Manifest Studio · El Monte, California

Fernie AndradeBlack & Grey Realism

Portraits that look back at you. Religious pieces with real weight. Full sleeves, chests, and backs built in high-contrast black & grey — by hand, in his hometown.

Black & Grey Realism Portrait & Realism Specialist Large-Scale Sleeves & Backs Father & Two Sons
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Fernie Andrade, owner of Manifest Studio in El Monte, California

The Craft

Skin That Reads Like Stone

Fernie's work lives in high-contrast black & grey — deep blacks, soft mid-tones, and the kind of highlight control that makes a face look carved rather than drawn.

Most of what he takes on is large-scale and personal: portraits of people who matter, religious and statue work, full sleeves and back pieces built to sit together as one composition. He also takes on cover-ups and reworks — old pieces rebuilt into something you'd actually show off.

Every piece is custom-drawn for the person wearing it. No flash off a wall, no repeats of somebody else's tattoo.

Portrait & RealismReligious & StatueFull Sleeves Back & ChestMemorial PortraitsCover-Ups
Hyper-realistic black and grey portrait tattoo by Fernie Andrade

The Studio

He Came Home to Build It

EST. 1935 · LEXINGTON AVE

Manifest Studio started in West Covina in 2017. Fernie grew it chair by chair — but he always knew where it belonged. El Monte is where he's from, so when the building on Lexington opened up, he took the whole thing over.

It's not a strip-mall unit. The place was originally built in 1935 as the El Monte Post Office, put up with Treasury Department funds during the New Deal. Nearly a century of this city passed through those doors before he made it a studio.

Which means the room you get tattooed in has some weight to it — same as the work.

Black and grey realism half sleeve tattoo by Fernie Andrade

Your Session

Built for Long Sits

The Sit

Big Screens, Real Comfort

Large-scale black & grey takes hours. Big-screen TVs and a comfortable floor so a long session doesn't feel like one.

The Arrival

Park and Walk In

A big lot right out front for clients. No circling the block, no meters, no stress before you sit down.

The Crew

Treated Like Family

The staff is why people come back and bring people with them. You're a guest in their building, and it shows.

The Room

A 1935 Landmark

The original El Monte Post Office — real character, real history, and a studio floor that feels like somewhere worth being.

The Legacy

Three Andrades. One Floor.

Fernie tattoos alongside his two sons at Manifest Studio. They work side by side every day — the knowledge moves from hand to hand, chair to chair.

That's what separates this from a shop that rents chairs: this is a family building a name together, in their own city, in a building they own the story of.

Fernie AndradeOwner · Manifest Studio
Fernie Jr.Son · Manifest Studio
Joel AndradeSon · Manifest Studio

Limited Openings

Request Your Consultation

A booking manager will reach out personally. Openings with Fernie are limited each month.

Received. Watch your phone — our booking team will text you shortly to talk through your piece.
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