Tat Talk with Phil Lacombe
Name: Adam Normand
Where you tat: Humble Tattoo Society (Palm Desert)
Why you started tattooing: I started out making home-made machines as a teenager & tattooing friends & others on my street.
I don’t remember ever thinking that this is what I’m gonna do for a living but the more I did the more I started getting positive results. This was before any kind of tattoo reality show mind you, so there was no fame or money motivation like most tattooers today, just the drive to see how far I could push my art. It was important for me at the time to feel accomplished or make me feel like I could excel at something other than getting locked up or having to appear in court, at some point I got serious about it but I feel more like tattooing has been the one thing in my life that’s always been around.
What style of tattooing do you love doing most: I enjoy tattooing very powerful images! More on a realistic based style, mixed with other influences like traditional americana, folk art, new school, fine black & grey, portraits, full color horror images, zombies you name it I’ve done it! My work is most recognizable by the skulls I make… if your into anything skull related come see me, I would love to work with you.
Who inspires you to tattoo: I grab Inspiration from so many… music & art have always played a role in the creation process, but on a local level I would have to recognize Jeff Cooper for his amazing skill/talent as a tattoo artist & owning 3 successful shops. I respect the fact he’s always humble & the nicest guy you ever wanna meet!
If you could tattoo anywhere in the world where would you go: I’ve been blessed with a skill that allows me to travel & work. I’ve worked tattoo conventions overseas… London, Liverpool, Evian & more recently Hawaii, but out of everywhere I’ve tattooed I’m mainly focused on bringing our valley the highest quality of tattooing possible.
Tell me your favorite tattoo story about one of your clients: More recently I was on a tattoo tour with a buddy & fellow tattoo artist Petro. We were driving across Texas for 3 weeks hitting up every city possible & tattooing anyone who was interested. We get a call somewhere between Dallas & Houston from Lil Wayne’s people asking if we could come to the studio & tattoo him & a few others…. problem was he was in LA & we were on our way to Houston. I tell Petro ‘Fuck it there’s the airport lets catch a flight’. About 4hrs later we are in the studio tattooing Wayne and others all while he’s putting the finishing touches on his latest album Carter 5; 24 hours later we are back in Houston right where we left off not skipping a beat. A few weeks pass & I’m back in the valley just in time for Coachella. I get a call from Wayne’s management again asking if I could make a house call for Lil Twist, Wayne’s protégé & his camp wanted to get tattooed. I arrive at a gated community around 2am & tattoo until 1pm the next day. The best part about the whole thing was the house was on a golf course. Twist & I are tatted up, shirts off & tattooing outside by one of the holes. I can’t tell you how many golfers played threw.
