Ramsey Sullivan
news@greenepublishing.com
Anyone who has lived in Madison long enough knows there aren't any places to get a tattoo. However, Firehouse Ink has officially made it's way to Madison, following the reopening of tattoo shops after they were closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Ireland Wood; her father, Ken Wood; and their partner, Steve Bachman, have just moved their tattoo shop from the Valdosta area, where it had been for 10 to 12 years, to downtown Madison. The new shop is not like the previous one. It is a private studio and you need to make an appointment with one of the three artists before getting your tattoo.
Both Ireland and her father are from Madison and currently reside here. Ken even owned a shop just outside the Madison city limits when he was between 18 and 19 years old. He eventually changed locations, but that didn't stop Ireland from growing up in tattoo shops.
Ireland's plan was never to become a tattoo artist. She was planning to pursue something in the medical field, but decided to begin her apprenticeship under her father as a tattooist after her senior year of high school, due to some persuasion by her father and his partner, Steve.
"I never really pictured myself as a tattoo artist or that even being a possibility because it wasn't common when I was growing up," said Ireland. " It's a very male-dominant industry and it's just now getting more common for women to be in the industry."
Now, at just 22 years old, Ireland has fallen in love with tattoing.
"Tattooing is really complex," Ireland said. "There are a lot of fun things about it and a lot of stressful things about it. My favorite part of tattoing is when a client comes in and they like my work, so they just want me to have fun and do a piece that is original. I really just want to make the client happy."
Firehouse Ink is located at 293 SW. Pinckney St., in Madison. To make an appointment with Ireland, you can call her at (229) 421-9227, or follow her on Instagram @irelandtattoos_2017. To make an appointment with her dad, Ken Wood, you can email him at woodwork.art.tattoo@gmail.com. For an appointment with Steve Bachman, you can email him at firehouseink@gmail.com or follow him on Instagram @firehouseink.