David Vega
David Vega is from Austin, Texas and specializes in black and gray realism; he is most well known for his incredibly smooth hyper-realistic portraits.
David grew up going to tattoo conventions with his father, blossoming his appreciation for art and tattoos. After graduating from art school in San Francisco and moving back to Austin, David took up tattooing. He has spent the last nearly two decades tirelessly working to become an expert in his craft. David is self-taught and began his tattoo journey tattooing in the traditional style; making the pivot to realism early in his career. He is now considered one of the undisputed masters of realism tattooing.
David's art is known throughout the world and he has amassed over 300,000 followers on Instagram. In 2018 David collaborated with Empire Inks to create his own signature set and in 2021 he collaborated with Bishop to create his own signature wand. David now owns Devotion Studios in Austin alongside Trent Valleau.
David's seminar is titled Creating Smooth Portraits. During this presentation David will cover the techniques that he uses to create his unbelievably life-like and smooth realism portraits in black and gray, with an emphasis on creating consistent smooth shades and transitions.