Artist Spotlight: Sam Parker
Artist Spotlight: Sam Parker
We all have something that’s almost intrinsic to who we are, something that’s been part of life so long it becomes part of our identity. For Sam Parker, drawing is that integral aspect; he can’t recall a time when drawing wasn’t part of his life. Even at a young age, Sam realized drawing allowed him to express himself where words failed.
In high school, at the age of 16, Sam enrolled at the Minneapolis College of Art and Design. It was around this time that Sam really began his career in art. He started taking little jobs and selling some of his work in boutiques. By the time he graduated from high school in 1993, Sam already had a year of undergrad completed. Sam began to show interest in tattooing. One of his friends worked as a tattoo artist. In addition to doing some of Sam’s tattoos, Sam began to hang around the shop and watch his friend work. This friend helped Sam get his first pieces of tattoo equipment. Shortly after this, in 1994, Sam dropped out of art school. A year later, he moved to Atlanta.
Sam got a job as a tattoo artist in an Atlanta tattoo shop. After a few years, Sam began to pick up work painting murals in addition to his work as a tattoo artist. In 2000, Sam decided to go back to school. He attended Kennesaw State University where he studied drawing and painting. During his time in undergrad, Sam began to show his work in galleries. After receiving his BFA in 2004, Sam continued showing his work in galleries, got married, and started a family.
In 2007, Sam enrolled at Georgia State University’s graduate program for drawing and painting. After earning his master’s, Sam and his family moved to Colorado and opened his first studio/gallery, The Spiritual Bypass. He continued to show his work in galleries. His work made it into gallery shows across the country, with a few international shows as well. As time wore on, Sam began to feel burnt out. By 2015, he stopped doing gallery shows altogether, preferring to spend his time and energies in the studio making art rather than setting up shows and traveling. Focusing on his art for the remainder of his time in Denver, Sam worked with a group of great artists.
As he and his wife began looking to buy a house, they quickly realized the housing market in Denver was far too expensive. This prompted their move to Louisville. Despite the pandemic, the transition was fairly smooth. Currently, Sam works as a tattoo artist with Karl Otto out of Good Karma Tattoos. Additionally, Sam and Karl have a separate art studio space here at Mellwood, working under the Spiritual Bypass name.
Sam’s work, both his art and tattoo, is illustrative in nature. Both influence the other and share the use bold, distinct black lines. His tattoo work is largely black work, meaning the tattoos only uses black ink. Much of his artwork is pen and ink with splashes of paint for color. On occasion, he uses a traditional brush, but he primarily turns to pentel color brushes. He likes the loose feel theses brushes have compared to traditional brushes. In their use, it’s more akin to drawing than painting. To see more of his work, visit his site at samparkerartist.com. You can also find him on Instagram at @samparkerartist.
We all have something that’s almost intrinsic to who we are, something that’s been part of life so long it becomes part of our identity. For Sam Parker, drawing is that integral aspect; he can’t recall a time when drawing wasn’t part of his life. Even at a young age, Sam realized drawing allowed him to express himself where words failed.
In high school, at the age of 16, Sam enrolled at the Minneapolis College of Art and Design. It was around this time that Sam really began his career in art. He started taking little jobs and selling some of his work in boutiques. By the time he graduated from high school in 1993, Sam already had a year of undergrad completed. Sam began to show interest in tattooing. One of his friends worked as a tattoo artist. In addition to doing some of Sam’s tattoos, Sam began to hang around the shop and watch his friend work. This friend helped Sam get his first pieces of tattoo equipment. Shortly after this, in 1994, Sam dropped out of art school. A year later, he moved to Atlanta.
Sam got a job as a tattoo artist in an Atlanta tattoo shop. After a few years, Sam began to pick up work painting murals in addition to his work as a tattoo artist. In 2000, Sam decided to go back to school. He attended Kennesaw State University where he studied drawing and painting. During his time in undergrad, Sam began to show his work in galleries. After receiving his BFA in 2004, Sam continued showing his work in galleries, got married, and started a family.
In 2007, Sam enrolled at Georgia State University’s graduate program for drawing and painting. After earning his master’s, Sam and his family moved to Colorado and opened his first studio/gallery, The Spiritual Bypass. He continued to show his work in galleries. His work made it into gallery shows across the country, with a few international shows as well. As time wore on, Sam began to feel burnt out. By 2015, he stopped doing gallery shows altogether, preferring to spend his time and energies in the studio making art rather than setting up shows and traveling. Focusing on his art for the remainder of his time in Denver, Sam worked with a group of great artists.
As he and his wife began looking to buy a house, they quickly realized the housing market in Denver was far too expensive. This prompted their move to Louisville. Despite the pandemic, the transition was fairly smooth. Currently, Sam works as a tattoo artist with Karl Otto out of Good Karma Tattoos. Additionally, Sam and Karl have a separate art studio space here at Mellwood, working under the Spiritual Bypass name.
Sam’s work, both his art and tattoo, is illustrative in nature. Both influence the other and share the use bold, distinct black lines. His tattoo work is largely black work, meaning the tattoos only uses black ink. Much of his artwork is pen and ink with splashes of paint for color. On occasion, he uses a traditional brush, but he primarily turns to pentel color brushes. He likes the loose feel theses brushes have compared to traditional brushes. In their use, it’s more akin to drawing than painting. To see more of his work, visit his site at samparkerartist.com. You can also find him on Instagram at @samparkerartist.