Core Values
Our goal is to provide a pleasant, accessible, and accountable space for anyone to get tattooed in, whether it’s your first tattoo or your 30th. We strive to be a body enthusiastic space, and welcome people of all shapes, sizes, skin tones, ages, and disabilities with kindness, acceptance, and accountability. All of our artists work with empathy and compassion at the forefront, and work to be trauma-informed. We collaborate as a community to learn and grow, with the understanding that we are not the ones who decide if a space is safe for everyone. There is always room to learn and better understand the world around us, other peoples experiences, ourselves, and our space
We firmly believe that tattoos are a valuable resource, and can be used as tools to heal, reclaim, or make our bodies feel more like home. We will always work with clients to make their experience as positive as possible, while also maintaining our own healthy boundaries
Many of our artists charge on a sliding scale basis in order to be more accessible to people with limited incomes, and all of us are always happy to discuss budgets or ways to make obtaining your tattoo more accessible when we can.
As a studio we aim to be community-centred, with our core values aligned with our morals. This means:
Being a resource for new and self-taught artists to ask questions and access information that is often gatekept
Providing an accessible space for artists physically, mentally, and financially; Our studio is wheelchair accessible, and a low sensory space with chiller music, lower volumes, and a communal understanding of respect for each others needs. The Brass Iris operates on equal shared expenses and does not profit off of our artists in any way, in order to keep costs as low as possible for the artists working at our shop
Using our space for community events including fundraisers and bi-monthly local art markets, where we usually have between 50-60+ local artists share their work. These markets are run in a consignment style so artists don’t need to be present for the market, making it more accessible for artists who can’t be in person to get exposure and make sales. Our markets run on a 20/80 profit split, with 80% going to the artist and 20% going into the shop fund to help with space upgrades, future events, or be redistributed as donations/mutual aid within the community. We look forward to future events that support and uplift queer and marginalized community as COVID becomes less of a risk. Our space will always be a sober venue, with a no alcohol policy, and a designated smoking area outdoors and away from the immediate entrance. We recognize that everyone has unique needs in terms of access to substances and it is not our goal to exclude anyone in our events, but also feel the need for a venue that is safe for those that are under age, or aren’t comfortable in spaces where substances are present, as no such space exists on the island
Using more earth friendly products where we can. Our studio uses a majority of compostable or biodegradable supplies in our tattoo set ups and day to day running; including gloves, barriers, razors, ink caps, and more. As more products are created we will continue to choose the most responsible choices in this field to reduce our impact
We aim to always be transparent and open to new ideas, suggestions, and feedback. We hope that in sharing our core goals we can inspire other studios and artists
