Castlegar tattoo artist Colin Millar is a corporate refugee who found a career that’s rewarding and satisfying.
Having studied at Alberta College of Art and Design in Calgary after graduating from Nelson’s L.V. Rogers and attending Selkirk College, Millar realized graphic design and commercial illustration didn’t suit his style.
“After a number of years, I realized the long solitary hours, ridiculous deadlines and corporate way of thinking didn’t really work for me,” he said.
About 18 years later, Millar is still content with his line of work. Millar tattoos out of the Wolf’s Den in Castlegar found at 2329 Columbia Avenue and said sitting down with a client, “taking the time to listen and talk” is an important step to making sure someone is 100 per cent comfortable with the work they’re about to have done.
“There is nothing I enjoy more than the smile of a client as they look at their new ink in the mirror for the first time,” he said.
To him, diversity is a critical component to his art taken from paper to skin.
“I really enjoy the diversity of styles and content I get to work with as well as the equally diverse clientele I am privileged to work on,” he said.
In his spare time, the local boy happy to be back in the Kootenays is a musician who plays with Sack Grabbath, a Black Sabbath tribute band.