Tattoo Artist Kyle Beyers

Looking for black and grey realism? Look no further! We catch up with Kyle Beyers and get to know him, and his work, in this week’s Tattoo Artist feature.

Full name: Kyle Beyers

Age: 27

Shop: Independently under “Kyle B Tattoo”

Years tattooing: 6

Tattoo style: Black and grey realism is my first choice

Hourly rate: R800

Tell us about your journey into becoming a tattoo artist?
Well I’ve always had a natural love and talent for drawing and sketching, and a separate love of tattoos and tattooing, but I never actually thought about doing it myself until my Dad suggested it. I lost my job a week later and decided that life is too short to work for a douche doing something I hate. So I spent my left over money on tattoo equipment I got from a shop in Pretoria and started messing around on my Dad and anybody else who loved me enough to donate skin. Since then, it’s been nothing but love.

How long did it take until you felt completely comfortable tattooing clients?
Well I never had any discomfort, I made sure the victim knew exactly where I was in my career.

How would you best sum up the tattoo industry and what it means to you?
Honestly, not a fan of our local industry. Right now it’s all about work because it’s all I have, tattooing means way more than just my daily bread.

What are your pros and cons of being a tattoo artist?
Life is all fun but there’s no time off. Even at a braai people will pull out a phone and squeeze a consult in.

What do you think is the biggest misconception of tattoo artists?
Personally, everyone thinks I’m a gang member or assumes I know people who are.

What does a day in the life of Kyle consist of?
Get my hustle in at the gym, lay down some ink and then my time belongs to my fiancé and daughter for the rest of the day.

What style of tattoo do you enjoy ding the most and why?
Black and grey realism. It’s where I’m most creatively free.

Did you always know that you would excel in this style or did it come with experience in the field?
Nope, I wanted to be like Josh Woods and make bright cartoons but the clock and rose life chose me.

What do you do to make sure you keep progressing as an artist?
Everything, from practicing drawing to reading up info about skin and skin types, to learning the technicalities of my equipment. If I can understand all aspects then I can aim for perfect product.

Which local and international artist’s do you feel are pushing the boundaries and creating amazing artwork?
Internationally would be Macko Tattoo, Beny Pearce, Poly Tattoo, Daniel Roch, Justin Burnout, Flaks, Chris Showstopper and Jak Connoly – These are artists that I aspire to.
Locally would be the Rising Dragon Team, Sky, Paige and Lily at Artrageous to name a few – These people are evolving at an insane rate.

If you could guest appear in any one shop, which would it be and why?
It would be between Macko Tattoo in Rome or Oculus Tattoo in Melbourne. Both these studios offer a lot of learning for me. I wouldn’t even book anyone, I would sit there and watch.

For anyone wanting to make an appointment with you, what is the next step?
I’m just an email away – kylebtattoo@gmail.com.
Visit Kyle’s Instagram profile – @kylebtatt2.