Arts
THE OSIDER JANUARY/FEBRUARY 2021
THE ART OF REESE: FROM TATTOO NIGHTMARES TO NORTH COUNTY WORDS: SHELBY ROWE PHOTOS: ZACH CORDNER
From Spike TV’s Tattoo Nightmares to setting up shop in North County, Oceanside local Reese Hilburn dishes the deets about her journey as a tattoo artist. One way or another, a tattoo machine would have ended up in Reese’s hand. An accountant-turned-world-renownedtattoo-artist, Reese Hilburn stumbled upon her artistry eight years ago at a wine and paint night with her then accounting firm. “For company morale—I was around 22 at the time—we went to a wine and paint night and I had never drawn prior to this moment,” said Hilburn. “So, I found out I can paint and basically quit my job cold turkey, went back to school for fine art, and started looking for an apprenticeship as a tattoo artist.” Fast forward to a little under a decade and she went from being oblivious of her natural artistic abilities to moving to Miami, starring in Spike TV’s Tattoo Nightmares, becoming an award-winning international tattoo artist, and now owning a tattoo shop in Solana Beach, The Edge. Yep, all of that in eight years. “I would’ve ended up in this position one way or another, but Tattoo Nightmares presented me something quicker and faster when it came down to being surrounded by more than just your tattoo shop,” she said. “It brought me into a whole different world in the tattoo industry.” Thanks to Tattoo Nightmares, she was able to fast track her networking and attend tattoo conventions all over the world. A life she never thought possible, Hilburn suddenly found herself living the dream, traveling and tattooing for work. “When I was an accountant, I’d always wanted to travel, but I was always waiting for the ‘right’ moment,” said Hilburn. “I had no idea you could travel and tattoo, so when I found out that was even a possibility, I was like sayonara suckers—I’m out!” 42
