Artist
ERIC Farrington
I have always had a deep interest in art, even as a child. My interest in art began with my love for comic books. I would spend countless hours reproducing the artwork that I loved from the comics I would read. As I grew older, my artistic horizons expanded from simple pencil drawings into many different mediums including paint, charcoal, pen & ink, & airbrushing. Fostered by my high school art teacher, Ron Kunda, my skills & love for creating art would eventually lead me to the Art Institute of Pittsburgh. (the school Mr. Kunda TOLD ME I was going to attend!)
After graduating from the Art Institute, I went to work as an Art Director for What's Next mfg., a toy company based out of Arcade, NY. The experience I gained there further expanded my horizons. I was responsible for product & packaging design, advertising, trade show graphics & more. My time there expanded my skills on the digital side of the artistic spectrum, as the focus shifted more toward graphic design & layout, and away from more traditional hand-drawn illustration.
After leaving What's Next, I fell into an apprenticeship under Yorkshire-based tattoo artist Shawn Bedell, and began shifting back to more traditional forms of drawing with tattooing in mind. Shawn taught me a lot about the tattoo industry and the proper techniques to apply a quality tattoo. With Shawn's blessing, I eventually struck out on my own, and started Diversity Design in my hometown of Franklinville, NY in 2003.
Not knowing if I could make the business work through tattooing alone, and not wanting to waste the other skills I had attained through school & my time as a graphic designer, I built the business to encompass not only tattooing, but design, sign-making, vinyl graphics & custom printed apparel as well. Over the years Diversity Design continued to grow. Tattooing always remained the "bread & butter" of the business, but the other aspects helped to get me through the slow times.
My years of tattooing has honed my skills and allowed me to be proficient in a number of different styles. Diversity Design's reputation for high quality work & a comfortable atmosphere has spread across Western New York & beyond. My experience in both traditional & digital forms of art has helped streamline & expand the horizons of custom tattoo design. I love what I do & my goal is to make you love it too!
