Tattoo Artist: 'They Picked Me for a Reason'

Ralph Giordano is among the 12 best tattoo artists from around the country who were chosen to be on the second season of the television show "Best Ink."

He was chosen among 100,000 artists from across the country who auditioned for the show, premiering April 3 at 10 p.m. on Oxygen. The Yorktown native is competing for $100,000 and a cover story in Tattoo magazine.

Giordano is the only New Yorker in the top 12 and according to his bio on the show:

"Despite his rough exterior, Ralph Giordano is a self-proclaimed 'mama’s boy' with a sweet disposition. While growing up in a funeral home in the Bronx, Giordano realized the family business was not his desired career path. With the support of his parents, he went to the School of Visual Arts in Manhattan, where he first learned about the possibility of a career as a tattoo artist. Giordano has been working in the tattoo industry for four years and is highly dedicated to his art. Although he is mild-tempered, Giordano becomes fiercely competitive when needed. The only thing he loves more than a competition is an audience to watch him win it."

Patch caught up with the tattoo artist below: 

Patch: When did you become interested in art? 

Giordano: I became interested in art at a very young age, probably around 4 years old. Ever since I can remember, I was drawing, sketching or doing something involving art. My mother always pushed me to be creative and would bring me to museums and places to inspire me. Basically if I was not outside, I was inside drawing, painting and watching cartoons.

Patch: How did you discover your passion for tattoos? 

Giordano: I discovered my true passion for tattooing around third year of college when I met a teacher named Thomas Woodruff. At this time I was studying to become a comic book artist and made the switch to do tattoos. Tom pushed me in the right direction. I left comics behind and through Tom’s direction, I started a portfolio of art for tattooing.

Patch: You grew up in a funeral home in the Bronx, but you discovered that this wasn't your desired career path. How did you come to that conclusion?

Giordano: The funeral home has been a family business for almost 100 years; however, at a young age I realized that it wasn't for me. This was something that my father was proud of. He always wanted me and my brother to go on the path that we wanted in life and not just use the family business as a crutch. I realized that although the funeral home really helped people in a difficult time and was a amazing thing, I wanted to be creative and touch people through my art.

Patch: What was your family's reaction? 

Giordano: My parents have been so supportive of me through my whole life and they never took issue with my not going into the family business. If anything they were both proud of the fact that I wanted to carve my own path in life.

Patch: What was the first tattoo you ever got? 

Giordano: I got my first tattoo at 19. The design, which I put on myself, was a little tag that I signed my artwork with. This tattoo has long since been covered by other tattoos; however I still do sign my artwork with a kind of morphed version of it.

Patch: How many do you have now? Can you describe them?

Giordano: I have so many tattoos at this point that I usually describe my body by the amount of hours of tattooing I have. I would say over about 140 hours. I have every part of my body tattooed minus my upper left arm and right foot. On my back I have a large Japanese Hannya mask tattoo, which has always been a powerful image to me. It is my biggest tattoo. My teacher in college would call it a "drive by" tattoo. It’s called this, because you can drive by it at 60 miles an hour and still see exactly what it is.

My other favorite is the one on the back of my right thigh. It’s a pinup riding a roller coaster while being attacked by zombies. This one is really meant to just be fun and it illustrates my love for horror and movies.

Patch: What do you enjoy the most about being a tattoo artist?

Giordano: I enjoy everything about being a tattoo artist! I know that’s a little broad but it’s true. I love the clients and people that I get to work with. Everyone’s ideas are so much different than the person that I was tattooed the day before. Also, I’m at a point now where people are really starting to come to me for my style of artwork so it allows me to do my artwork every day rather than reproducing other people’s designs and images. 

Patch: What's the hardest part?

Giordano: The hardest part of being a tattooist is the hours that you have to put in. I’m at my shop about 60 hours a week and am drawing every night at home. To become a tattooist you really have to immerse your life in it and prepare yourself for it to take over your life.

Patch: Without giving anything away, what can people expect from the first episode of Best Ink Season 2? 

Giordano: The first episode is so exciting. Our first "Flash Challenge" involved us hanging off a building six stories up and painting a billboard with spray paint, which let me tell you was terrifying! Other than that you will see the first "InkChallenge" in which we have to tell the story of our clients’ struggles in life. That’s all I can really say, but I can tell you there is a lot of drama and a lot of amazing artwork.

Patch: What do you think people might be surprised to learn about you while watching the show?

Giordano: I think that people may be surprised to see that I'm really not the image that I put out there. From an outside perspective, I give off that tough guy tattooed look which I guess you get when your head is shaved and your covered from the neck down with tattoos. However I'm really just a timid kind of guy who's very critical of myself and my artwork and is super passionate about everything I do.

Patch: What did you learn about yourself along the process?

Giordano: I learned that I really have to just keep confidence in myself, because it was me who got myself here onto a show that 100,000 people tried out for and that they picked me for a reason. I’m a strong artist and a strong personality and I think people will see that.

Patch: Is there anything else you'd like to add that I forgot to ask you?

Giordano: I would like to add that none of this and my career would be possible without my friends and family who have supported me my whole life. Also, most of all, I owe it to my clients who really are the people who are responsible for the place I am at in my career and see in me a person that they trust me to be on my game every day I touch needle to skin.

Best Ink, season 2, premieres on Oxygen Media on Wednesday, April 3 at 10 p.m. 

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