A veteran of over 20 years; Heather Bailey began her tattoo journey as an apprentice in her hometown of San Diego. Passionately dedicated to her new vocation, it was clear to Heather that she needed to relocate to the modern-day paragon of tattooing: San Francisco. Over the next 8 years, Heather would work at numerous shops up and down California, including San Diego’s Avalon 2, and was committed to honing her craft and developing her own style.
In 2010, Heather was given a life-altering invitation to work at Spider Murphy’s in San Rafael. It was at Spider Murphy’s where Heather was given the opportunity to work in an environment that abundantly valued (the art of) tattooing the way she did, elevating her to the tattooer and painter she is today.
After her time in San Rafael, Heather was given another momentous opportunity: to work alongside some of her favorite tattooers at the prestigious Black Heart Tattoo in San Francisco. The Bay Area gave Heather years of invaluable experience, but after 13 years in Northern California, Heather was ready for the challenge of opening her own shop. Relocating to her home away from home, Heather spent the next 3 years in Los Angeles, establishing herself as a resident LA tattooer. In 2020 Heather partnered with Frankie Caraccioli and opened Holy Union Tattoo. For 5 years, Holy Union offered a space that not only celebrated centuries of tradition but aimed to push tattooing toward a positive future. It is at Heather’s new, private studio in Los Angeles, where she will continue to offer such a space.
There’s a debate amongst the professionals; are tattooers artists or tradespeople? Tattooers, like all tradespeople, use a set of tools to perform a specific service that requires a level of skill and expertise. That is a simple truth. But, a tattoo is not provided as something of pure functionality. Tattoos allow people to express themselves as an individual or as part of a greater culture. Tattoos enable people to communicate with the world in a way they can’t through language or other action. At the risk of sounding overly precious or romantic- as a tattooer, a client, and a perpetual devotee - it is this beautiful, aforementioned dichotomy that has never been lost on Heather Bailey. Balancing the two is what has shown Heather, and tattooers alike, that tattooing is not simply a career, and cannot be truly defined or understood without a deep appreciation and a profound love.