Golden Yeti Art Collective is not a tattoo shop.
It is an art studio and a haven for the art community in Franklin, where you can get tattoos from some of the most talented and accomplished artists in the area..
It is also a very cool place to hang out
Sitting on the corner of North Fifth Avenue and Highway 96 in downtown Franklin, the first thing to catch your eye when you walk in from the heat are the original pieces of artwork covering the walls.
Next you might notice Brad Hill or Jeff Barnard, the owners founders and, foremost, artists, who work in ink and needle with skin as their canvas.
Caitlin Campbell, too, is their new artist, who apprenticed there since they opened before beginning to tattoo in January. Any one of the three will be there to greet you, and see what they can do for you.
“Right now we are doing tattooing, custom painting, custom shirts, and also have a bunch of guest artists who come through here to do tattoos.”
Jeff, pictured above, says is style leans toward new-school tattooing. “I would say a lot of comic book and oil painters, are my two main inspirations,” he said. “My style is loosely close to Jonahthan Wayshak, who is top notch to that style. My stuff has that real aspect to it like portrait style, but I try to get a little more animation and illustrative looks so its gets a little more movement on the skin.”
Brad does a bit more Japanese traditional style and Caitlin does a lot of space and geometric symbols, and a lot of realist tattooing.
“We have a nice wide spread that covers a little bit of everything,” said Jeff. “I would say I am Brad’s inspirations” he ribbed. “Oh yeah, sure. I am inspired by everyone,” Brad replied.
(Their work can be browsed through at their website or facebook page.)
Together they count more than 16 years tattooing.
You might have come calling for a consultation or an appointment. They only do original work, and work with you every step of the way turning your idea into a unique work of art you keep and carry with you all your life.
The thing that sets Golden Yeti apart is the pride they take in their work, and the high standard of artistic integrity they follow.
The other thing is their sense of community.
They offer one-on-one art classes by appointment, support local artists by featuring their work, and plan to open a gallery. They also work with cancer survivors.
“One of the big things we want to get the word to people who might need it, is we do areola tattoos for women who have had breast cancer, for free,” said Barnard. Most of the other shops charge for it, but of course we don’t. We are working with Vanderbilt plastic surgeons and get one every two weeks but would like to do more.”
Each artist has their own style. Brad developed his at another Franklin shop for years before deciding to strike out on his own with Jeff and set out their own shingle.
Jeff tattooed in California before moving to Franklin, where he worked with Brad for three years.
“We kind of wanted to break away, and be more about the art of it rather than just reproducing the same pieces over and over,” Jeff said.
They got a loan from an investor and opened the shop up in March of 2015. Caitlin was an apprentice at first, and when she reached the point where she could consistently tattoo at the high standard of quality they hold Golden yeti to she began to work in earnest, this past January.
“She is a really good artist outside of tattooing, so she brings that aspect to the shop,” said Jeff.
As for the name Golden Yeti. What does it mean? Who knows.
“It was just my instagram name,” said Jeff, “and people thought it was catchy and everyone was telling us to use it. So we did.”
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