Louisville is an immensely creative and passionate city with a rich diversity of talented individuals. That creativity allows Louisville to express its personality through various mediums; we paint buildings with murals, we relish the oddities in shops like Why Louisville, and sometimes we get ourselves inked at a plethora of tattoo parlors to show our love for creativity.
Over the past few years, one shop in particular has stood out as a place of quality work and depth of craft: Five Star Tattoo. Having been open just over four years, this hole-in-the-wall shop has quickly become well known not just throughout Louisville, but the surrounding region and beyond.
Five Star was opened by artist John Furse, who in addition to owning one of Louisville’s best tattoo shops, is a student at UofL, a platoon leader in the Kentucky National Guard, and a father of two. John has 22 years of experience, which he has gained from places as near as Acme Ink, and as far as, well, the other side of the world. Luckily for us Louisvillians, John is back in the city and has been gracing us with his tattooing skills once again.
The shop consists of five artists (Instagram handles in parentheses): John Furse (@john_boy_furse), Dennis Pase (@dptatt_layer), Justin Cartwright (@madeinblood), Greg Mosier (@garbxedge), and Karl Otto (@karlottotattoo). All of these artists have their own styles and niches, but it’s guaranteed you’ll come out with a great tattoo here – no matter who does it.
They’re open Monday through Saturday from noon until 6 and walk-ins are welcomed. Located at 2208 Frankfort Avenue, you can’t blink or you’ll miss this shop tucked away in the hustle and bustle of The Avenue – if you pass Clifton’s pizza (coming from downtown), you’ve gone too far.
So if you’re in the Louisville area and are looking for the best tattoo work around, or if you want to experience one of the most concentrated wellsprings of creativity in town, make an appointment at Five Star Tattoo. Check out their artist’s Instagram pages, their website here, or just stop by their Frankfort Avenue shop. They'll welcome you with open (and tattoo-covered) arms and hook you up with some artwork fit for Louisvillian sensibilities.
