In the world of street art and tattoo culture, stories where an individual completes a full circle—from one form of creativity to another, and then returns to their roots with new experience and depth—are rare. This is precisely the path taken by Mika Glenda, a creator from Torquay, who after two decades of working in tattoo studios, has once again picked up spray cans and begun creating large-scale murals on the city walls.
From Childhood Drawings to Graffiti Legend
Glenda’s passion for drawing began at the age of seven, but his real breakthrough came at thirteen when he completed his first graffiti work. Since then, his life has been inextricably linked with street art: trains, buses, walls—everything became a canvas for his self-expression.
He soon joined SDM Crew—a renowned Melbourne graffiti collective founded in 1992. Initially called “So Damn Mad,” the group later changed its name to “Sleep Deprived Maniacs”—a nickname that stuck due to their late-night sessions when artists worked until three in the morning.
Twenty Years in the Tattoo Industry
After the graffiti era, Glenda immersed himself in the world of tattoos. He opened his own studio, Ice Cream Tattoo, in Torquay, where he worked until January 2026. During this time, he became part of a unique community where each client represented a story, trust, and a personal connection.
“For me, it wasn’t the tattoos themselves that were more important, but the people I gave them to,” Glenda admits. “It didn’t matter if they were famous or not—I loved working with each of them.”