‘Ink Master: Rivals’ exclusive: Elton Duarte (LT) talks pinups, doubt and Ty’esha Reels
“Ink Master: Rivals” has a lot of seasoned artists competing for the title, but after seeing Caroline Evans go home last week we realized that this is really anyone’s game to win.
On Tuesday night we lost another artist in LT (Elton Duarte), who was one of the artists with the least amount of experience competing this season. As we saw with Caroline, years of experience doesn’t always mean coming out on top, but not enough experience can also have it’s drawbacks. We had a chance to chat with LT after his elimination and he had some great insight when it came to what he felt was his undoing.
CarterMatt: Being in the bottom is always difficult, but is there someone else who you felt should have gone home over you and why?
LT: I know my tattoo definitely deserved to be in the bottom, but Tim should’ve went home. My piece is at least fixable, I don’t think I can say the same about Tim’s pin up face! The challenge was on artistry. Not application. If you have been tattooing for that long your artistry should have been on point.
Looking back at your pin up tattoo, is there anything you would’ve done differently if you had it to do all over again?
Lol 100%!! .. I realized my mistakes as I was finishing the piece, but by then all I could do is suck it up. I f***ed up! Excuse my language. I would’ve made the design simple, I would’ve stuck to what I know best which is Black & Grey and I’m telling you! Josh wouldn’t have had a chance. Call me crazy, call me whatever! I know what I’m capable of.
How is your rivalry with Ty’esha now that the show is over?
We get along great now, but the rivalry will never end. It makes us better artists. Makes us want to achieve more!
You were one of the artists with the least experience in the competition, was it difficult going up against people with 15-20 years experience?
I made it difficult for myself. I started to doubt myself. I let everyone in the house trick me into thinking they were better then me! Experience doesn’t mean anything as you can tell by Caroline’s elimination tattoo and Tim’s pig like face!
If clients want to have a tattoo done by you, how can they go about booking you?
Contact me by any of my social medias or email the shop at [email protected].
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A big thank you to LT for taking the time to talk with us and we wish him all the best in his career.