Jesse is the owner and lead artist of Valkyrie Tattoo & Piercing, and a U.S. Navy veteran with more than a decade of tattooing experience. He specializes in Norse-inspired and symbolic work, largely black and grey, with precision, depth, and intention in every piece.
For Jesse, tattooing is a tool for transformation, healing, and reclaiming identity. A significant share of his work is cover-ups: fixing other shops’ mistakes and turning old marks into pieces worth keeping.
In March 2025, WRAL Investigates featured Jesse advocating for competency standards and licensing reform in North Carolina’s under-regulated tattoo industry. The standard he pushes for publicly is the one the studio runs on daily.
The Work
I proposed to Emerald in the rainforest in Costa Rica.
For a long time I believed love wa
The phoenix is the only creature that files its own death certificate and its birth certif
Put an object on this man’s arm so dense that light itself can’t leave, and he still has t
Somewhere a real turtle is hauling a beach on its back with no palm tree and no recognitio
The caterpillar had to completely dissolve into goo to become this. Something to think abo
Flat skin, but the cubes disagree.
The flasher gremlin nobody asked for. Linework locked in.
We found each other in the jungles of Peru.
Two people who went looking for healing and c
Some things were built to outlast the people who made them.
Flowers don’t have to be soft.
The disguise was always temporary...
Second session on the geometric dot work sleeve. Really excited how this piece is coming t
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