My name is Chris Koutsis. I’ve been tattooing in NY for the last 25 years. My journey as an artist first began as a customer at Peter Tat-2 in Hempstead, Long Island. There in 1992 Mike Ledger began tattooing me pretty heavily. Soon after Mike [Ledger] began to apprentice me, but it was cut short after Mike’s move to Hawaii. Being Mostly self taught , Brad Farrell owner of High Roller Tattoo gave me my first job as an artist in 1997. There I worked alongside Brad [Farrell] and Mike Ciasullo , two artists I had a great deal of admiration for.

In 1998 Mike Rubendall recommended me to Frank Romano at DaVinci Tattoo. I would go on to work there for the next 18 years of my career working alongside some of the best in the business. Frank was a huge mentor to me, and I still hold him in the highest regard today.

2017 saw the opening of my own shop S&S Tattoo in my hometown of Merrick, Long Island. A chance run in however with an old friend Matty Notimes [Matthew Marcus] sparked an idea to merge with one of the greatest names in tattooing. Three kings Tattoo Long Island was born in 2019, and I am proud to say the long Island location is carrying on the same gold standard and integrity as the original namesake.

After 25 years as a tattoo artist, I can say I’ve seen a lot of changes throughout the years. The good and bad. With the inception of the internet and social media, tattooing has catapulted to levels I’d never thought were possible. It has kept me on my toes and has broadened my love for the craft. Being able to handcraft art is something I’ve never taken for granted and hope to be able to do for another 25 years.