Art enthusiasts now will be able to enjoy mobile exhibitions in DeKalb County.

A skin art studio has opened in Cortland after months of efforts to gain approval from the Cortland Town Board.

Proton Studio, 2004 Somonauk Road, was opened about a month ago by two tattoo enthusiasts, Chris May and Jon Bowman.

“In a nutshell, we had to check if it was legal,” May said.

May and Bowman had to present their proposal to the Cortland Town Board and gain approval for the unprecedented venture.

May said that the whole process took about four or five months because the board only meets once a month and some ordinances needed amending to make the studio legal.

“It wasn’t part of the zoning, so we had to get it amended,” Bowman said.

May said that Proton Studio is the only tattoo parlor in DeKalb County and that business is picking up.

May and Bowman said tattoos can take anywhere from 15 minutes to three hours to complete.

May said that the most interesting part about the business is the drawing of the art and the conversations with the different types of people who come in for tattoos. He also noted that the support of certain town board members was instrumental in gaining the approval for the shop and opening the shop.

“The biggest thing was that some citizens thought that skin art studios would attract bikers and gangs,” said Chuck Lanning, a Cortland town board member.

Lanning said that he has over a thousand dollars in skin art on his back alone and looks forward to getting more.

“Chuck Lanning’s wife was our very first customer,” Bowman said.

The possibility of a tattoo parlor opening in DeKalb seemed possible, Lanning said.

“I would have no problem with a tattoo parlor in the city of DeKalb,” 4th Ward Alderman Mike Knowlton said.

Knowlton said that tattoo artists are very talented, and that most parlors are run very well and are clean.

“It’s art; I first got two when I was 14 and things have changed. It used to be all rough and tough stuff, now it’s more about the art,” Lanning said.

The studio is open from noon to 8 p.m. daily.