Jesse Smith
Jesse Smith is one of the undisputed masters of the new school style. His work is nothing short of iconic, and he is known for his large-scale, zany, colorful pieces.
Jesse grew up in a military family and moved around a lot as a kid. One thing stayed consistent though--his love for art--whether it was MAD comics or Dungeons and Dragons. While living in Germany as a teen, he also became interested in graffiti and wanted to pursue art school. He ended up joining the military instead and was stationed in Virginia, where he got a job drawing caricatures at Busch Gardens theme park. In 1998 he did his first tattoo to experiment with a new medium, but the clients didn't stop coming. Jesse then traveled to London to learn more about tattooing and has since traveled all around the world to tattoo. Jesse is undoubtedly an expert in his craft.
In 2011 Jesse returned back to Richmond, Virginia to open his own studio: Loose Screw Tattoos. Jesse was a contestant on season two and seven of Inkmaster. In 2016 Jesse took over as the host for the Richmond Tattoo & Arts Convention, one of the oldest continuous tattoo conventions in the world.