They call him The Machine…

By 8 years old, Zack began drawing and painting for motorcycles and cars. Much of his artwork you can see the influence of car show culture and the beginnings of working on motorcycles in the garage with his father.

By the time Zack was 16, he began his banking career which always offered reward for hard work. For eight years strong, like a machine, he climbed his way up the corporate ladder, until one day, just after receiving another promotion; he declined it, and quit. His mind was made up, The Machine was ready and determined to move on.

The transition from banker to tattoo artist wasn’t straight forward. It seemed intuitive to get into a good shop with a good artist; in the end that didn’t matter for Zack. After experiencing a bad apprenticeship, Zack relocated to LA where he was thrust into a sink-or-swim tattoo shop “pretending” to know what he was doing. To his pleasant surprise, rising to the occasion, was exactly the type of training necessary for growth as a new tattoo artist.

The Machine like effort translates well for the full time artist. Zack does his “homework”, which is creating-drawing-painting for 4-6 hours before going to work to tattoo people.

Zack elaborates, “(tattooing) There is no ‘right path’ to climb the ranks. Its unpredictable, like grabbing money from the wind. But I wouldn’t change it for anything. I would never go back to banking. You have to love it. And really work hard. Hone your craft, take your art to the point where it is good, and then push past it, make it better. Never Settle. My art is never the same as it was two years ago, because that would mean, I haven’t evolved. Always Evolve”

Now, The Machine has been tattooing for over 10 years; working hard and living his dream and loving it. ARKEO1 is honored and grateful to feature Zack Taylor’s art.

Find him on Instagram - @themachine13 

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