I was born in Indiana and grew up in the Washington D.C. area. The appreciation of art was a priority within my family, my Mother was a painter and my Father a fantasy art fanatic and I spent a great deal of my childhood wandering the many Smithsonian museums. It was during one of these visits that I realized I was destined to be an artist. But in my youthful idealism I confused destiny with curse and have since been the epitome of the starving artist.

Painting has been the focus of my life and while professional success has eluded me, the personal satisfaction I’ve gained has been significant. I could not list all of the artists that have had an impact on me, but some of my favorites include Zdzislaw Beksinski, Paul Klee, Mark Pauline, Dave McKean, Joel Peter Witkin and Heinrich Anton Muller. I’ve been in and out of college for most of my adult life and eventually obtained a degree in Communication Graphics.

See more of Phil Merkle's tattoo designs here!

I first experienced the tattoo world as a teenager when my friends and I drove to a convention in New York. A friend of mine got a tattoo from Spider Webb and I nearly got my head caved in for naively photographing the wrong group of people . . . needless to say it was a fascinating experience. I began designing tattoos a few years later after I was introduced to the styles of the South Pacific by way of Leo Zuleta’s work. Until recently I had only designed tattoos for myself, friends and about a few dozen clients. Then a friend, a tattoo artist in Texas, convinced me that I should create sets of flash . . . so here I am.

Check out my website: www.philmerkle.com

Phil