NYC’s Mikhail Andersson leads global team of artists at First Class Tattoos

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Buzzing around the exposed brick walls inside First Class Tattoos, Mikhail Andersson and his team of artists are turning bare skin into elaborate canvases.

Through a specialized blend of photo-realism and abstract elements, Andersson can transform an arm into a masterpiece. As the owner of First Class Tattoos, his unique and customized style has made him a sought-after tattoo artist across the globe.

The art form is nothing new for Andersson, who’s been tattooing for nearly 15 years. Pursuing art has been a part of his life ever since his parents enrolled him in an art school in his home city of Moscow, Russia, where he spent his childhood trying his hand at painting, music and dance.

But he found his life’s passion as a tattoo artist and hasn’t looked back since.

“Tattooing is not the same as painting,” he says. “Painting is something you can do on a square sheet of paper, but a body part has different dynamics. It’s not like we’re preparing something for a frame — a body doesn’t have a frame. A body is a rich board that connects with each other.”

Andersson started tattooing in Moscow in 2008 where he was working as a graphic designer. But he quickly became busy with clients and started tattooing full-time. He moved to Miami in 2011 where he worked at a few different shops before moving to New York.

After a year and a half of working at different parlors in the city, he realized he was ready to start something of his own, and the idea for First Class Tattoos was born.

“I realized I wanted to grow, and my perspective was really changing,” he says. “I also got tattooed by a few people that changed my whole view of tattooing and the industry and my approach on making designs was evolving.”

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First Class Tattoos opened its doors in early 2016, and Andersson has since hand-picked a talented team of artists from across the world to work with him. Each artist has their own distinct style to accommodate the diverse tastes of New Yorkers, from black-and-grey and color realism, to Neo traditional and anime.

“When I first moved to New York, I tried to do things that no one else was doing,” says Andersson. “I would do stars and galaxies like no one was doing in the United States at the time, because New York people are very diverse and people are looking for something interesting. Now I’m leaning more into organic, natural things like animals and flowers, but I really have fun turning some aspects into shapes or putting color and geometry into it.”

The last six years have been the “Golden Age” for tattoos, says Andersson. People travel the world to find the right tattoo artist, and the industry is evolving at a record pace.

But when the COVID-19 pandemic hit last spring, much of the world came to a standstill. New York City was one of the most impacted cities in America, and tattoo artists were unable to work with lockdowns and social distancing rules in effect.

Now a year-and-a-half later, doors have started reopening worldwide. 

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The artists at First Class Tattoos returned to work this year, and while there are some changes inside the shop with new guidelines to follow, clients have been pouring in. The team strictly follows all safety protocols and monitors health and safety with a keen eye to protect their clients and one another.

Now fully reopened, the shop is filled with chatter and laughter as clients catch up on the chaos of the past year.

“We’re like a family here,” says Andersson. “I think a lot of people came back from COVID with a new perspective, too. They’re looking at their lives — working less, doing more self care and enjoying their lives more. It’s great to get a tattoo in this uncertain time. I think tattoos are totally therapeutic. They can make you feel more complete or have an impact on someone around you.”

To see more samples of work, visit First Class Tattoo’s website, or its Instagram page here.