The style of Canadian tattoo artist Jenna Coffin, far from the gloomy references and gothic black as her name would suggest, stands out for its whimsical compositions and the use of vibrant colours that would bring it closer to pop art. At 42 years old, is Jenna definitively putting traditional styles in a box?
Can you tell us a bit about your background, how do you learn to draw?
I was originally a theatrical makeup artist so art has always been a part of my life. When getting into tattooing I had a lot of help learning to draw from my mentor Jay Freestyle.
You learn to tattoo with your husband, is tattooing always a couple thing?
This is an interesting question because we actually tattoo at separate shops so that we don’t kill each other lol.
Your work stands out in particular by its very bright colours, has this always been the case?
I started doing bright colour work right away and I really enjoy the technique of applying colour to the skin. I might start to learn black & grey as well soon so keep your eyes peeled for a new style!
These bright colors makes your style close to pop art. Does Tattooing belong to it according to you?
My style has a lot of pop art mixed into it because I love the bold lines and bright colours I can mix in with that element. My style is often referred to as pop art because I have so many elements mixed in most people are not sure what to call it.
Your work stands out because of its graphic influences and the variety of the montages you create. Your creative work is at the crossroads of analogue and digital?
My brain is very active and I have so many ideas swirling around in there all the time so since I couldn’t decide which style I wanted to do I chose to mix them all which created a unique style for me.
What software do you use?
Procreate is my go to software and occasionally I use photoshop or face tune to tweak the faces I use in my designs.
When do realism and portraits come into play?
Portraits are used in almost all of my tattoos because I love creating the human face. I think my portrait style is realism with a cartoon vibe mixed in as my stuff does not fit in the category of only realism.
We often find a face that looks like yours. A classic among artists isn't it ?!
This is for sure something that lots of artists do lol. I find I either pick a person who looks like me or a person who looks like my client. I don’t even mean to do it but often times people think I tattooed myself. I have tattooed my face twice, can you find which ones in my online portfolio?
You became known for your creations made from a blade pattern, is mixing realism and drawing a way to renew yourself?
The knife style was actually a request from a client of mine and I loved creating it so much I kept making them. They are my favourite thing to design and tattoo.
You also like to put words or expressions in your drawings, is it a way to add a dimension of... sound? The drawings are not enough on their own?
To me this is a way to just add a little bit of fun into the piece. Since I use random faces and turn them into characters from movies instead of using celebrities I also use the words so people can tie in whatever the movie is to the tattoo. I especially love when people let me put in funny puns!
What are your favourite subjects of inspiration? Movies? Cartoons?
Movies I love anything animation or old classic horror movies. I’m a big sucker for 80s and 90s cartoons since I grew up in them. I am still waiting for someone to ask me for a monsters Inc piece since it’s my favourite movie.
Is the coffin in your name a reference to vampire movies?
I originally wanted to tattoo all horror stuff so I chose Coffin as my last name in reference to macabre. Now I tattoo cute stuff lol who would have thought I would go from horror to rainbow bright.
Favorite Scream queen?
Jamie Lee Curtis is my favourite scream queen! She’s such a blast from my past and I always love seeing her on screen. + IG : @jennacoffintattoo
