Hi artists, it's Jing.

I've been mentoring tattoo apprentices and artists for over 8 years now. I run several in-person tattoo skill workshops every year, year-long apprenticeship programs, and a few online courses. And I've noticed this:

Artists need a community.

An actual "best tattoo community," in a sense, where tattoo artists can get constant feedback on their work, friendly critique, skill tips and all that from peers and more professional tattoo artists. The most important thing: continue to grow as an artist in a supportive environment with no pressure.

I've been thinking about arranging a community like this for a while now, but I haven't really decided to do it — simply because this type of thing costs too much time to manage. I'm rethinking it at the end of 2026, and I want to collect your opinions to see whether I should create this group.

Below, I have a Google Form listing some of my questions:

Let me know your thoughts →

If you are interested in an art community like this, please fill out the form so I know what format for this community would be best for you — and hopefully, it could open in 2027.

My ideal best online communities for tattoo artists#

The ideal format of this art community I'm thinking of now is like this:

It should contain these 5 blocks:
1. Tattoo skills
2. Art and design
3. Social media growth
4. Structured learning roadmaps
5. Small courses on unique topics such as full sleeve composition, color tones, etc.
I will offer one livestream session per month, demonstrating tattoo skills in real time to answer artists' tattoo technique questions.
I will share my understanding of art and inspirational artworks in the group, to push everybody to grow their art taste.
I will share social media management tips and timely algorithm updates to help everybody grow their followers.
I will answer people's questions and give feedback on their artworks.
I will offer one-on-one feedback and portfolio critiques (this will be a special offer, not for everyone).
Ideally, I'll invite other good artists to be guests and share their own techniques in the group (only when it's a very large group).

Is it for tattoo apprentices or for professional tattoo artists?#

It should be at a level that's helpful for professional tattoo artists as well, not just for beginners and apprentices.
Honestly, even though I've been tattooing for more than 10 years, I still feel the need to keep growing in my art (and sometimes my tattoo techniques). There is always a lot of room to grow. I can't speak for other experienced tattoo artists, but speaking for myself, I would hope to have a community like this for myself.
No matter what skill level you are, you should find useful content here.

Is it a platform that combines courses, live sessions, assignments and discussion?#

It will have live sessions and free discussion.
Structured courses are a separate product, and I prefer not to blend them into this community group. A good number of my followers have already bought my online courses, so it would be unfair to them if I gave the courses out for free in this community.
Assignments are offered in each online course, along with the tattoo techniques explained. The community is more of a free-form thing, so it will not have assignments.

How many live Q&A sessions do I get?#

This is the main thing I want to collect feedback on from everybody. Essentially, the more live sessions and video demonstrations, the better for the members. But there is a large time cost behind it: for every live session or video demonstration, I'll have to read through the questions, prepare the answers, demonstrate the skill, record the video, and then edit it.
I would love to offer as much support as needed, but a quick reminder: I'm a reputable artist and I charge $2,500 per day for my tattoos, so the time spent offering live sessions, answering questions or any other support will have to be paid for, at least enough to cover my time cost. Otherwise, this community could not happen.

Why is it so hard to get actually useful feedback from professional tattoo artists?#

For the same reason. The artist's opinion you want to hear costs their time, and their time is very expensive. A lot of people don't want to pay to ask questions, or they don't pay enough and just wish for detailed critique and useful feedback on questions that are vague and not clearly described.

This leads to the next question:

How much is this art community? Is it paid or free?#

This is the main question I want to investigate. Rough planning numbers are $49 per month, and $39 per month if you pay yearly.
Ideally, the content is well worth the price you pay, and I feel my time is fairly compensated at the same time.

My artists and apprentices at Patch Tattoo Therapy get this kind of support, but only once in a while. I feel like it is a very beneficial thing for most artists, and I do believe I have the capability to make it a great art community.

The only thing left to figure out is: how many people would actually join this community and pay for it, and is the membership income enough to cover all my time running this group? If the answer is positive, then let's do it — so please let me know your thoughts in the Google Form below: