Zac Scheinbaum isn’t just the founder of Shrine Tattoo in Santa Fe — he’s also the visionary behind Afterlife Press, a small publishing house that blends tattoo artistry with literary storytelling. In his recent Art in the Raw interview, Zac opened up about what drives him beyond the tattoo needle: books, movies, memory, and the desire to document artistic legacies.
Through Afterlife Press, Zac has released volumes of Afterlife, a series of art books that highlight intimate, multi-day conversations with top tattoo artists around the world. The interviews are edited, rearranged, and deeply reflective. Each volume is more than ink on paper — it’s a preservation of ideas and inspirations in tattoo culture.
“I wasn’t seeing or reading anything I wanted to in the tattoo world… so I made it myself.” – Zac Scheinbaum
Learn more: Explore Afterlife Press
When Zac’s not tattooing, you’ll find him watching Korean horror, Japanese animation, and deep-diving into the work of directors like Paul Thomas Anderson. Why? Because movies, like tattoos, are about world-building — creating universes with meaning, layers, and identity.
“I like seeing actors in multiple films by the same director. It feels like building a world — like writing a book across many volumes.”
One of Zac’s specialties is the snake tattoo — often composed of dots and gradient shading. The inspiration? Hindu depictions of Shiva. Over time, Zac’s repetition and reinterpretation of this subject matter helped him develop a distinctive style, rooted in tradition but filtered through personal evolution.
His tattoos — whether of snakes, skulls, spiderwebs, or flowers — are made with thoughtful placement and repetition, which he likens to learning an instrument or drawing from memory.
Zac’s home is filled with art books, tattoo references, and prints from artist friends. He sees these collections as both inspiration and documentation — a way of honoring the process and people who shaped him.
Now, with Afterlife Press and Shrine, he’s building new platforms for other tattooers to share their own stories, art, and philosophies with the world.
Whether you’re a tattoo collector, art book fan, or someone exploring the culture of tattoos in Santa Fe, Zac’s story offers something more — a deeper look at what happens when ink, story, and spirit intersect.
