One of Lake City Tattoo's veteran artists, Mark has been working at Lake City for over 10 years, nearly as long as he's been tattooing.  Mark made the decision to become a tattoo artist after getting a lot of tattoos of his own, thinking it would be the ideal job for him.  "I thought it seemed like a great way to make a living," Mark says, "doing art, meeting all kinds of different people."  Mark was Lake City's first employee when they opened their doors over 10 years ago.  He loves doing big work and wishes most of his own tattoos were bigger.  "Like most people I just bought what I could afford instead of just starting one big project at the outline," he says.  Mark also likes doing challenging and intricate pieces.

     Mark attributes his primary body of influence to the world of eastern art and culture.  "Japanese and Chinese cultures I love because they are so ancient," he explains, "Especially Chinese.  Much of what they have believed and understood for thousands of years is just recently being taken seriously here in the west."  In fact, Mark's work area at Lake City is adorned with eastern artwork, martial arts and philosophy books, and eastern weaponry.

     But it's all about the people for Mark.  "I have a lot of really good customers," he says, "Some of them are kids who are finally old enough for their first tattoo and their folks bring them in to me for their first time."  He also loves the area, and lives in Lake Geneva with his wife and sons.  "I like living by the lake, I like the area," he adds.  "I'll probably stay here forever!"