft goes back a long way. As a teenager, I would hang out at a shop called Primitive Origins near where I grew up. I’d go there and just draw or admire the Cherry Creek flash on the walls. Funnily enough, that shop is where I work now, The Blue Tattoo. It’s like I’ve come full circle.

Artist: Sophie Rose Hunter

When did you decide to take the leap of faith and become a tattoo artist?

As I got older, the idea of actually becoming a tattoo artist seemed more and more unattainable. I felt uncertain about what to do with my life so I decided to do a degree in Criminology. It wasn’t something I was particularly passionate about, but I think we often choose something that we see as ‘sensible’ over our real passions. During university, I was using drugs a lot and it developed into an addiction. By the time my degree was over, it had become really bad.

I managed to get sober when I was 23, and I started getting my life together again. As things began to calm down, I remembered what tattooing meant to me and realized I’d never know if I could do it unless I tried. I went around the shops in London with my book of illustrations and kept pushing for months until I finally found an apprenticeship.

Can you talk about your style and how it developed over time?

When I was younger, whenever I drew it would always be with pencil and black pen, so when I explored different styles of tattooing, it was natural for me to be most interested in black and grey. I feel like tattoos should have a dramatic or sinister quality to them. There are so many ways you can play with tones and textures in black and grey that give the design more depth.