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<p>Among his accumulated skills, tattoo artist Derek Zielinski counts his consideration for customers as his most unique attribute.</p><p>&#8220;I think what sets me apart is that I give a damn,&#8221; Zielinski said. &#8220;I truly care about my clients and their well being.&#8221;</p><p>Zielinski, who owns and operates out of Glass Heart Tattooing &amp; Arts in Plains Township, recently competed on the ninth season of hit reality TV show &#8220;Ink Master,&#8221; which premieres Tuesday night on Spike.</p><p>In a new format, the ninth season of the arts competition, dubbed &#8220;Shop Wars,&#8221; features pairs of artists from different reputable shops vying for prize money and bragging rights.</p><p>Zielinski, 34, competes with Thom Bulman, representing Bulman&#8217;s Mattydale, N.Y., studio, Classic Trilogy Tattoos, where Zielinski is a featured artist.</p><p>&#8220;Thom and I worked together at Town Hall (in Wilkes-Barre Township) for two to three years,&#8221; Zielinski said. &#8220;It was good times.&#8221;</p><p>&#8220;Shop Wars&#8221; has artist teams bound together for better or worse, winning and losing as units and never competing alone.</p><p>&#8220;You hear artists say, &#8216;This is no longer a solo effort. It&#8217;s a team effort,&#8217;&#8221; Zielinski said.</p><p>Zielinski is the second Wyoming Valley-based artist to compete on &#8220;Ink Master&#8221; in two seasons, following Kingston shop owner Ryan Ashley Malarkey&#8217;s <a href="https://www.timesleader.com/news/613525/ryan-malarkey-of-shavertown-wins-ink-master-title-100000-in-new-york" target="_blank">title-winning run</a> on season eight.</p><p>But the stakes are higher in season nine, with contestants contending for $200,000 &#8212; which doubles last season&#8217;s cash prize &#8212; and the distinction of Master Shop as well as a feature in Inked magazine and the individual titles of Ink Master.</p><p>Spike&#8217;s trailer for the upcoming season shows the series&#8217; judges leading competitors into a room filled with ice blocks to be used as canvases.</p><p>&#8220;They presented us with a lot of crazy stuff,&#8221; Zielinski said. &#8220;Thom and I have worked together, but never on the same tattoo. Our styles are different. I do traditional elements, and he does new school elements.&#8221;</p><p>Zielinski describes his style as illustrative realism, although he notes it&#8217;s a term he&#8217;s adopted because the industry doesn&#8217;t have an exact label for his fusing of traditional Americana and portraiture.</p><p>&#8220;When I paint and draw, I gravitate toward realism,&#8221; Zielinski said. &#8220;When I tattoo, I like to bring traditional elements to that realism. I think line work is the foundation of any good tattoo, and if your line work isn&#8217;t good, your tattoo isn&#8217;t good.&#8221;</p><p>Zielinski favors the bold, heavy line work of the American traditional style but is also influenced by European and Australian neo-traditional work. Throughout his career, Zielinski has worked in those styles as well as in portraiture and new school, a resume he believes gives him a competitive edge.</p><p>He said he made it a point to learn as many styles and genres as he could while apprenticing in Georgia and was taught the value of satisfying the customer.</p><p>&#8220;We were the only legitimate shop in town in Georgia,&#8221; Zielinski said. &#8220;We had no room for egocentric tattoos.&#8221;</p><p>Constantly moving around within the art, Zielinski said he&#8217;s &#8220;almost never satisfied.&#8221;</p><p>&#8220;People say to me, &#8216;What&#8217;s your favorite tattoo?&#8217; And I always say, &#8216;The next one. The one I haven&#8217;t done yet.&#8217; I have a progressive mindset.&#8221;</p><p><ins>For other Life Section stories, <a href="https://www.timesleader.com/category/features" target="_blank">click here</a>.</ins></p><style>
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<div class="neCaption">Derek Zielinski tattoos Lou Lyons in his shop Glass Heart Tattooing &amp; Arts in Plains Township. Along with partner Thom Bulman, Zielinski represents Bulman&#8217;s New York studio, Classic Trilogy Tattoo, on the ninth season of Spike&#8217;s &#8216;Ink Master.&#8217; </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo0>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/web1_TTL06XX17InkMaster2-1.jpg</photo0><caption0>Derek Zielinski tattoos Lou Lyons in his shop Glass Heart Tattooing &amp; Arts in Plains Township. Along with partner Thom Bulman, Zielinski represents Bulman&#8217;s New York studio, Classic Trilogy Tattoo, on the ninth season of Spike&#8217;s &#8216;Ink Master.&#8217; </caption0><photoCredit0>Aimee Dilger | Times Leader </photoCredit0></div><div class="neFile"><img class="neImage" src="https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/web1_TTL06XX17InkMaster6-1.jpg">
<div class="neCaption">Derek Zielinski brings experience tattooing in a variety of styles to the latest &#8216;Ink Master&#8217; competition, which premieres Tuesday. </div></div><div class="metaInfo"><photo1>https://www.timesleader.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/web1_TTL06XX17InkMaster6-1.jpg</photo1><caption1>Derek Zielinski brings experience tattooing in a variety of styles to the latest &#8216;Ink Master&#8217; competition, which premieres Tuesday. </caption1><photoCredit1>Aimee Dilger | Times Leader </photoCredit1></div></div>
<div class="metaInfo"><subheadMeta>Plains Twp. shop owner competes on reality show</subheadMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><bylineMeta><p>By Matt Mattei</p><p>mmattei@www.timesleader.com</p></bylineMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><factboxMeta><p><strong>HOW TO WATCH</strong></p><p><strong>What: </strong>&#8220;Ink Master: Shop Wars&#8221;</p><p><strong>Where: </strong>Spike</p><p><strong>When: </strong>10 p.m. Tuesday</p></factboxMeta></div><div class="metaInfo"><shirttailMeta><p>Reach Matt Mattei at 570-991-6651 or on Twitter @TimesLeaderMatt.</p></shirttailMeta></div>

Plains Twp. shop owner Derek Zielinski competes on new ‘Ink Master’ season