Meet Georgia Bushell

We recently connected with Georgia Bushell and have shared our conversation below.

Georgia, so good to have you with us today. We’ve always been impressed with folks who have a very clear sense of purpose and so maybe we can jump right in and talk about how you found your purpose?

Art has always been the foundation of my identity. I like to jest about what a loser I’d be if I weren’t an artist, like I’d still be ringing up MSG burgers for hungry crowds of torches and pitchforks in another reality. There is some truth to that, as bleak as it may sound. I had no plan B when I was younger, favoring my blind confidence that in some medium I would make it as an artist. I’ve had some sort of utensil in my hand since I’ve developed the motor skills to grab onto it, victimizing my parents’ carpets, walls, and furniture. I’ve had uncertainty around just about every other facet of my persona, sometimes trying too hard to be anyone who wasn’t me. I had difficulty making friends, and my peers who disliked me let it be known. I moved around quite a bit growing up, my family changing with every upheaval. My constant was art.
I would say that my purpose has poked its head out of the crevices of my mind at the most unexpected moments. I was 11 when my mom took me to the Alachua Public Library for a free comic design seminar, lead by a published writer/illustrator/art professor. Andre Frattino, fresh out of university with two published books under his belt, took a gander at my drawings and asked my mom if she’d be interested in bringing me into his studio to learn the ins and outs of comics. Ten weeks later, I had the skeleton of the whole process tucked away in my toolbox, and I remember everything I learned to this day. Andre gave me purpose and confidence, as well as a friend. That said, my relationship with art was still sort of casual until the latter half of my junior year, when my art teacher brought the AP “breath and concentration” project to me. I had less than six months to complete twelve solid pieces to submit to higher ups. I was in that classroom before, during, and after school. I started eating my meals there, sometimes with a side of paint water. I felt a rush, a purpose. I didn’t care how unpopular I was, or that I didn’t have a boyfriend and name-brand shoes. I became obsessed, and would turn in my schoolwork to my other teachers in one lump at the beginning of the week so that I could hide away in the art room. It was this project, stuffed in a comically large brown envelope, that I would bring to my first tattoo shop for review. I had wanted to be a tattoo artist since I was 15 and watched NY Ink on YouTube, captivated by Megan Massacre. I had never seen a female tattoo artist until I found out about her, even though I knew that some women had tattoos. Megan’s designs were colorful, painterly, and whimsical, and she was by far the best tattoo artist I had ever seen. Another sense of purpose was discovered, and I held it close to my chest. I’ve found it easy to sort of feel sorry for myself in the past, sometimes feeling like I was from a whole ‘nother galaxy. I realize now how lucky I am. My greatest blessing is, has been, and always will be that I am an artist. It has been a shoulder to cry on, a best friend, and a pat on the back. It’s shown me that I am worth believing in. My lowest times have been when I’ve neglected my art, and it’s never shaken its finger at me for my behavior. Instead, it’s blossomed and shown me that I need to dedicate and give back. I think that maybe my moments of “finding my purpose” have been moreso times for reassurance, and have always shown up when I’ve needed them most.

Let’s take a small detour – maybe you can share a bit about yourself before we dive back into some of the other questions we had for you?

