Adhesive Art: Cape Breton-based tattoo artist’s sticker-like pieces attract international clients

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A tattoo of Bamm-Bamm Rubble from The Flintstones is pictured. (Courtesy: Luke Cormier)

A Princess Peach tattoo created by Luke Cormier is pictured. (Courtesy: Luke Cormier)

A watermelon tattoo created by Luke Cormier is pictured. (Courtesy: Luke Cormier)

A Mario tattoo created by Luke Cormier, a tattoo artist in Cape Breton, is seen. (Courtesy: Luke Cormier)

Jonathan MacDonald shows off his many tattoos. (Courtesy: Jonathan MacDonald)

A tattoo of Deadpool created by Cape Breton artist Luke Cormier is pictured. (Courtesy: Luke Cormier)

Jonathan MacDonald and his wife, Lisa, show off their tattoos done by Cape Breton artist Luke Cormier. (Courtesy: Jonathan MacDonald)

A tattoo of Jack Skellington from the film The Nightmare Before Christmas is pictured. (Courtesy: Luke Cormier)

Jonathan MacDonald’s back tattoo done by artist Luke Cormier is seen. (Courtesy: Jonathan MacDonald)

Pictured is a tattoo of Garfield by Cape Breton artist Luke Cormier. (Courtesy: Luke Cormier)

A Luke Cormier tattoo inspired by the TV series The Office is pictured. (Courtesy: Luke Cormier)

Luke Cormier peels off a Toronto Maple Leafs sticker, to reveal a Boston Bruins tattoo underneath. (Courtesy: Luke Cormier)

Jonathan MacDonald’s tattoo inspired by Little Shop of Horrors, and created by artist Luke Cormier, is pictured. (Courtesy: Jonathan MacDonald)

A tattoo created by Luke Cormier of character Orko is pictured. (Courtesy: Jonathan MacDonald)

Star Wars character R2-D2 is pictured in the form of a tattoo created by Luke Cormier. (Courtesy: Luke Cormier)

A sticker-like tattoo of The Grinch by Luke Cormier is seen. (Courtesy: Luke Cormier)

Luke Cormier’s tattoos are appealing in more ways than one.

“If I get to tattoo, it’s a good day.”

Known online as “Mr. Sticker Tattoo,” the Sydney-based tattoo artist has more than half a million followers on TikTok, and over 185 thousand followers on Instagram.

“At first, it was overwhelming. It happened during the pandemic. I posted this one of the Princess Peach sticker, and it just took off overnight. I was going up 10,000 followers a day for a brief period. It’s crazy.”

His videos and pictures serve as a catalogue for his work – highlighting hyper realistic tattoos that look like stickers. The tattoos range from colourful pop culture characters, to animals, product logos and sports teams.

The online videos not only show the tattoo being created, but also the final product, with Cormier mimicking an attempt to “pull” the sticker off. Sometimes, he will even cover the tattoo with another image, before making the big reveal.

“I love trolling people. That’s the best on the internet,” he laughs. “When you put the piece of paper over, they expect like, a hockey team (Maple Leafs), and think, ‘Oh, that’s my favourite hockey team’. You peel it away. It’s like, the competing hockey team (Bruins). Everyone gets all riled up in the comments. It’s funny, it’s engagement.”

Tattoo timeline

Born and raised in Stephenville, N.L., Cormier has been a tattoo artist for 16 years. He moved to Sydney with his girlfriend, Jenna Hupalo, six years ago. They opened 9th Gate Gallery, a tattoo and piercing shop on Charotte Street in Sydney.

“I originally wanted to be a body piercer and couldn’t get an apprenticeship. While I was visiting Deer Lake, which isn’t far from my hometown, I found a local guy there. The tattoo shop was looking for a tattoo apprentice. I’ve been drawing my whole life, and I was like, f--- it, I’ll try, I’ll try tattooing.”

Sixteen years later, and tattooing “just took over.”

“I met my girlfriend years later. She’s actually a body piercer. She taught me how to pierce a little bit. So, I got the chance to try it later on in my career, but it just wasn’t for me. It was tattooing.”

