INKcarceration brings in nation's best tattoo artists: 'It's how we become award winning'

The beat of a dozen amplifiers reverberated against the walls of the Ohio State Reformatory as thousands waited for their turn getting tattooed.

Saturday was day two of the 2023 INKcarceration Music & Tattoo Festival at the prison made famous by "The Shawshank Redemption" in Mansfield.

The event is a partnership of America’s largest independent festival producer, Danny Wimmer Presents, and the creators of INKcarceration. It's three days of the biggest names in rock, alternative and metal music blended with the most talented tattoo artists in North America.

Pantera was the headliner Saturday night and Slipknot was scheduled for Sunday. Limp Bizkit topped the bill on Friday, opening night.

Bands played on three different stages outside. Inside the Reformatory, more than 65 artists from 28 tattoo studios created some of their most intricate works ever.

'You have to be talented and well known to be invited'

One of the talented few was Ari Mastellino, a tattoo artist with Foundation Tattoo in Pittsburgh.

She's been at the craft for nearly four years, two of which were as an apprentice.

"I started getting heavily tattooed at 18," she explained.

Her favorite tattoo artists agreed to teach her the trade.

"It was the only thing I was passionate about," Mastellino said.

Five years later, she's glad to be making tattoos on a professional level. She's developed such a large client base that she's booking nearly two months in advance.

So, she's good?

"I think I'm good," Mastellino said. "I try to be good."

"She has to be good, because she's here," a woman standing in line said in her defense. "You have to be invited here, and you have to be talented and well known to be invited."

'I'm getting my dream tattoo'

The mystery woman was Sarah Seibert. She drove to Mansfield from her home in rural Missouri, which is halfway between St. Louis and Springfield.

Seibert stood in line for more than two hours just to get inside the Reformatory. Then, she had to look at each of the artists' portfolios to see whose work she liked the best.

"She has really good lines," she said of Mastellino.

The client had to hope the artist was free. She was in luck. "My appointment just canceled," Mastellino told her.

After just a few moments, Mastellino brought to life a design of a sun covered with ocean waves. It cost about $200 and would take nearly an hour, at most.

"I'm getting my dream tattoo," Seibert told her boyfriend, Nuiel Atchley. "My grandpa used to call me 'Sunshine,' so this is near and dear to my heart."

'I'm a huge heavy metal fan'

Atchley was happy he had convinced Seibert to make the 12-hour drive to Ohio. He's been a longtime fan of music festivals in California, Florida and Kentucky.

As far as festival producers go, he said that Danny Wimmer Presents does it better than anyone else.

"They're all unique in their own way," Atchley said.

Mansfield's production stands out for the way it blends music with tattoos.

"I'm a huge heavy metal fan," Atchley said.

The crowd of 25,000 each day at INKcarceration was no suprise to him.

"Typically you will see people from all 50 states," Atchley said.

And the venue made the festival even better than they could have imagined.

"It's awesome," Seibert said. "It was amazing to see something from TV in real life."

'It's how we become award winning'

The artists all drove to the tattoo convention specifically so they could compete against one another, explained Bryer Heath, a tattoo artists from Davenport, Iowa.

"It's how we become award winning," he said.

He's been tattooing for 11 years. He visited INKcarceration in 2021 and was invited as an artist for the first time in 2022. He's won three conventions throughout his career, and was focused on getting an award this year in Mansfield.

So were all the other artists.

Rather than spend her weekend on a few big projects, Mastellino opted instead to do nearly her double workload each day of the festival.

The festival and the venue made an excellent setting for her to finish her work.

"I'm super impressed," Mastellino said. "I want to come back. It's way cooler than I expected."

ztuggle@gannett.com

419-564-3508

Twitter: @zachtuggle

This article originally appeared on Mansfield News Journal: INKcarceration invites best tattoo artists from across the country