Making art accessible

Danielle Felczak brings 18 years' experience in tattoo art to her business, Adorned Art Tattoo Collective in the Mill.

Open in the Manchester Mill since February, Danielle Felczak is "super happy to be here," doing what she most loves to do here in her adopted hometown.

"It's surprisingly delightful," she says of her new business, Adorned Art Tattoo Collective, and its location overlooking the River Raisin. "I wasn't sure what to expect, but people have been very welcoming. I have a strong clientele base from my former business and I've gained a lot of new local clients as well."

Previously, Danielle had owned a nationally-known and highly respected studio in downtown Ann Arbor, Authentic Art, where she employed eight artists, and had a personal assistant to help her stay organized and keep track of her appointments, her social media accounts, and much of the business side of her life. But along came 2020 and the storm called Covid, destroying the decade-long business. A time of reflection and introspection followed and Danielle made the decision to direct her energies to Manchester, where she has lived for the past 12 years and is raising her two children as a single mom.

She located her space in the Mill and got to work re-creating what she had lost the previous year. Her goal was to make it a place where her clients would feel safe, respected, and comfortable. She has succeeded. The new studio is colorful, eclectic, and welcoming — much like Danielle herself.

Her unique philosophy of the ancient art of tattooing is ingrained in Danielle's business. She's not there to crank out her work. There is a time and a space for each client and each piece of artwork.

"Even a very small tattoo, it's permanent, it's forever ... I want you to be happy with the end result," she says. "It's very much more about sharing time and space. It's a client-centric art form."

She knows that her clients get a tattoo for a huge range of reasons — sometimes it's to honor themselves or a loved one; others are in a process of moving through different stages of life. There's an awareness that weighty decisions can be involved and tries to take care and respect that person's reasons for wanting a tattoo at a given time and place in their life.

"It's a little therapy, a little art, and a little conversation," Danielle says with a smile.  "This is really a gratifying career. It's kind of wonderful when clients trust you in a very vulnerable space; both emotional and physical."

Because a tattoo is on someone else's skin rather than a static medium, Danielle sees her art as an animated, collaborative effort ... what can they create together? "I need to be flexible, well rounded, and meet each client where they are," she says.

And while drawing on paper or canvas is quite different from tattoo art, she has her own and others' paper and canvas artwork on display throughout her studio. She led a successful workshop on meditative painting this spring and would like to do another one as time allows. She'd also like to host a couple of art shows each year to showcase local artists. "I did that at my Ann Arbor studio a couple times a year, and it was very popular," she says.

She loves living and raising her children in a small community. As a full-time artist, she has been volunteering with Acorn Farmers' Market & Café, and is looking for a variety of new ways to be involved in her home community, now that her business and her family are both settled in here. Her kids' father lives nearby, in Bridgewater; Danielle's parents, too, have moved to Manchester to stay closer to their grandchildren.

Adorned Art Tattoo Collective is officially "open" Tuesday through Saturday from noon to 7 pm, but Danielle and her fellow artist, Dee White, are available by appointment only. Email Contact@danitattooart.com or find her on social media @danifelczaktattoo.

The entry lobby at Adorned Art Tattoo Collective creates an eclectic and welcoming atmosphere as you walk in the door. Art on paper and canvas adorns the walls of the studio while Danielle creates art on her clients' bodies.

The colorful and bright work area at Adorned Art Tattoo Collective.

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by Marsha Chartrand

Marsha Johnson Chartrand, a founder, writer, and copy editor with the Manchester Mirror, is a 50-year resident of Manchester. She has a long history of volunteer and community involvement.