Cormier says he’s always done “cartoon style” tattoos, and people would remark how they would look like stickers.

“Even before I was doing the white border, it’s like, ‘Oh man, your work’s so clean and it looks like its stuck on the skin like a sticker. It doesn’t look real,’” he explains. “So, I decided to try to make it look more like a sticker.”

International attention

Over the past five years, his online videos have attracted international attention. He’s been featured on Good Morning America, the New York Post, and China Post. The exposure has brought in business too: some clients have flown to Sydney to get tattooed by him, with the first being from New York.

“I thought he was just travelling to Cape Breton to see Cape Breton. When I asked him what brought him to Cape Breton, he was like ‘This tattoo is all I’m here for.’”

He’s now had clients fly in from San Francisco and Texas for the same reason.

“A girl came up from Boston. She got a little slice of watermelon on her calf. That was her first tattoo. That was crazy; for travelling the first tattoo.”

Adhesive art

One of his returning clients is Jonathan MacDonald.

“I’m a big fan of colour tattoos,” says MacDonald. “Always have been. We first went to him because of the colour. Five-and-a-half years later and they’re still as vibrant as they were the day he gave them to me.”

Since October 2019, MacDonald has amassed 15 tattoos done by Cormier. MacDonald and his wife, Lisa, frequently travel from Halifax to Sydney for Cormier’s work.

“My wife and I try to get matching tattoos,” he explains. “I have the Funko Pop! figure of Rick Moranis from Little Shop of Horrors, and my wife has Audrey too, to match it. We both have Fight Club soap stickers. I have Chocobo from Final Fantasy, and Orko from He-Man.”

While five of MacDonald’s tattoos are done in the sticker style, the latest is a giant tattoo along his back, which MacDonald will be getting touched up at the end of February.

“That one isn’t quite done yet. It’s Shenron from Dragon Ball Z.”

It’s the look of the tattoos that keeps MacDonald and his wife coming back to Cormier.

“I like that fact that when you look at them, they actually do look like stickers. So, he’ll (Cormier) put folds in them, he’ll put shading in the background, so it does look like something that’s kind of stuck to your skin. People try to scratch and pick at them. It certainly catches your eye a bit quicker.”

MacDonald has been stopped multiple times by people who have recognized the body art.

“There have been a number of times I’ve been in town and people have recognized Luke’s work on me. They’re like, ‘Oh my God, is that a Luke Cormier tattoo?’”

Sticking with it

With an increase in attention, comes an increase in pressure.

“It’s overwhelming. It’s honestly scary when someone books from another country, or even, six hours away. My biggest fear is that they’ll travel all that way, and I’ll get sick on that day and can’t tattoo them. That’s the hardest part about it.”

While he’s known for his sticker tattoos, Cormier emphasizes he’s not only stuck on stickers. Right now, he only tattoos one sticker tattoo a week to “keep things fresh.” During the rest of the work week, he focuses on other styles.

“I just love to tattoo. Anything lettering. Lately I’ve been doing a lot more black and gray. I’m interested in trying this new style called Cyber Centralism.”

He’s also still experimenting with new sticker styles.

“With the stickers, I draw them, print them out, and I cut them, I crumple ‘em up, and I stick them to the wall and I photograph them. Then it’s more realistic, you know? What I want to do next is burn one [photograph]. Set it on fire, take a picture of it as its burning, then tattoo that. So, a sticker one fire, or more rips.”

Cormier guesses he’s done roughly 300 sticker tattoos, and says the best part is always the reaction.

“Definitely. Sometimes I forget to even take the money [laughs]. They’re like, ‘Do I pay you now?’ I’m more excited to get the photo posted online.”

As for what’s next, Cormier may teach his tricks.

“I’m actually very fortunate,” adds Cormier. “I’ve done a lot in my career that I’ve wanted, more than I ever thought I could. I think the final thing to do now is release an online seminar, a webinar, doing the sticker thing. I actually give away all my secrets, all my tricks, but we’ll see. Everything’s changing. There are always these new things, you know?”

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