We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Antonio Chee a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Antonio, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Did you always know you wanted to pursue a creative or artistic career? When did you first know?

I wanted to pursue this creative and artistic path since I was in primary school. I want to say around the 2nd or 3rd grade. My class was asked to draw for a build board. The artwork had to do something with “buckle up” or “seat belts”. We were split into 3 person teams. Our team’s artwork was one of the chosen ones. That feeling of our artwork being chosen stuck with me. At the time I didn’t know what it was. All I knew was they really liked our artwork.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

Getting into the tattoo was not easy for me. In the beginning I struggled with my addiction to alcohol and pain killers. I was at Fort Bliss recovering from a hand surgery. I tore a ligament in my right pinky finger. This happened when I was deployed in Afghanistan. They sent me back to Fort Bliss to get my pinky fixed. During that recovery time I was going to the local shops around Fort Bliss. I met an artist name Horse at one of the shops. He helped me out a lot. I got tattooed by him a few times and he was always open with me with tattoo questions. Just being around him I learned about the street shop and how they run it. From there I got outta the Army and came back home to Arizona. I wanted to tattoo. I wanted to get into a shop. I was working at Amazon and I could not hold that job down. I struggled staying sober. I left that job. I got all my drawings together and made a portfolio. At the time I didn’t have any good tattoo photos. I took my drawing portfolio to a shop I was interested in working at. They gave me a shot. I lasted 1 month. I struggled staying sober and I was about to go to jail for a DUI charge. I was sentenced to 6months. When I finished that sentence I moved back to Flagstaff and tried to find a shop to get into. I was on probation at the time. I went to all the shops I wanted to work at in Flagstaff and I got a lot of no’s. I only had my drawing portfolio and the drawings i did when I was in jail to show my work. So I got turned away a lot. Then one day I got a Facebook message from Rodney who I didn’t know at the time and he became a lifelong friend now. He had a small shop and asked if I needed a spot to work. I’m so grateful for the opportunity he gave me. I did my best to always be there early and late nights everyday. I worked with him for around 6 months. It felt like more. I really enjoyed my time there. I ended up violating my probation and going back to jail. I got tired of drinking and going in and out of jail. I checked myself into rehab after that probation violation. After completing rehab I got a opportunity to work for a shop out here in Phoenix. They found me on social media. (During the whole time I was going through this I was always drawing and posting on social media.) That opportunity changed my life. I was sober and hungry. Shout out Clay, Shout Out Big Joe, and Shout out Grand Ave Tattoo. They gave me the opportunity to travel and to work with like minded artists. They gave me a chance to work with artists I look up to. I worked with them for 4 yrs. The pandemic hit and I wanted to venture out on my own. That bring us to today. I’m now an artist at The Desert Bloom Tattoo and Salon.
My artwork is my journey. I share that with every tattoo, every painting, every drawing. It’s messy in the beginning but I keep working it until I get a clear picture or clear message. I enjoy the grind and enjoy creating.

What’s the most rewarding aspect of being a creative in your experience?

The most rewarding for me is the trust my client gives me to create something meaningful for them to put on their skin. Thats meaningful to me because that artwork is going to be permanently on their skin. It stays on them to death. They can’t take their materialistic stuff with them but they can take their tattoos. So I do my best for them.

What’s a lesson you had to unlearn and what’s the backstory?

I had to unlearn saying yes to everything. I always said yes to everything and everyone. I spread myself thin early in my career. I worked everyday and hardly turned clients away. I was tattooing big pieces for little money. I would tattoo the client that came in at closing time and I would tattoo on my days off.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: @artofchee
• Facebook: Tone Chee
• Other: TikTok;
  artofchee