Interview
Brian Hall
Art has always been a driving force in Brian Hall’s life. He began tattooing in 2009 while stationed in Okinawa, Japan, during his service in the United States Marine Corps. After completing his enlistment, Brian started a formal apprenticeship in Oceanside, CA, and later transitioned to full-time tattooing in San Diego. His passion for drawing began in childhood, fueled by a love for Marvel Comics and storytelling through illustration. That early interest led him to earn a BFA in Fine Art from the Academy of Art University, where he focused on traditional techniques and visual expression. In addition to tattooing, he’s available for commissioned oil paintings, including portraits, still life, and custom fine art pieces. If you’re interested in booking a tattoo or commissioning original artwork, he would love to connect.
What is your background and how did you start your journey in the art world?
“I grew up in Texas with a love for comics. As a child, I discovered my love for art while drawing the figures and characters I saw in the comics. As I got older, I fell into a rough crowd and I began drawing the environment around me which included lowriders and portraits. My art journey took a brief pause when I joined the Marine Corps in an effort to regain control of my life. At 29, I found myself rediscovering Me again. I began a tattoo apprenticeship and by the time I was honorably discharged from the service, my tattoo career had begun. At 33 I set out a goal to earn a degree in illustration but soon realized my passion for Oil Painting. In May of 2024, I finally completed and earned my BFA in Fine Art with a focus on figure painting.”
What inspires you?
“I am inspired by the life around me. As a tattoo artist, I listen to people’s life stories, through their challenges and triumphs, I try to bring their ideas and visions to life. Whether the piece is on skin or a canvas, I love taking meaningful and emotional moments, like that of a newly married couple feeding each other cake, or a child running in for a touchdown, and then illustrating them into something that will be treasured for years to come.”
What themes do you pursue? Is there an underlying message in your work?
“When it comes to my art, my underlying message is always to pursue some type of story and the emotion behind that moment. Figure painting has been my overall theme, whether it’s a father watering the grass or watching TV, or children playing in the park. While in school I found that I was my best model and did many self-portraits. Tattoo culture has been a major influence in my life and I wanted to do a series of ‘hands at work.’ So, I photographed all my coworkers hands while they were tattooing and then experimented with different techniques on the canvas. That idea spawned into a series capturing more moments of tattooers in their element as well as the customer(s) seeking a new tattoo. I hope to build a large body of work that encompasses modern tattoo culture.”
How would you describe your work?
“I feel like I’m still finding myself as an artist in the painting world, so I have a mixture of styles in my portfolio. I’ve refined myself with realism but constantly strive to be more loose and freeing with the brush. Then, on the flip side, I’ll just start moving the paint brush around to create a completely made-up nebula or a swirling mess of colors to see what comes out of it. I’ve dabbled around with some abstract work as well that I’m really proud of and feel that one day I will establish a decent series with that style.”
Which artists influence you most?
“Caravaggio is one of my favorite Renaissance Artists. Chiaroscuro has been a style that I enjoy translating on skin and on canvas. The illustrations and use of storytelling in the work of Norman Rockwell, has been a major influence in my work. As far as modern artists, an instructor of mine, Kevin Moore, helps inspires me to push my limits with color and abstraction. I also discovered Will Rochfort through Instagram one day and I hope that I can create such amazing work of art like his.”
“When it comes to my art, my underlying message is always to pursue some type of story and the emotion behind that moment.”
What is your creative process like?
“I don’t think I use a singular process in any of my works. In general, when an idea comes to me I sketch some thumbnails, take some photos for reference, resketch the scene and then begin to apply it to the canvas. I guess another way to answer this question is that the way I get ready to start painting I make sure I have the time, to start, lay out my palette, stare at my reference to figure out what paint to use, then I’ll find movie or a podcast to put on in the background, sometimes music affects me too much and could change my mood – makes me either want to sing a long, move around too much, or even just annoys me if that wrong song comes on. I try and set aside 4-8 hours of painting time so music might be work for an hour or so but I typically need something else in the background. I found that if I work in complete silence that I will get stuck in that one position, continually working towards that ‘stopping point,’ but that moment never comes and three hours later I can barely stand up.”
What is an artist’s role in society and how do you see that evolving?
“I think art in general evokes emotion, whether positive or negative, but mostly I like think that artists help make the world more beautiful, or at the very least, try and capture that beauty for everyone to admire. The evolution of artists today is a scary thought with the evolvement of AI into the art industry. Where I’m sure there will always be a place for fast, quick, and cheap art, my hope is that artist will find their place in this changing world and people will continue to recognize the difference between quick and easy over fine craftsmanship.”
