Today we’d like to introduce you to Jackie Rabbit.
Jackie, we appreciate you taking the time to share your story with us today. Where does your story begin?
Originally from San Francisco, I’ve been a tattoo artist for 25 years. My work has taken me all over the country. My partner and I moved to the St Louis area 4 years ago and opened Eldritch Brothers Tattoo & Gallery. In addition to tattooing I am a painter and writer. St Louis and especially the art community here has been so welcoming. I have had the opportunity to show my paintings in so many wonderful galleries and have gotten to meet so many kind and talented artists.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
Overall it has been an incredibly rocky road. I am an abuse and assault survivor both as a child and as an adult. I rose up through poverty and even have been unhoused. I have lived through floods and fires and devastating earthquakes, but managed to somehow survive. In 2018 I survived the Camp Fire in Paradise California. I lost everything and had to flee on foot through the fire with my dog. I have a lot of anxiety and CPTSD that is a daily struggle to manage. I love my life though and I love my work so I’m always finding new ways to push forward and create.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
As a tattoo artist I specialize in black and grey realism and illustrative realism. I do mostly larger pieces and with a darker more witchy bent. I am also very skilled at cover ups and am able to tackle the more extreme projects that the clients have been told are impossible. One thing that sets me apart besides my 25 years of experience is my speed. I can work incredibly fast and do high quality work at breakneck speeds. Clients travel to me from all over the country not only for the quality of tattoos that I do but also because I can finish their whole arm or leg in a weekend.
Where my traditional art is concerned, I work mostly in acrylic paint but also really enjoy watercolor and marker. Most of my pieces are a commentary on trauma and the feeling of being unmoored from the world. I use it to process and illustrate my emotions and experiences.
We’d be interested to hear your thoughts on luck and what role, if any, you feel it’s played for you?
I am so torn on the subject of luck. Kind of like the word “talent” it can sometimes be dismissive of the hard work that went into a thing. On the one hand I think you make your own luck. Often I feel like my life exists because I used brute force to will it into being despite the odds and obstacles. On the other hand there are all of these little things that if they had gone differently then none of it would have worked. Maybe luck is the thing that sets up the conditions that can help us succeed but we still have to be the ones to do the work.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.jackierabbit.com
- Instagram: @jackie_rabbit
- Other: https://www.eldritchbothers.com
