Mister Cartoon: Tattoo Artist

A one time street kid and graffiti tagger in East Los Angeles, Mister Cartoon (a.k.a. Mark Machado) has built himself such a heavy reputation as a respected tattoo artist that he finds his ink in high demand from many of the biggest rappers and hip hop artists in the music scene today. Working in the style of the prison tattoo artists who use diluted black ink to created gray tones that give the tattoos the illusion of depth and shadow, Mister Cartoon has perfected the technique to the point that he is now considered to be one of the most elite tattoo artists in the business, and is currently sought out by hardcore artists in the music scene who want to get seriously inked.

Mister Cartoon’s tattoo portfolio resembles a paparazzi’s dark room the night after a music industry award show. His artwork is etched into the skin of Eminem, Justin Timberlake, Beyonce Knowles, 50 Cent, Dr. Dre, Kanye West, Missy Elliot, Big Boi, Mobb Deep, the members of Cypress Hill, Method Man, Pharrell Williams, Slash, and Bow Wow. Among his most famous, oft reported about tattoos is the large portrait of Eminem’s daughter that he inked into the hip hop mogul’s upper right arm and shoulder.

From his days in the streets of East LA, painting murals and spraying graffiti onto buildings, Mister Cartoon demonstrated ability and a dramatic sense of style as an artist. After sitting for his first tattoo himself, he became enamored by the skill and precision required to work with skin as the canvas. He schooled himself in some of Los Angeles’ most famous tattoo parlors, hanging around with the tattoo artists, learning from them, and getting voluminously tattooed himself. He built a home made tattoo gun and practiced on a friend until he was able to afford his own professional tattoo set up.

The artwork of Mister Cartoon first caught the attention of the music business when the band Cypress Hill asked him to design an album cover for them. They followed that with several more covers, and slew of tattoos. From there, rap and hip hop’s top artists caught word of Mister Cartoon, and his tattoo empire began to build. To date, Mister Cartoon has designed album covers, logos, and PR materials for Snoop Dogg, Eazy E, D12, Shady Records, Tribal Streetwear, and, of course, Cypress Hill. He has also designed custom paint jobs for the cars of celebrities, including Hustler Magazine owner Larry Flint, boxer Oscar de la Hoya, and Eminem among others, and has had his artwork featured in magazines such as Rolling Stone, Details, Detour and Vibe, just to name a few. He also has a clothing line called Joker Brand Clothing.

No mater how vast and expansive the artistic horizon of Mister Cartoon becomes, however, his cred as a tattoo artist will continue to be what feeds his reputation with the masters of the music scene in Los Angeles. One of the things that makes his black and gray renderings of clowns, religious icons, and symbols of street life so valuable to the music artists is that each tattoo is unique, drawn specifically for the customer. He does not have a book of samples that you can just walk in off the street and choose from. Each and every Mister Cartoon tattoo is one of a kind.

Getting inked by the best will cost you. Mister Cartoon works by appointment only, and typically has a one to three month waiting list. His tattoo pricing starts at $2,000.00, and he requires a $200.00 non-refundable deposit for first time clients. To set up an appointment, you must contact Mister Cartoon at mrcartoon@mistercartoon.com with your contact information, and he will get in touch with you by telephone to set up an appointment to discuss the details of your tattoo in person. In the mean time, you can check out Mister Cartoon at www.mistercartoon.com to browse a gallery of his work.