LYNCHBURG, Va. – A Lynchburg tattoo artist has left a positive permanent mark in her community in honor of two artists who helped her be the talented woman she is today.
Jennifer Gilley opened Sundog Art Studios in 2021 and inside, you will see different portraits and art pieces she and other local artists in the community showcase in the gallery.
“When people walk in, I want them to be excited and feel a positive energy,” Gilley said. “This is a place to express themselves and I want them to come in and feel at home and that there is something special here. It was scary at first but it has been worth it. The business has been great. I have a wonderful clientele that is like family to me. I have no shortage of work, and I am blessed.”
She named her tattoo shop after being inspired by Greek Mythology.
“Sundog is a weather phenomenon that is usually seen in the northern hemisphere,” she said. “It is when the sun is setting and there are enough ice crystals in the air that a half halo forms, and you can see two reflections of the sun on the horizon. In Greek Mythology, it is believed that that was Zeus with his guard sun dogs on either side. It is symbolic of strength and guardianship for me.”
But before getting to the point of being a professional tattoo artist, Gilley said her artistic journey started growing up in a house with seven kids.
“I knew I wanted to be in the art field, but I knew I wanted to help people,” she said. “I wanted community ever since day one. I grew up with seven kids in my family, so we didn’t have a lot of money to go on vacation, so we camped a lot. Art was my release since I was 6 years old I would say. I didn’t have the best childhood, but I have great memories. It was nothing on my parents, but seven kids are tough. It was my release to be able to be an artist and create these worlds that I would have preferred to be in.”
Gilley said the initial plan was to be a comic book artist, and even though she didn’t pick that field, she said she was always drawn to the fantasy idea of creating worlds and characters.
“I got my first job when I was 14, and I had to dress as a clown,” Gilley said. “I was working in the summer doing temporary tattoos and it was definitely character-building. I never thought I was preparing myself for a lifetime career with my teenage side job. Going to high school dressed as a clown was not ideal, but I went full clown so no one could notice me,” she laughed.
Gilley would later go on to college to study arts and she continued doing temporary tattoos working on cruise ships.
“I did that for almost 10 years before I started doing real tats,” Gilley said. “I heard about an apprenticeship when I was bartending and doing temporary tattoos. Someone came in and said this guy was looking for an apprentice, but he said he wasn’t going to work with a girl. That motivated me a bit.”
She said she did her research and knew the history of tattooing and decided to go by to show who would become her mentor, her portfolio.
“His name is Boot Leonard,” she said. “I walked in, and he thought I was looking for a tattoo and was like, ‘How can I help you?’ I said ‘I hear you were looking for an apprentice.’ His whole face changed and said ‘I’m not looking for anything! Who told you that?’ This big gruff man,” she laughed. “And I said, ‘Well I heard, and here’s my portfolio.’”
She said he realized her skills after flipping through her portfolio and allowed her to hang around to watch him with his clients.
“He told me I could stick around to watch but that I was not going to be his apprentice,” she said. “I helped him clean at the end of the day and he would say I could come back the next day and so on. I finally broke him down one day and he looked at me and said, ‘You need to be here two hours early tomorrow because now you are my apprentice,’ and that is the clean version,” she laughed.
Gilley said her mentor taught her everything.
“He taught me everything from machine building, pigment mixing, needle making,” she said. “Things you don’t always see and I am so grateful to have that kind of knowledge. If I was later or anything, my machine would be taken apart in like 30 different pieces and I would have to put it back together but it really helped.”
Most importantly, he taught her how to be tough in a male-dominated industry.
“He was hard,” she said. “He was tough on me, but it made me strong. This was an industry before TV, where women were not really accepted in the industry. I just knew I wanted to be an artist. It wasn’t about being a woman in the industry. It was, ‘I can do this, and I know I can do it well, and it doesn’t matter my sex or gender or anything like that.’ He knew the guys were going to be so tough on me but fortunately, I grew up with a lot of brothers so it was like being around a lot of family.”
Sadly, Gilley said about four and half years ago, Boot committed suicide.
“At the time, I was sort of just traveling and working and not really set in stone where I wanted to be in life, and once that happened, it made me want to be a better artist, and all these losses and pains have made me want to be better and live the life of another artist,” Gilley said. “I am grateful for the knowledge and career that he has given me, and I wish he could have seen me here to see me open this, but I know he was so proud of me.”
Now, Gilley said she’s motivated to work harder, not only in honor of Boot but also in honor of her close friend and fellow artist Jonathan Joyce who sadly passed away in a car crash.
“It just made me want to paint and do more,” Gilley said. “Of course, you’re mad but you go through all the stages. Mad, angry, scared but all of those are just elements that can make you a better artist and a better person. Those building blocks of pressure and strength and love and pain and hurt. They are just building blocks of life.”
Gilley said she also realized how tattoos were more than just cool art pieces on the skin.
“I didn’t know Jonathan’s his mother too well and maybe four years into tattooing, I get a call from his mother wanting to get a memorial tat for Jonathan,” Gilley said. “That was a life-changing point in my career and to hold her and cry together afterward was healing for both of us.”
Gilley said she knows getting a tattoo is like wearing your heart on your sleeve and that’s exactly how she carries herself inside the walls of 815 Main Street in Lynchburg.
She connects with her clients on a deeper level with more than just ink, but with love as she listens to people from all walks of life as they sit in her chair.
“I cry every single week with my clients,” Gilley said. “At least once a week, one of my clients has me in tears. There are so many reasons they get tats. You have children who have lost parents and vice versa. They are going through something difficult, and they are getting this tat in memory or celebration or something of that nature and to be a part of that is exceptionally rewarding and it makes me love my job so much more. I have a lot of clients that say it is like putting on a piece of armor. They have dealt with this hard thing or are celebrating this amazing thing and now they have a memorial with them every single day when they wake up and go to sleep so it is pretty powerful.”
Gilley said she is not a therapist, but what she is able to provide to her clients is something she calls pain replacement therapy.
“During that time, they are feeling a little pain, and it is physical, but they are releasing this emotional pain that has been building inside of them,” Gilley said. “I feel like when they go through this, this takes a lot of energy and once they are done it is a release. They are like, ‘I have had time to talk had some physical pain and now I have this beautiful artwork I can take with me every single day.’”
Gilley said she hopes her story and resilience to keep pushing inspire others to continue in life as well.
She said she is beyond thankful for the people who have come into her life and that as long as her chair is open, she will be there for anyone.
“I just know how important it is,” Gilley said. “I have been in the chair myself and I know what It is like to lose and hurt and have someone stand strong with you even if it is for that day or hour, just standing strong with that person makes me stronger so I can be strong for them.”
