Meet Yoni Zilber and discover more about his tattoos, paintings and drawings – collected in the Sketchbook you can find on tattoebooks.com!
Would you like to introduce yourself to our readers?
Hi everybody, my name is Yoni Zilber!
When did you start tattooing and how would you define your style?
I started tattooing in 1997 and for many years I did a lot of different styles of tattoo. In 2003 I got interested in Tibetan art, and I started using it in my tattooing, until I decided that I needed to learn to do it right. In 2006 I met the master of contemporary and traditional Tibetan art, Pema Rinzin and I became his student, a situation that has continued for the last 14 years.
Most of my drawings come from my studies with him and in reference to his work.
I still like to do different style of tattooing, but I mostly get to do tattoos influenced by Tibetan art.
Is it important for you to also paint and draw besides tattooing?
Yes, I do believe that painting and drawing go together with tattooing and the better I am able to draw, the better I will be able to tattoo. When I’m not tattooing I’m sure to be drawing or painting.
What are your favourite subjects and techniques?
All of my work is based on my studies of Tibetan art. I use mostly brush and sumi ink, and if I’m working with colours I’ll use minerals or gouache.
Where did the idea of this eBook come from?
I live in New Jersey and work in New York, so my commute is on a ferry, which gives me an extra one and a half hours (back and forth) to draw. Over the past 7 years doing this commute I have filled many sketch books, and I have a lot of drawings that I haven’t tattooed yet, so I’ve decided to use some of them for this book. I hope to eventually do more.
What are your plans for the future?
I do enjoy doing books so I’m hoping to make books on different subjects, like a book of dragons, tigers, snakes… Or just mix them up depending on how many I am able to produce. Thank you so much to whoever looks at or buys my work. I always appreciate the support.
