Daily Inspiration: Meet Caitlyn Campbell

Today we’d like to introduce you to Caitlyn Campbell. 

Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
I am from a very small town in Ky and moved to Nashville to go to Watkins School of Art Design and Film in 2012. Art has always been an outlet for me growing up in some difficult circumstances. I majored in fine art but I knew I wanted to get into tattooing after I graduated. High school is when I really started getting interested in tattooing. Music has always been a huge influence on me. Seeing all of the tattoos in music videos on headbangers ball and fuse tv back in the day connected the art and music culture for me. Luckily, I had an opportunity to apprentice at a shop called Golden Yeti Art Collective under Jeff Barnard and Brad Hill about halfway through a bachelor’s degree so I decided to quit school and focus on a career in tattooing. It was definitely a difficult journey but has been super rewarding. I received my professional tattoo license a little over 6 years ago. I’ve also been doing free nipple/areola tattoos for survivors of breast cancer and the trans community from top surgery for about 5 years with Jeff. I am so grateful for where I am today and so grateful for the people I get to meet and tattoo. I get to hear so many interesting stories from all kinds of perspectives so it’s nice to be a part of that. 

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
I’m a huge advocate for mental health. That being said it has been very difficult at times but I feel like that’s pretty average for anything. I had to take a short break early in my career when CPTSD (complex-post traumatic stress disorder) symptoms started showing up. It’s common for people with this illness’s symptoms to delay until they are in their 20s and starting a career and settling down in their life. I would say that has been the hardest thing to work through. Tattooing can be a very stressful and exhausting job especially since it’s a very up close and intimate process. It’s very easy to pick up on negative energy of those around you and it can be very hard to not let it affect you especially when you struggle with mental illness. I definitely put in more of an effort to protect myself and mental health. I try my best to destigmatize mental illness by speaking up and being open about it. Getting proper help saved my life, so I urge everyone else who struggles to seek help without shame. 

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I specialize in color and black/grey realistic tattooing. I love to stick with dark/ominous themes and try to get as much detail in there as possible. Recently I have been focusing on black and grey dark surrealism with pops of monochromatic elements. I try to push myself each tattoo to try and make it better than the last one. As most artists, I am my worst critic. I think the self-critic can be a powerful drive to get better as long as it stays healthy and you don’t solely focus on that side of your work. 

Alright, so to wrap up, is there anything else you’d like to share with us?
I do about two raffles a year for free tattoos to raise money for various organizations so keep an eye out for that on Instagram @_spacezombie Thank you so much! 

Contact Info:

• Email: [email protected]
• Website: Goldenyetiart.com
• Instagram: @_spacezombie