Tattoo 408
You can't talk about the developments of modern tattooing without mentioning the contributions of the San Francisco Bay Area. The number of renowned tattooists to at least get their start in either San Francisco or Oakland is staggering. But how many can you name from San Jose? Let's fix that! Like most things in Bay Area popular culture, Santa Clara County—affectionately called "the 408"—has made rich, diverse, yet overshadowed offerings to the world of body art. Every other week we'll either get to know a new San Jo tattooist or drop a little South Bay tattoo history. This is Tattoo 408.
Episodes
Ike Greca started dabbling in tattooing in his hometown of Porto Alegre, Brazil. It was there that he read about San Jose's New Skool Tattoo in a magazine. Little did he know, he'd eventually be tattooing with those sam artists. Now based in Vancouver, WA, Ike still visits San Jose frequently, typically guesting at Eleventh Dimension Tattoo Arts.
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Ike Greca started dabbling in tattooing in his hometown of Porto Alegre, Brazil. It was there that he read about San Jose's New Skool Tattoo in a magazine. Little did he know, he'd eventually be tattooing with those sam artists. Now based in Vancouver, WA, Ike still visits San Jose frequently, typically guesting at Eleventh Dimension Tattoo Arts.
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Andre Bernal was born and raised in San Jose, CA but left his hometown right out of high school to join the Marines. Soon after that, he completed a tattoo apprenticeship in Dayton, OH before returning to the Bay Area where he has spent the rest of his 25 year career. You can currently find him tattooing downtown at Blacksuit Tattoo.
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Andre Bernal was born and raised in San Jose, CA but left his hometown right out of high school to join the Marines. Soon after that, he completed a tattoo apprenticeship in Dayton, OH before returning to the Bay Area where he has spent the rest of his 25 year career. You can currently find him tattooing downtown at Blacksuit Tattoo.
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🌵 Born in Massachusetts, raised in New Mexico, and settled in San Jose, Daniel Dagones is a tattooer with a unique perspective on his art. He learned the craft in his hometown of Las Cruces in the early 2000s. But in 2011 when he moved to the 408, he was inspired by the quality of tattoos here and his work truly became his own.
He's been tattooing at Current Tattooing for over a decade now and he's also a co-founder of San J...
Born in Massachusetts, raised in New Mexico, and settled in San Jose, Daniel Dagones is a tattooer with a unique perspective on his art. He learned the craft in his hometown of Las Cruces in the early 2000s. But in 2011 when he moved to the 408, he was inspired by the quality of tattoos here and his work truly became his own.
He's been tattooing at Current Tattooing for over a decade now and he's also a co-founder of San Jose's ...
Tattooer Matt Tillman—owner and proprietor of the Holy Scythe Tattoo—grew up in San Jose through the 80s and 90s. What started as tracing comics morphed into a tattooing career of over two decades.
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Tattooer Matt Tillman—owner and proprietor of the Holy Scythe Tattoo—grew up in San Jose through the 80s and 90s. What started as tracing comics morphed into a tattooing career of over two decades.
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✍️ Crystel Vasquez grew up drawing and coloring on San Jose's east side when she came across the tattoo work of Roberto Cervantes—remember him from episodes 14 & 15? Now, 20 years later, she is tattooing on the south side at Sacred Oath Tattoos.
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✍️ Crystel Vasquez grew up drawing and coloring on San Jose's east side when she came across the tattoo work of Roberto Cervantes—remember him from episodes 14 & 15? Now, 20 years later, she is tattooing on the south side at Sacred Oath Tattoos.
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🤘 Sphinx's story picks up where we left off last episode—the beginnings of Current Tattooing. Sphinx also talks about his artistic inspirations and share a few wild stories.
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🤘 Sphinx's story begins not with a tattoo machine, but with a can of spray paint. He was born in San Jose in 1974, and as a young kid in the early '80s, he was drawn to graffiti after watching Beat Street. He began his tattoo career in 2001 at Metamorphic, where he apprenticed under Andy Johnson. Today you can find Sphinx tattooing at Current Tattooing.
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The second half of Ethan's interview with Dan Wysuph at Fog City Tattoo in Santa Cruz, CA. Make sure you go back and listen to the first half if you haven't!
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😶🌫️ Ethan took a trip down the windy highway 17 to pay a visit to Dan Wysuph at Fog City Tattoo on Seabright Ave in Santa Cruz, CA.
🏄🏻 Dan grew up in the Santa Cruz mountains, attending high school in Los Gatos, yet spending most of his free time in Santa Cruz. Having spent his childhood with one foot in Santa Cruz and another in San Jose, he's spent the majority of his tattooing career like that as well. With just over twe...
Tomorrow is Friday the 13th! You know what that means, tons of San Jose shops tattooing tons of awesome flash designs at a discount. Here’s where you can get some sick tats tomorrow:
Midtown:
Eleventh Dimension Tattoo Arts
Downtown:
Rose Garden/Alameda:
In this episode, Ethan sites down with San Jose tattooer Jerry Moran to talk about what first pulled him into tattooing, how he’s stayed grounded through the industry's shifts, and why collaboration and connection remain at the heart of his work. From his earliest obsessions to the way he brings clients' ideas to life, Jerry shares what it means to him to be part of the tattoo community—and why he never plans to stop.
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In this episode, Ethan sites down with San Jose tattooer Jerry Moran to talk about what first pulled him into tattooing, how he’s stayed grounded through the industry's shifts, and why collaboration and connection remain at the heart of his work. From his earliest obsessions to the way he brings clients' ideas to life, Jerry shares what it means to him to be part of the tattoo community—and why he never plans to stop.
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Sup...
Ethan Gregory Dodge sits down with Milwaukee tattooer Julio Ávila about his start in tattooing and how his career brought him to the 408.
Julio lives up to the stereotype of a storied tattooist with some truly wild stories. In fact, he just published a book detailing many of them. Support him by picking up a copy 👇🏻
Tales of a Tattoo Apprentice by Julio Ávila
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Ethan Gregory Dodge sits down with Milwaukee tattooer Julio Ávila about his start in tattooing and how his career brought him to the 408.
Julio lives up to the stereotype of a storied tattooist with some truly wild stories. In fact, he just published a book detailing many of them. Support him by picking up a copy 👇🏻
Tales of a Tattoo Apprentice by Julio Ávila
---
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The second half of Ronita's interview with Ethan.
Episodes now drop the first Monday of every month and both parts of the interview drop on the same day!
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⭐ Rate & Review – A quick 5-star rating on Spotify or Apple Podcasts helps a ton and only takes a few seconds.
📢 Spread the Word – Share this episode with your friends, your artist, your cousin who’s obsessed with ink—let’s grow the 408 tattoo fam.
💸 Leave...
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