Italian tattooist Luca Testadiferro creates lively body art. The dynamic, energetic lines look as though they’re made with haphazard scribbles, but it’s the opposite—Testadiffero’s refined and steady hand is what allows them to have this vibrating effect. As a result, the pieces look as if they’re rumbling on the skin. It’s an aesthetic that Testadiferro […]
Tag: European
Erotic Body Art by Sad Amish Tattooer
Note: Contains nudity. Sultry and self-indulgent, Sad Amish Tattooer’s art captures sensual candids. Sweet, funny, graphic, orgasmic, his sketches explore a world of physical pleasure. Subtle details in the tilt of a knee or the placement of hair really sell the energy of each moment. He’ll play with shifts of perspective to set the tone […]
Nicolas Winding Refn and the Art of Violence: A Visual Analysis
Nicolas Winding Refn is a sensationalist film artist, one of the best and most exciting directors on the scene. He seeks to cause controversy and get people talking about his work. Because otherwise, what’s the point? Like fellow countryman Lars von Trier, Refn’s a bit of a joker and always good for a quote. He […]
Etching-Inspired Tattoos by Robert Pavez
Robert Pavez is a self-trained tattoo artist whose formal training lies in graphic design—which is also where his career started. From 2007 to 2014 he was a print designer, seeing tattooing as a hobby. After developing his illustrative style—whose influences include geometry, etching, and artists like MC Escher—he began tattooing full time in Chile. “I […]
A Peek into the Photographic World of Denis Kulikov
Note: Contains nudity. The 23-year-old Russian photographer Denis Kulikov finds most of his models through the web. Some are actual friends. Often posing in the nude, the models sit on sofas and beds, walk around someone’s home closing and opening doors, and playfully throw plastic sheeting over their bodies to create artistic shots for the […]
Digimatism: A Future Visual Language by Stanislaw Wilczynski
Moscow-based tattoo artist Stanislaw Wilczynski produces shape-centric imagery that is born out of the Digimatism movement. Digimatism, a combination of the words “digital” and “suprematism,” describes his bold abstract assemblages that are created with the help of the computer. This contemporary approach has a historic bend to it by recalling artistic movements from the early […]
Chaotic Glitch Art Tattoos by Timur Lysenko
Timur Lysenko has been tattooing for 10 years, and his style is constantly evolving because he’s willing to try new visual techniques. Some of his most striking works mix photorealistic faces with glitch art, where the human subjects emerge from stiff pixels and chaotic lines. “Three years ago I made my first tattoo where I […]
Elschwino’s Vibrant Tattoos Favor Artistic Expression Over Rules
German tattoo artist Elschwino crafts his body art using vibrant colors and energetic line work to make his subjects—surreal portraits and animals—visually pop from the skin. They represent a playful perspective on the New School style and favor artistic expression over the sets of rules that govern other approaches like American Traditional. Elschwino is compelled […]
Dark and Dramatic Tattoos by Johnny Gloom
Grief is a recurring theme in Johnny Gloom’s artwork. Her heroines in heavy black convey the weight of human suffering, often crying or collapsing into the arms of death. Some smoke in solitude, apathetic or guarded. Others dramatically surrender to the pain of heartbreak. Johnny looks into her own darkest feelings when drafting a design. […]
Beauty in Blocks: 3D Animal Tattoos by Sven Rayen
Sven Rayen is one part of Studio Palermo, a private tattoo shop based in Antwerp, Belgium. Working in a geometric style, his art reimagines animals with three-dimensional blocky bodies. Often, they’re fused with a sense of realism, where tree branches and feathers oscillate between hard angles and elegant forms. This style showcases the beautiful rigidity […]