My name is Cao Thanh Hop.
I live and work in Da Nang — a city that is neither rushed nor ever stands still.
Here, there is the sea.
The wind.
Roads where the afternoon sun stretches long across the asphalt.
And moments of silence — if you choose to pause.
Hope Tattoo exists within one of those quiet spaces.
I wasn’t born a tattoo artist.
I grew up with paper, pens, color, and the scent of oil paint at the Hue University of Arts.
Those years taught me to see things a beat slower than others —
to notice form before image,
emotion before naming it.
After graduation, I chose a different path.
Five years as a Graphic Designer.
Days spent in front of a screen, arranging layouts, refining tiny details in the name of “correctness” and “beauty.”
Everything had order. Boundaries. Deadlines.
Until one ordinary afternoon.
I walked past a tattoo studio.
The door wasn’t fully closed. It was dim inside.
Then I heard the sound of a tattoo machine.
Not loud — but enough to make me stop.
Through the crack in the door, I saw an artist leaning in close.
Light fell across the skin.
Each needle stroke was slow, steady, precise.
No words. Only the hum of the machine and the rhythm of breath.
That moment felt like a quiet impact.
I knew I was witnessing another form of art —
one not hung on walls, but carried by people.
I began learning to tattoo from that day.
From nothing.
Learning how to hold the machine.
How to control pressure.
How to maintain absolute hygiene.
And most importantly — how to listen.
Because every body is different.
And every story deserves care.
To this day, I’ve dedicated 12 years to tattooing.
Yet I still work as I did on day one —
slow, focused, without haste.
Hope Tattoo was born in Da Nang.
Where mornings smell of the sea,
noons burn bright,
and evenings soften quickly.
I wanted this studio to feel the same —
quiet, unforced,
a space where you can hear yourself.
I believe the most meaningful tattoo
is the one that truly belongs to its wearer.
No trends. No copies.
Just a reason you understand when you look down.
Fine arts gave me form.
Design gave me composition.
Da Nang gave me balance —
between ink and skin,
art and humanity.
Hope Tattoo isn’t just where you get tattooed.
It’s where you leave a piece of your story —
and carry it with you, quietly, on your body.
If you’ve read this far,
perhaps we share the same way of seeing.
Cao Thanh Hop
KOREAN
VIETNAM