Becoming a professional tattoo artist is a dream that combines not only artistic passion and technical precision, but also ambition and an entrepreneurial spirit.
To embark on this career, the first mandatory step is attending a qualified course, which is required by law and lasts 1500 hours at an authoritative and recognized school.
Milano Tattoo School is one of the most important institutes in Italy for training in the tattoo field.
This is because, in addition to teaching how to tattoo through a complete, structured, and in-depth path, MTS also prepares you to enter the professional world of work. How? By ensuring all those skills that allow you to work in high-level studios or start your own business.
The goal is therefore not just pure training, but leading students to work, grow, and succeed.
The end of the MTS path: what skills do you acquire?
The path offered by Milano Tattoo School in the Tattoo Artist course has a total duration of 1500 hours.
This format, in addition to ensuring training perfectly aligned with the required standards (Regional Law no. 13 of July 23, 2021) and professional certification, also guarantees significant advantages.
In fact, it allows you to delve into every aspect of the trade in a serious and professional way: from theoretical foundations such as anatomy, hygiene, and regulations, to advanced artistic techniques.
Students can practice first on synthetic materials and then on real skin, also participating in exclusive workshops and seminars held by internationally renowned professionals.
This complete and in-depth training allows you to confidently enter the industry, as it provides a solid theoretical and practical preparation.
The main skills acquired include:
- Customer reception and relations: a good tattoo artist must also be a professional capable of building a relationship of trust with the client. From the initial consultation to post-tattoo care instructions, the MTS course teaches how to manage the first contact, conduct an effective introductory interview, understand the client’s desires, expectations, and limits, and perform the work with maximum excellence.
- Organization and hygiene of the workspace: students learn to prepare and sanitize stations, correctly use sterilization tools, manage waste and disposable materials, and adopt practices that respect personal, client, and environmental safety. They are also trained on all current health and hygiene regulations.
- Management and organizational aspects of the business: the course includes fundamental concepts for those who wish to work independently or start their own studio. Topics covered include administrative management, business promotion, compliance with tax regulations, and the management of bookings and supplier relations.
- Tattoo design and execution: the MTS course covers all tattoo styles. Thanks to the presence of established tattoo artists specialized in different techniques and styles, students will follow a path ranging from realism to Japanese, from traditional to ornamental, up to new trends like fine line and blackwork. Furthermore, great attention is paid to developing an aesthetic eye and the ability to visually interpret the client’s desires, taking into account their morphology, the body area involved, and skin reactions to ink.
- Use of equipment: at Milano Tattoo School, students learn to operate using high-quality tattoo machines, needles, colors, and sterilization tools to develop tool mastery, hand control, and timing management.
With these foundations, every student is ready to face the world of work and present themselves as a complete professional, but the path must be built step by step.
5 tips on the first steps to take after obtaining MTS certifications
Once the first 1000 hours of the course are finished, MTS students must complete an additional 500 hours of mandatory internship.
This represents the key transition between training and professional reality and often becomes the first step toward a permanent job, turning this experience into a concrete employment opportunity and a way to build industry contacts, facilitating future collaborations and job opportunities.
To do this best, however, there are some strategies that are good to adopt, so as to ensure concrete opportunities to successfully embark on a career as a tattoo artist. Among these, the main ones are:
- create a solid and professional portfolio
- look for an apprenticeship in a tattoo studio
- build a good online presence
- choose the right equipment
- never stop updating your skills
Create a solid and professional portfolio
The first step to being able to show your skills and find concrete job opportunities is to create your own professional portfolio. This tool represents a real calling card to impress potential employers, like a sort of visual narrative of your artistic identity.
The advice is to include your best works created during training (on synthetic skin and real models, but also sketches or custom projects), with high-quality photos and descriptions of the styles you are strongest in. Furthermore, it is important to constantly update the portfolio to concretely show your growth and versatility.
Look for an apprenticeship in a professional studio
After completing your training and finishing the mandatory internship, the best thing to do is to continue gaining direct experience in an active studio. Working side-by-side with experienced tattoo artists allows you to learn on the job and handle real situations with clients. The apprenticeship is therefore an essential bridge between theory and the reality of the trade and an excellent opportunity to refine your technique, learn live client management, and understand how to work under pressure.
Build a good online presence
In the modern world, word of mouth has moved to digital. Social media has indeed become an essential tool for every emerging tattoo artist who wants to make themselves known more quickly and effectively.
For this reason, creating profiles on the main online platforms is indispensable for publishing your work, showing your art, and finding new clients or job opportunities.
Choose the right equipment
As in any other trade, in tattooing, using the right equipment makes the difference between a professional and an improvised artist. Cheap or non-certified products could risk compromising the result, as well as being dangerous.
The advice is to start with the essentials: a reliable tattoo machine, quality needles, certified inks, gloves, grips, and disinfection materials. After that, as you work more consistently, you can invest in everything you need.
For those who have attended MTS courses, you can refer to the guidelines learned, so as to focus on tools and equipment in line with health and hygiene regulations.
Never stop updating your skills
Finally, a piece of advice that applies to any trade: never stop training, updating, and growing. The best professionals are indeed those who never stop learning. You can do this by participating in specialized workshops to delve into specific styles.
Or, by taking part in industry fairs and conventions, which allow you to interact with other tattoo artists, discover new trends, and get noticed.
Or even by following mandatory refresher courses. The important thing is to always stay updated to stand out and offer clients a top-level service.
Visit the page dedicated to Tattoo Artist Courses to discover the entire program and how to enroll