Think ink

PALMER — The man behind the mask, smock and surgical gloves performs painstakingly detailed work in his clean, sterile Valley office.

Clayton Halfhill isn’t a physician or plastic surgeon, he’s a tattoo artist. One of the best, if you listen to his clients rave about Halfhill’s work.

On Monday, Halfhill, known to most as “AK-Clay,” is tattooing a religious image of praying hands and Rosary beads on a female client at AK-Ink, his Wasilla-based tattoo and piercing parlor. While working, AK-Clay took a few minutes to shed some light on a resurgent industry that’s not just for truckers and bikers anymore.

Frontiersman: Tell us a little about yourself; where you’re from, how long you’ve been in business in the Valley?

Clayton “AK-Clay” Halfhill: I was born in Seattle and raised in Southern California, then came to Alaska in 1997. I opened up a tattoo shop in Sitka and was there for about eight years, then did an apprenticeship in Anchorage. Then, I came out to the Valley and worked for Mat-Su Tattoo, and last year I opened Ak-Ink.

F: How did you get into the tattoo business and how long have you been laying down ink?

AK-Clay: I started in high school. My girlfriend’s family, her brothers, were into tattooing. I must’ve done 300 tattoos before graduating high school. I started doing it full-time in 1991 or 1992.

F: There seems to be a resurgence in the tattoo business over the past decade. Why do you think that is?

AK-Clay: I think tattooing is open to more people because the health and safety (of the practice) has come a long way. Now, you can’t watch the NBA or an NFL game without seeing tattoos. It’s not just for bikers and gang members anymore.

F: What’s the most requested tattoo you do?

AK-Clay: I don’t know if there is a specific one. Many people get Zodiac symbols with names. That’s pretty common. There will be one week when it seems all the work is religious stuff, then it’s all dragons. It varies.

F: Do you have a specialty?

AK-Clay: I try to do everything. I really don’t cater to portraits. I do a lot of the fine detail work.

F: What’s the most elaborate tattoo you’ve ever done?

AK-Clay: I did a full back piece of an iguana. Every little scale was in detail. That took about 30 hours over three to four months.

F: From doctors to truck drivers to school teachers, you meet a lot of interesting people. Any stories from your years as a tattoo artist stand out as most memorable?

AK-Clay: I had a whole class of graduating state troopers one year. I had nine of them call me up from the bar one night. They had just graduated and were three-sheets to the wind. They got their graduation logo, but I made them come in in the morning when they were sober. Guys come up with some weird requests, but not so much with women. Had a guy come in with his wife’s handprint and wanted it on his buttocks. We have one girl who’s into spiders, so she has spiders everywhere.

F: The mantra in business is “the customer is always right,” but what are some tattoo requests that have made you think to yourself, “That’s just nuts?”

AK-Clay: I won’t do certain tattoos. Anybody wanting facial tattoos and stuff like that, I turn down. I try to talk them out of it.

F: When a writer makes a mistake, he can simply delete or use spell-check. Not so with tattoos. Have you ever made a mistake on a piece of body art?

AK-Clay: Well, that can happen. I remember a couple came in and the tattoo was supposed to have the name with two Es on the end. Luckily, that was an easy fix. Mostly, though, the client makes a mistake and can’t spell his own name.

F: What advice do you have for someone who may be considering his or her first tattoo?

AK-Clay: Think it through. Getting stuff that’s too small doesn’t hold the test of time with age. Also, (names of girlfriends) is like a curse, because as soon as you get that, it seems something happens and it’s over.

The Tuesday Q&A is a weekly feature in the Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman. If you know an interesting local person or someone who does an interesting job, contact reporter Greg Johnson at greg.johnson@frontiersman.com or 352-2269.

IF YOU GO

What: AK-Ink tattoo and piercing

Where: 3020 Lazy 8 Roach, Crossroads Plaza

Hours: M-Th.noon to 8 p.m.; F-Sat noon to 10 p.m.; Sundays by appointment

Contact: 357-4658