Tattoo Learning Center draws students from around the world
Author(s): JUSTIN MASON
Gazette Reporter Date: December 8, 2009 Section: B: Local
Crispus Kaitaita grew up fascinated by the ornate body art he'd see in American culture. The 19-year-old Ugandan native saw plenty of examples in the rap videos and movies that trickled into the destitute East African nation from people who traveled abroad. He even gave himself a small tattoo -- a small tribal clef on his right hand.
"I wanted to do it, too," he recalled Monday.
But tattoo parlors are scarce in Uganda and even if they weren't, chances are pretty good he would have never found an apprenticeship.
Even in the United States there aren't a lot of artists that are willing to take enterprising students under their tutelage, Kaitaita found when his family immigrated to Chicago in 2007.
During his search, however, he came across a place called the Tattoo Learning Center in Schenectady. He started a dialogue with owners, Lisa and Jeff Looman, pledging to one day earn enough money to attend the training.
The Looman's had a better idea: They'd offer him a scholarship.
Kaitaita is the first student to receive a tuition-paid education at the center, which was established in 2003 and moved to its location on Curry Road in 2007. The school is rare enough that it regularly draws students from around the country and around the globe. The Tattoo Learning Center has drawn prospective tattoo artists from Iceland to Indonesia, and every U.S. state except Alaska.
Lisa and Jeff started the center in response to some of the difficulty they had breaking into the tattooing business. Lisa said few people in the business are interested in taking on apprentices because there simply is a greater demand than can be filled. "I like to open up a world to them that nobody else will," she said.
People attending the training have the option of staying at a home the business maintains nearby and then commuting to the training each day. Lisa and her fellow instructors are certified with the school, which received its state accreditation last year.
The school is a hands-on experience for the new artists, "By the time they leave here, they'll likely have done at least 20 tattoos," Looman said.
People coming into the center for a tattoo are made aware that they'll be receiving one from someone just learning the skill and they are made to sign a waiver acknowledging this. Still, the center has a robust clientele signing up for the tattoos during each two-week class and now has a waiting list of more than 400 people.
Part of the allure is the cost for each piece: $10 for a small to medium-sized tattoo. Even the smallest of tattoos often costs more than $50 at most tattoo parlors.
Heather Brandon, a 23-year-old medic in the U.S. Army, was a bit nervous about giving her first tattoo. But the Colorado woman said she trusts her teachers and hopes to apply her new-found skill with a group that is known for seeking tattoo artists.
"As long as I'm in the military, I'll have a pretty wide clientele base," she said.
Ralph Smith, 47, of Rotterdam, is also training at the center this week. He said he tried becoming an apprentice before, but was shut out before finding the center.
"Nobody really wanted to give me any information," he said.
Looman is hoping the center's foray into offering scholarships to foreign students from underprivileged countries will allow them to learn a skill to bring back to their native land. She said Kaitaita is a perfect example.
"If he can inspire a few people in his town to follow in his footsteps, then it's perfect," she said.
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