“I got it when I was 17. I have a koi fish on the inside. The story about the koi fish is that swims upstream throughout its lifetime. And when it reaches the top of the stream, it becomes a dragon. It’s a reference for my life and how I’ve grown.
“I didn’t always originally know I wanted to do this. I’ve done other things [since] I graduated high school. So I have the dragon on the outside and the koi is on the inside. And then I have an ode to chefs [on my right arm].”
Ivan Barros is the Sous Chef at Scarpetta
Interview by Kara Chin; first and third photos by Battman, second photo by Kara Chin
