Andrew Matela was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. His interest in art began in early childhood having come from a creative family. Throughout his youth, he had a desire to express his creativity through modern, artistic mediums. From his love of drawing, it was a natural progression that led to his interest in fine art painting. After exploring multiple crafts, he soon realized his passion for tattooing at age 19.
In 2008, Andrew relocated to Austin, Texas where he pursued private lessons and workshops to better hone his skills as an artist. He landed his first position as Tattoo Studio Manager & Artist at a private studio in South Austin. After establishing himself in the art community, while building a solid clientele base, he began to work toward opening his own studio with the vision of merging fine art and tattooing.
In 2014, Andrew opened Art Realm Tattoo, the first studio of its kind in Austin. Over the following years, Art Realm Tattoo gained recognition as a high-end studio with a reputation for professionalism, cleanliness, and involvement in the local community. In late 2017, Andrew teamed up with Nick Baxter to evolve the business and vision to what it is today.
Now 2022, he has well over 15 years of experience. He views tattooing as an ultimate artistic outlet and loves to create art that people will carry with them throughout their lifetime.
