Some may argue that people are born with natural artistic talents while others may say that the talents are later acquired. For Jose Lopez of Santa Ana, California, the circumstances that he was put in forced him to learn, practice and become one of the best artists living today.
Born in Mexico, Jose came to California at the age of 12 with his family. Their intentions were to live the "American dream," but unfortunately an incident occurred just a few years later, putting Jose permanently in a wheelchair. For many people who become disabled, a time of misery and depression takes a hold of their life where they ask themselves, "Why me?"
Jose, no longer able to walk, was confined to a sitting position and was no longer able to perform his usual physical activities. Instead of sulking in his newfound extra time, Jose picked up a pencil and began doing sketches. As more time went on, he would learn to perfect his artwork, getting better and better at it with each piece of work. Jose was also getting into tattoo art and was actually doing tattoo work on people's skin while still a teenager living at his mother's house!
Over the next eight years, Jose's reputation as a reputable tattoo artist quickly began to spread throughout the Orange County area, and he became so busy that he just didn't have time to think about his new physically challenged world. Just four years ago, the demand for Jose's work was so great that he moved to the next level and opened up his own tattoo shop called Lowrider Tattoo. Today, the shop has won countless awards at tattoo conventions and now employs four other talented artists besides Jose. A second location is to be opened soon in Riverside, California.