I was a loner growing up, as most creatives tend to be. Sometimes because I wasn’t a fan favorite, and sometimes because I wanted it that way. When I was 10, my family moved to Gainesville. Shortly after the uproot, my parents separated. I started getting picked on pretty badly in school, which kicked off my preference for being left alone. A lot of my turmoil got put onto my mom and brother, since they were around the most to take it. I ended up back in Citrus County to start seventh grade, and that’s when it was off to the races for my anxiety. I had difficulty talking to and even making eye contact with people. On the outside, I was very bold and expressive. I got a lot of unwanted attention for how I’d dress, when I really just wanted to be left alone. Invisibility was always my would-be superpower of choice. Sometimes getting through the school day felt like enduring a Saw trap. I was just so anxious.
I found a great support system in my teachers, at least the ones who didn’t have kittens when they caught me scribbling in class. Most notably would be my algebra teacher Miss Nelson, who allowed my equally radical friends and I watch Studio Ghibli films in her classroom at lunch so that we wouldn’t get heckled in the cafeteria. I was shown acceptance by these teachers, who I know for certain had seen many waves of kids like me try to navigate their way through a time that’s already hard enough. I wrapped up middle school after making a few friends, some of which I still talk to. My family moved again, this time to the other side of the county. I would start high school in Inverness. Being a small town, a lot of my peers had already found their people just by knowing each other since grade school. High school was honestly a blur, I wanted it over pretty soon after getting there. I’d end up finishing early in three years, spending my senior year at the community college full-time thanks to some extra online classes and the duel enrollment program. It was during this time that I would actually begin my tattooing apprenticeship.
At 17, my second job was at a Winn Dixie as a cashier. Starting at my first job, I had a tradition of pressing the button on the receipt printer which spat out blank paper, and I’d doodle whatever on countless 6-inch scraps in the slow periods. This habit worked in my favor despite management disapproval, because one day a family came through my line and caught a glance at one of my drawings. A husband, wife, and little girl. The husband, bagging the groceries, asked me if I wanted to do anything with art. I told him yes, that I wanted to be a tattoo artist. I was handed a business card and invited to bring my portfolio. After some back and forth, I had landed myself an apprenticeship. From some research and of course, TV, I knew that the first step to tattooing was to learn under somebody. I cleaned shop, practiced drawing, shadowed, researched, attended out-of-shop events, and worked my way up slowly but surely. I started tattooing when I was 19, starting with small linework-only tattoos, pro bono. I worked at the same shop for almost 5 years, and truthfully I struggled through most of it. My style of learning did not mend well with the style of teaching the shop offered, and there was some messiness behind the scenes. There was a lot of stress and wear on my mental health, and eventually I had decided that a change of scenery would be best for me. Two days into a three week notice, my schedule was wiped and I was told to pack up. I decided to keep the previously set start date with the new shop so I could gather myself for the remainder of those few weeks. I’m not completely happy with the experience as a whole, and the end was less than dignified. However, my feelings of gratitude for the chance that was taken on me and all I did learn outweigh the negative any day. There were times I thought about quitting tattooing, that I didn’t have the chops for it. I was conditioned to believe that not only would no other shop tolerate me, but that they were also much worse.
I grew a passion and a newfound confidence once things kicked off with the new place, and I had the freedom to experiment and take control of my own career. I have been tattooing for almost 5 years, but I consider this past year to be when everything fell into place and my progress really got going. I started tattooing portraits and realism, especially movie characters and musicians-which was a dream come true for me. I’ve taken on bigger and more detailed pieces, tattoos that I felt were what I always wanted to do. I would say the “brand” I’m carving out for myself is still up in the air, but calling myself experimental and eclectic would make a good start. I currently tattoo in Brooksville at Poison Ivy Ink, and thrive with my tattooing and painting endeavors. I love to work with portraits in color and black & grey, surrealism, illustrative, neo-traditional, and overall realism styles in my mediums, and also dabble with traditional, ornamental, and watercolor styles. I love versatility in subjects and aesthetic because it keeps everything fresh. I’m living what was always my vision of tattooing, which is offering a clean and comfortable environment where my clients can feel at ease and confide in me at their pace, as well as create beautiful works of art. I often get asked if I would be a full-time painter if I had the chance, and the answer is no. I find tattooing very rewarding. I get to connect with people like I never felt I could in the past, and the trust that my clients have in me is truly something special. I grow and learn with every tattoo, and get to collaborate with my clients to make a vision come to reality.

Looking back, what do you think were the three qualities, skills, or areas of knowledge that were most impactful in your journey? What advice do you have for folks who are early in their journey in terms of how they can best develop or improve on these?

Inspiration, resilience, and love would be the three qualities I would say have been the most rewarding in my journey.
Having inspiration not only broadens your artistic horizons, it also gives the chance to research other creatives and how their journeys came to fruition. One of my favorite quotes comes from the cinematic madman himself, Quentin Tarantino, being “when people ask me if I went to film school. I tell them ‘no, I went to films'”. I never went to art school myself, and since I read that quote, any regrets I had washed away. I was a pop culture fanatic growing up, consuming art in paintings, music, comics, anime, horror movies, cartoons, and so on, starting with my brother waking me up at 3 am to watch InuYasha on Adult Swim when we were little. These inspirations lent me their company and gave me hope to keep trucking along, with the dream that I too could make it with art. I love to research my favorite artists and creators and learn their stories, what lead them to where they ended up. My favorite part about manga and comics is when a snippet on how the process works is included, Bryan Lee O’Malley’s step-by-step in Scott Pilgrim’s fifth volume being one of my favorite examples. DVD special features including storyboards and unlockable concept sketches in video games are my jam. Horror movie SFX documentaries opened my eyes to a whole entire art form. There’s inspiration everywhere not only to consume, but to study.
I find that love and resilience go hand-in-hand, feeding one another and urging the artist to move forward. I’m not dazzled by my apprenticeship, but without my love for art and tattooing, I would’ve had a lot more quit in me. Living through an unsavory event and coming out with minimal damage can only make that passion stronger, like there was work behind it. There’s times I feel like I still don’t “got it”, or that I won’t live up to my idols. Love gets me through it. If I could urge any young artist to take any advice from me, it would be to turn and ridicule and bitterness into fortitude and remember what you’re suffering for.

Awesome, really appreciate you opening up with us today and before we close maybe you can share a book recommendation with us. Has there been a book that’s been impactful in your growth and development?

The book that has played one of the most pivotal roles in my upbringing is actually a magazine. I found Scholastic’s Tim Burton issue, “Working with Fantasy” when I was in 7th grade in my art classroom. I’d always loved Burton’s movies and characters, so putting my sticky fingers to use was really no surprise. I’ve lost this magazine in a move at some point, to my great sadness, but I remember it as clear as Heisenberg’s formula. The article included a step-by-step on how Burton had turned his character sketches into puppets and costumes. I’d known and loved Edward Scissorhands especially, and it was too cool seeing how the sympathetic and macabre icon began with just a sketch. There was also information on the director’s backstory, being outcasted and teased for being an oddball in his early years. What I took most from this magazine was that you can be weird AND successful, and that gave me hope. I read the magazine over and over again, watching the spine and corners wither and tear over the years.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/georgialynnetattoo/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/people/Georgia-Lynne-Tattoos/100089590201749/
• Other: email: [email protected]