Soul Kraft Ink Art Gallery And Tattoo Studio Opens
Memorial Drive Venture Includes Think Tank & Underground Clothing Brand
Soul Kraft Ink Art Gallery and Tattoo Studio got its final approvals this week to open at 1315 Memorial Drive in Asbury Park.
In celebration, the men behind the collaborative endeavor will host a grand opening from 6 to 9 p.m. Saturday, complete with food, drinks and music.
Soul Kraft Ink Art is newest venture at the redeveloped shopping center that houses recently opened Local 130 Seafood market, Shape Shop boutique fitness center, and Parkemoor high end furniture and decor. Booskerdoo Coffee & Bakery also opens at the north end of the shopping center Friday.
A collaboration of artistic endeavors that lends new meaning to the term mixed media, the boutique tattoo shop and art gallery shares the space with GrimeLordzBrand clothing and 3BDreams Think Tank.
The men behind the new city business are Jason Elhomsi of Eatontown, Matt Roselli of Tinton Falls, Justin Insalaco of Belmar, and veteran tattoo artist Oscar Garcia of Long Branch.
Garcia, known for his visual artistry, said he began the craft as a teen when a relative asked him to help finish a tattoo he was attempting to apply to himself.
“I love it,” the 38 year-old said. “I haven’t stopped since.”
After 14 years working for a Long Branch shop, Garcia [shown below] is launching his own boutique shop with the men behind 3BDreams Think Tank.
Specializing in one-of-a-kind art, customized to specifically for a client’s vision, Garcia has garnered hundreds of repeat customers through the years, and to date he has over 19k Instagram followers.
Soul Kraft Ink will feature art expos, pencil art classes, poetry readings, and other cultural arts events.
Childhood and college friends, Elhomsi, Roselli, and Insalaco, first came together to launch GrimeLordzBrand clothing. The success of that venture drew the attention of others, who solicited their aid in launching their own endeavors, and soon the 3BDreams venture was born, Elhomsi said.
The 3BDreams cultivates their client’s ideas into viable ventures. The have worked with everyone from app developers to patent lawyers.
Their mission is to arm today’s young entrepreneurs with the tools they need to become successful.
“As young entrepreneurs we saw how hard it could be and how many obstacles are set forth when starting a business,” Elhomsi [at right]said. “We wanted to give everyone a true, fair shake at living their dreams.
Moving their business from Eatontown to Asbury Park was a long time vision for the trio.
“We love the culture here,” Elhomsi said. “Asbury Park is big in the arts and we thought it would be a perfect fit. Obviously we are all from right around the corner. We wanted to get involved and grow our shop as the community grows.”
The GrimeLordz Brand was built from the roots up, Elhomsi said.
“We were created from the underground culture and we want to pay homage to that,” the 27-year-old said.
The brand represents a lifestyle centered on freedom; moving differently, living your way – your grind, according to a written statement.
“Anyone can be a Grime Lord – as long as you are living your life the way you want to live it,” he said.
And while the artistry behind the business ventures may appeal to a wide array of artists, it is their vision to remain steadfast to the underground roots that gave birth to the brand that has made the collaboration a success.
The development of the brand is always on-going and starts, like us, from the ground up,” Elhomsi said. While we develop and test top-quality garments and discover different marketing channels, the most important thing to us is that our fellow Grimelordz are not only wearing the brand created for them but create this movement and grow with us.”
Soul Kraft Ink Art Gallery and Tattoo Studio will officially open Tuesday. Its hours will be from noon to 9 p.m. Monday through Saturday, Garcia said. For more information about the artist, visit @oscargarcia_ink on Instagram.
And, click on the business names for more on GrimeLordzBrand clothing and 3BDreams.
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