Daily Inspiration: Meet Elif Parlak

Today we’d like to introduce you to Elif Parlak.

Hi Elif, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
Hello, I’m Elif Parlak. I was born on October 10, 1992, in Ankara. As the little daughter of a father who’s a painter, I was born into art. I was very young when I tried to imitate my father’s pencil drawings. I still remember the day he got mad at me for painting the walls. If my parents knew that I would permanently paint on people’s bodies one day, they wouldn’t care so much about the walls or my pen-drawn dolls. Since those years, fine arts have continued shaping my character and life. Although the field I chose to professionalize in high school and university was music, I remember what my art teacher in primary school said after seeing my first miniature drawing -which I still keep- :“You should go to the painting department in high school.” After graduating from the fine arts high school and Department of Music Teaching in university, I worked as a musician, playing the violin and piano for a while, but did not want to continue working as a music teacher in private school. In 2018, I met my “dream partner,” with whom I still maintain my business partnership, and together we opened our workshop, which we call “Brokoli Sanat” (Broccoli Art). We continue to work in painting, sculpture, music, and tattooing here. My first experience with tattooing was when my dream partner trusted my talent and asked me to tattoo a small pair of cherries on his wrist. After enjoying the pleasure of leaving a lasting pleasantness on someone’s body, I became addicted to that feeling. The fact that people thank me by looking me in the eye and leaving my workshop happy is a big part of my life motivation. The fact that my job made me feel this way also affected my success criteria. Doing what I love is the most important source of my happiness. Knowing that I am still at the bottom of the ladder, experiencing this feeling makes me feel confident that I will do better in my field. I hope everyone who deserves it can experience this feeling.

Alright, let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what challenges have you had to overcome?
Being a tattoo artist is not considered a qualified job, let alone a job in my country, and other branches of art are also not given enough importance. But I am focused on what I want to do. The most important obstacle for me was the ideas that were imposed. And yet, I still resigned from my previous job and found my purpose. Even though, at the time it seemed very risky to me, it was easy for me to move forward in this field because I was very enthusiastic about it. I think that this profession, which is not taken very seriously, is actually something that touches people emotionally.

As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar, what can you tell them about what you do?
The point where I differ from most tattoo artists is that I don’t limit myself to a single style. I take the time to get to know the style of the person in front of me and produce ideas that I think will suit them, and paint on the human body.

What changes are you expecting over the next 5-10 years?
I’ll have a workshop which includes painting, music, sculpture and tattooing, and I will continue to train myself in different areas and take courses to also include quality coffee and dance departments to my workshop. I will have a large place with at least three floors and each department will be managed separately. My guests will be able to sip quality coffee in the yard while their friends get tattooed.

Pricing:

• The minimum price is 1300 Turkish liras (50 dollars)

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://instagram.com/loyatattoo?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=