Danny Fugate, tattoo artist and owner of Ambition Tattoo, enjoys being a diverse tattoo artist with a successful business. He has been making his mark on the tattoo world for some time now, particularly with his precise portrait work. Clients come not only to see him but also to enjoy the work of the other talented, full-time tattoo artists he has helped.
Taking pride in his portraits, Fugate said they’re his strong points. His first portrait ever, a sketch of C.S. Lewis, can be found still hanging in his tattoo shop. Fugate finds success in his work by taking time to fully complete a piece. He explained that doing quality work is what makes portraits recognizable and achievable.
“The portraits are not necessarily unique, but they are well done,” Fugate said, “and that’s what makes them stand out.”
Fugate pointed out his multitude of Elvis Presley portrait tattoos to emphasize his dedication to doing quality work.
“We’ve all seen so many portraits of Elvis, and if they are bad, they will not be recognizable,” Fugate explained, stressing no one wants a face on their body they can’t recognize.
Creating high quality tattoos started early for Fugate. At a very early age, he began giving himself mock tattoos with the ink from a stamp pad and used his older brother’s tattoos as inspiration. Looking back on his childhood, Fugate believes it was almost destiny for him to tackle his current job.
Around the age of 16, Fugate started to ponder becoming an artist. At 17, he spent several weeks in an apprenticeship and then began tattooing regularly. A year after he was officially a tattoo artist, Fugate bought his own tattoo shop.
After five years of traveling between different tattoo conventions, it was time for Fugate to find a new tattoo shop in the Knoxville area he could call home. So the search began. He had a grand opening party planned without an actual building, crossing his fingers that something would pop up. After driving past Ambition’s current location, Fugate knew it was the place to open up his shop and ran with the opportunity.
The entire space was remodeled and opened in 13 days, just in time for the grand opening on Oct. 1, 2011.
Despite the difficulty in finding a location, Fugate is particularly happy with how his business has turned out at the current location and looks forward to many more years.
“This location has worked out great for us,” Fugate said. “This has worked out to be a phenomenal area.”
Ambition Tattoo gives ink enthusiasts a new, professional experience in the Knoxville tattoo culture with artists who have won countless awards in tattoo festivals and conventions, including Muddy Water Tattoo Convention, Little Rock, AR Tattoo & Arts Festival and Erie Tattoo Convention. The inside of the building features an art gallery, a comfortable lounge area to look over artist’s work and no neon flashing lights.
“We have none of that pick-it-and-stick-it BS that other shops have,” Fugate said.
Along with running Ambition Tattoo, Fugate is also responsible for the Knoxville Tattoo Convention. The event brings in artists from around the nation to show off their skills. The festival is especially unique to Fugate and Ambition Tattoo because no other shop in Tennessee is involved with the production. He said it is a great experience for the Knoxville community.
“The convention allows us to bring a lot of guest artists that work for a week or so tattooing people in the greater Knoxville area,” Fugate said.
Not only has Fugate created his own business, but he has influenced Knoxville’s body art scene. He takes pride in his business and his ability to get a positive name circulating about the work his artists do.
“Many artists look at tattoos as a paycheck instead of the living piece of art that they are,” Fugate said.
And that is the opposite of what Fugate and the Ambition crew is striving to do.
