Hidden Gems: Meet Adam Turk of Left Hand Black

Today we’d like to introduce you to Adam Turk

Hi Adam, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
I’m originally from San Bernardino, California, but I began tattooing in 1997 in the Bay Area of San Francisco, Ca. I apprenticed under Karen Roze, at Picture Machine Tattoo, one of the oldest tattoo parlors in California. I have been an artist and musician my entire life, or at least as long as I can remember, but couldn’t afford to go to art school after high school being the second oldest of five kids and growing up with just my mom. We grew up pretty strapped as you can imagine, so even coming by real art supplies was a challenge. I got used to doing all of my art in an illustrative style, since pencils and pens were all that I could come by. My mom was called in to school several times to discuss my artistic abilities, as I would draw way more advanced details than most kids. After some tests they moved me to a GATE (gifted and talented education) school where they could further challenge my education and abilities. Even after I graduated with good grades and SAT’s I had no options for college since art scholarships were offered for artists with more substantial portfolios than what I was able to produce. Having limited options, I stayed in my area trying to determine what my next step was. I ended up joining and starting a few bands, employing my musical skills, and made friends throughout the punk scene. I even got my first tattoo at 17 of a Black Flag logo, a punk band native to California. Unfortunately, the area I’m from is pretty rough, and some friends of mine ended up going to prison for murder. My older brother who lived in the Bay Area said I could come sleep on his futon but to leave that area immediately so that I wouldn’t get caught up in the crime and violence that surrounded the area. I got my first job ever at a place called Blondie’s Pizza on Telegraph Ave. in Berkeley. I worked there just handing out fliers and cleaning up after sloppy football fans for about 7 months before I saw there was an opening to work in a photo lab developing film (back when there was film, haha). I ended up taking that job because it paid slightly more, had better hours, and they would pay for my hazmat training and certifications. That lab had a small storefront for local customers to come in and drop off film for development, and had a small shelf of films, photo frames, and cameras. One customer, Karen Roze, would come in and drop off film for prints and they would always be photos of tattoos. After talking with her a while every time she would come in she offered to give me a discounted tattoo if I could give her some discounts on photo development prices. My boss didn’t care, so I did just that. I could only come to the shop on Sundays when Karen was working alone, so she wouldn’t get in trouble for giving me a deal. While I was there I would help out by answering the phone if she was tattooing, or sometimes even get a customer to fill out a release form. If there were full price customers, I would wait, and sometimes not even get tattooed that week. Some of the other artists in the shop started wanting deals on the film prices so I started giving them deals as well, even though they never offered me anything in return. While I was there at the shop I would draw the designs I liked in my sketchbooks and even modified some of them to my liking. Karen saw these and asked if I ever considered being an apprentice , which I was not even aware was a thing. Eventually I was terminated at the photo place when management caught on what was happening so I had to go back to the shop and tell them I couldn’t help them anymore. I think, with Karen’s help, they took pity on me and gave me a job as a counter guy. I would answer phones, make appointments, clean up, and make stencils. My schedule was intermittent, at first, so I had to take on a second job at Pete’s coffee. After a while of working the counter I would be given more and more tasks that pertained to tattooing specifically. Learning to make needles. Learning about tattoo machines. Learning how to properly sterilize equipment using an autoclave. Eventually, I became I full apprentice, and was required to be at the shop 12 hours a day, seven days a week. I also wasn’t paid anymore, since I was being taught a skill that would feed me for the rest of my life. Unfortunately, I had rent to pay and food to buy, so I kept my job at Pete’s Coffee. That means I would work 5:30am to 11:30am at Pete’s and then 12pm on to 12midnight at Picture Machine and would have to take the last BART train back to Berkeley and walk back to my place so I could get to bed at around 1:30am and do it all over again. Hahaha. My days off from Pete’s were my favorite because I could sleep until 10. That was the best. As hard as it was, it gave me the work ethic I needed to persevere through a tumultuous industry. After I completed my apprenticeship I moved back to Southern California where I tattooed for about a year before taking a job at a shop in Salisbury, Maryland. I tattooed there for about two years before moving back to California again. The east coast was too cold for me, hahaha. While I was back in California this time, I started another band, and we got pretty popular. We did a few Warped Tours and eventually went on to tour with Green Day and Blink 182. Touring as much as we were was slowing down my tattooing career, and coming home from tour to live in hotels until the next tour was starting to weigh on me pretty hard. In 2003 I quit the band, and left the area I lived in and moved to San Diego to focus on tattooing only. I took a job at one of San Diego’s biggest shops, and worked there for about 6 years from 2003 to 2009. While working there I began trying to tattoo in all 50 states and as many countries as I could. To date, I’ve tattooed in 48 of the 50 states and 9 countries. Including living in Bologna, Italy for nearly a year. Even with all the travel I would come home to San Diego until the next adventure. I brought back several awards throughout the years, and have been published in over 150 trade publications. In 2007, even though I promised my mentor that I would never date within my client base, I tattooed a woman that was far too beautiful for me and shared all my same interests. Although she was persistent, I still hesitated to mingle my personal and professional life. After our final session she had left the studio, only to return and slam down a paper with her number on it, exclaiming “call me”. Hahaha. I did just that, and we’ve been together ever since. In 2009 I left that studio and started a private studio under the name “Left Hand Black” and in 2012, with the love, support, and business savvy of my lovely girlfriend, Crystal, we opened the full studio of “Left Hand Black” in on July 13th of 2012. In October of 2012 we were married and have been running the studio together ever since. My wife, Crystal, began showcasing quarterly art exhibitions that were recognized by top publications like Juxtapoz and High-Fructose. We held several art shows that showcased many world renowned artists and strived to always showcase more than just the stereotypical tattoo art style. Honestly, it’s my wife that truly transformed Left Hand Black into the shop that is is today. I couldn’t have done it without her. In 2017, I participated on Paramount Television’s “InkMaster” which is a reality television series where tattooers compete against each other for the title of InkMaster. Although I didn’t win, I made it through 12 of the 15 episodes of the series and still have the respect of the entire cast and other artists in the industry. Despite our success and acknowledgements in the industry, we closed our studio in San Diego in 2022, escaping the authoritarian dictatorship of Gavin Newsom to persue a better life for our two sons, Robert and Declan, in Tennessee. Tennessee seemed to still care about freedom and American values which was exactly what we wanted for our sons. Since then, we have been doing our best to showcase our skills and bring a level of art and care of tattoo culture to the Franklin area.

