Daredevil Tattoo opened in 1997 when tattooing was legalized in NYC after being banned in 1961. Located in New York City’s historic Lower East Side we feature several artists working in all different styles of tattooing. Walk-ins are always welcome first come first served and online scheduling is available. We are proud to also showcase a Museum of Tattoo History with a world class collection of tattoo artifacts focusing on the history of tattooing in New York City.
Our tattoo shop history
Daredevil Tattoo Shop was opened by tattooers Michelle Myles and Brad Fink on Ludlow Street in the Lower East Side of NYC in 1997 after the 36 year ban on tattooing was lifted in the city. Michelle started tattooing in 1991 working underground in a private studio on Ludlow Street while Brad had started tattooing in St.Louis in 1986. Despite being illegal to tattoo in Manhattan and the boroughs the ban was largely unenforced. Michelle and Brad opened Daredevil as soon as tattooing was legalized and in 2014 Daredevil moved to it’s current location at 141 Division Street on the edge of Chinatown and the Lower East Side. Brad’s extensive collection of antique traditional tattoo flash was dedicated as a tattoo museum and the non profit organization NYC Tattoo History was started to share the collection with the public. NYC Tattoo History is a registered 501(c)3 non profit dedicated to promoting an understanding the growth and development of tattoo art and culture from it’s earliest roots in NYC and the Bowery through collecting, preservation and research. Daredevil is just down the street from the Bowery and Chatham Square, recognized as the birthplace of modern tattooing making the LES the perfect place for a Museum of Tattoo History.
The below photos are pictures of the old Daredevil Tattoo shop on Ludlow Street 1997-2014.
TATTOOING BANNED IN NYC!
The Lancaster Eagle reported October 21, 1961
“The health department here just has cracked down on the ancient art (actually, tattooing is 4,000 years old) and incoming sailors no longer will be able to head for the Bowery, where the majority of the half-dozen tattoo parlors in New York are situated… The tattooers do not plan to take the ban lying down; at least one has announced his intention of taking the issue to court. As one proprietor said sullenly, "The kids will just start doing it themselves with sewing needles and matches.”
There's no doubt that It's for the common good and no man in his right mind can oppose it but still, it means the end of another custom that helped make Manhattan the nutty town it is.”
The photos below show the nyc tattoo shop of Mike Colantuono. Taken a few days before tattooing was banned in New York City in 1961. (pictures are the property of Daredevil Tattoo / NYC Tattoo History. All rights reserved)
1997 THE BAN IS LIFTED
February 26, 1997 the Daily News wrote of the changing law, “New Yorkers may soon be able to get openly what they've been getting illegally for 35 years - tattoos. The City Council yesterday passed a law that would lift the official though little-enforced 1962 ban on tattooing.
Councilwoman Kathryn Freed (D-Manhattan), who sponsored the law, said it was absurd for the city to continue pretending that the increasingly popular trend of body art did not exist. "This way we actually put in regulations so that the artists are protected, and the public at large is protected," Freed said. "People are going to do late it to safeguard the public." The city enacted the ban amid fear that the needles used in tattooing could trigger a hepatitis epidemic. Despite the law, tattoo parlors have continued to operate and city health officials have looked the other way. The City Council measure, which requires mayoral approval, would replace the ban with a new licensing system.
Before setting up shop, tattoo artists would be required to take a city Health Department course on infectious disease prevention. They would also have to pass a Health Department exam before they The license, good for two years, would cost $100. Tattoo artists found guilty of operating illegally would face fines ranging from $300 to $1,000. Tattoo artists at the Council meeting, where the proposed licensing system passed by a 38-to-7 vote, said they were happy to gain municipal legitimacy. But some contended that the licensing system would not safeguard the tattoo-craving public.
An East Village tattoo artist complained that the law will not require inspections of tattooing parlors… Mayor Giuliani said he would consider all sides in the debate before deciding whether to sign the law.”
TATTOOING IN NEW YORK CITY TODAY
Giuliani did sign the law to re legalize tattooing and tattoo shops opened up all across the city. Today only a few of those shops that opened up still exist and the few that do have changed hands over the years with the exception of Daredevil, still owned by Michelle and Brad. In 2014 when Daredevil moved to Division Street Chef Aarón Sánchez, a longtime friend of theirs came in as a partner. Aarón’s first restaurant Paladar was across the street from Daredevil on Ludlow street, which helps explains how Aarón ended up with so many tattoos.
We are very proud of Daredevil and the legacy it represents and are honored to share the museum collection with visitors from around the world and are so pleased that our collection of historic tattoo flash literally lives on through the people who choose tattoos from the collection as a lasting tattoo history souvenir.
Photos below are of Michelle and Brad in 1999 and the photo on the right is Aaron, Brad, Kevin and Michelle at Daredevil’s 20th anniversary.
