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Story and Photos by Scott McCool / Art Intensity Network  The year his son Jason was born, Tom Painter started tattooing. That was nearly 28 years ago. Now, Tom and Jason work side by side at their shop in Berryville, Va. called Body Art Tattoo Studio.
Jason has been around the tattoo business all his life. He remembers going to tattoo conventions with his dad and helping to run the booth. "I was the kid at the rail watching all the artists work, artists like Paul Booth, Guy Aitchison, Jack Rudy, all the greats," recalls Jason. As early as 13, he started working as a front man in a shop that his father was working at, doing what he could, sometimes drawing. He started a two-year apprenticeship at age 15, doing his first tattoo on his father around that time fixing up some old stuff that Tom had done back in the '70s. At age 17, under his father's supervision, Jason started tattooing his friends, learning to walk before he could run basically.
Attending so many conventions over the years has allowed Jason to get to know most of the greats he admired since he was a kid. "The best way to get to know [the artists] is by attending the seminars that these guys have done over the years," he says. "I was always the first guy in the room asking questions and picking their brain. You never stop learning."
We were filming for our DVD series at last year's Motor City show, and I remember Jason took Best of Day on Friday with a Wolverine tattoo he had started a few weeks prior. When we were filming at this year's Detroit show, and he took Best of Day on Saturday and Best of Show as well.
Tom Painter and Jason McCarty are the main artists at their shop, but Jason's apprentice, TJ Link, is no slouch either. He recently tattooed a friend of mine, and it was perfect.
They also do body piercing. Tom has been doing it for a longtime, but now they have Dan Agregaard covering the piercing and running the front counter. He's a great guy and has collected some awesome tattoos by Jason. They have an excellent work ethic and their shop attitude is always fun, positive and professional. My own daughter recently got her first tattoo, and it was Jason McCarty who did it.  Body Art Tattoo Studio is about one hour outside of Washington D.C. and about 30 minutes from Dulles Airport. They have clients that fly in to get tattoos sometimes so it's very convenient.
The town they live and work in only has two traffic lights, so it won't be hard to find them if you ever get to Berryville, just ask anybody. You will be glad you did.
Body Art Tattoo Studio is open Tuesday through Saturday 10-6, Fridays 10-8 p.m.
Appointments in the morning and walk-ins rest of the day. For more photos of their work, check out www.bodyarttattoosstudio.com. Body Art Tattoo Studio
8A Chalmers Court
Berryville,Va
540.955.0111 You can see more of Tom and Jason's shop on video in the Art Intensity Network DVD Volume 6 Issue. Available now at www.artintensitynetwork.com
thanks, Scott McCool
Executive Director
West Street Entertainment
540.539.6829 / Cell
dmccool@visuallink.com
www.weststreetnewz.com
ART INTENSITY NETWORK
Tattoo Art DVD Magazine
www.artintensitynetwork.com |
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