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
The life of an artist is not at all a smooth road, and anyone who says otherwise is lying, hahaha. Keeping up with the trends, trying to carve out your own style, staying relevant, all of it is so exhausting. The trends of the industry ebb and flow so frequently that it’s hard to keep up. As a shop, especially in the over saturated industry of Southern California, standing out against the other shops was always a challenge as well. That’s why my wife came up with all the very unique art show ideas that really helped set us apart from the usual street shop model. Her keen (and beautiful) eyes for marketing and design were paramount to all our art show, and shop success. We are truly as successful as we are as a brand because of her.

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about Left Hand Black ?
Left Hand Black is known for our friendly atmosphere and attitude toward our clients. We focus primarily on custom, one of a kind, pieces that will last forever and stand out as both creative and impressive. Our brand has been recognized worldwide as a leading studio in the industry and have been published internationally and has won several awards for our art and tattoos. Out style is bold and provocative but with a strong foundation in tradition while still standing out as unique and impressive.

If you had to, what characteristic of yours would you give the most credit to?
Honestly, I feel like it’s the connections we make with our clients that set us apart from the general tattoo studios. We are very friendly and personable and treat our clients like family. My wife is at the studio and manages all appointments and scheduling, and frequently, our kids are there as well. We are on time, and very attentive to our clients. We respect their time and appreciate that they are willing to share theirs with us. We strive to introduce them to new art and styles that will impress them and their friends and that’s how we stay on top of the industry. It’s more than just a job for us.

Pricing:

• Minimum charge is $150
• Hourly charges range from 180 to 200 per hour.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.LHBLK.com
• Instagram: @lefthandblack
• Facebook: https://Facebook.com/lefthandblacktattoo