Allen Contis

Allen Contis was born in 1974 in Florida. A self-taught artist and tattoo artist, he has the vision to use his art to show the resilience of the human spirit- “no matter what life throws your way, you can overcome any tragedy.” He is a survivor of childhood abuse and has struggled to cope with the trauma of that abuse. As a young adult, Allen turned to drugs to dull the emotional pain that “drove me to jails, institutions, and very close to death.” Stuck in Chattanooga,broke, homeless, and “spiritually dead,” Allen received the wake up call from his son who continues to be his inspiration for recovery. Allen aspires to use his art and his school of hard knocks knowledge to help at-risk youth.