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10 tattoo artists that you should check out for ink inspiration
If you've been thinking of getting some ink and it can be difficult to know where to start.
Getting a tattoo whether you're just starting out, or even if you're totally covered in tattoos all day, can be a challenge, especially if you don't know what you want, who to do your tattoo, or if you spontaneously have an itch to get some new ink and you're in a different country.
Here are a few tattoo artists that we recommend that are from all over the world:
United States — Carolyn Elaine
A post shared by Carolyn Elaine (@carolyn_elaine_tattoo) on Dec 22, 2017 at 6:52pm PST
Name: Carolyn Elaine (@carolyn_elaine_tattoo)
Type of art they're known for: Black lines and vibrant watercolor imagery; specializes in neotraditional wildlife tattoos
Experience: Based in Chicago, Carolyn is known as the "Lady Tattooer" at MayDay Tattoo Co. the tattoo shop she works at. Carolyn was also featured on season 8 of Ink Master.
What people love about them: She has some of the smoothest gradients when it comes to color.
Canada — Inal Bersekov
A post shared by Inal Bersekov (@inalbersekov) on Dec 30, 2017 at 12:08pm PST
Name: Inal Bersekov (@inalbersekov)
Type of art they're known for: Fine-line black-and-gray tattoos, primarily showcasing scenes and portraits
Experience: Well, Inal is Drake and his OVO crew’s personal tattoo artist, so he’s legit. He’s done tattoo portraits of Muhammad Ali, Will Smith, Justin Bieber, and Drake’s Sade tattoo.
What people love about them: That he travels. Although you can find him in Toronto whenever Drake needs a touch up, he also travels to Belgium (his hometown), Las Vegas, Korea, and many other places. People also love the realistic look of his tattoos.
Japan — Horishow
Name: Horishow (@horishow)
Type of art they're known for: Traditional Japanese subject matter with bold color
Experience: Horishow is currently a tattoo artist at Amitabha Tattoo in Fukuoka, Japan.
What people love about them: That his tattoos are so detailed.
China — Rob Kelly
A post shared by Rob Kelly (@blackoutbob) on Mar 10, 2018 at 8:08pm PST
Name: Rob Kelly (@blackoutbob)
Type of art they're known for: A mix of new-school color and traditional line value
Experience: Rob started tattooing in 2005. In 2010, he open up his own tattoo shop, BLACKOUT, which is a custom tattoo studio in Hong Kong. He highly believes that every tattoo should be a collaboration between artist and client, so he strives to create unique and custom designs to everyone who enters his shop.
What people love about them: There's an all-round agreement on the love of his tattoos throughout Hong Kong, just take a look at any photo of his work on Instagram. It's filled with people asking to get inked ASAP, and tons of "awesome" and "great job."
Australia — Lauren Winzer
A post shared by Lauren Winzer 🐬 (@laurenwinzer) on Mar 8, 2018 at 8:51pm PST
Name: Lauren Winzer (@laurenwinzer)
Type of art they're known for: Whimsical, cartoon-inspired, colorful, delicate hand lettering
Experience: Lauren is currently an artist at Hunter & Fox Tattoo in Sydney, Australia.
What people love about them: Her use of color is "brilliant" and "vibrant," which gives so much life to her characters and tattoos.
England — Valerie Vargas
Healed and settled @modernclassictattoo
A post shared by Valerie Vargas (@valeriemodernclassic) on Feb 28, 2018 at 12:25pm PST
Name: Valerie Vargas (@valeriemodernclassic)
Type of art they're known for: Western traditional style with an emphasis on figurative work, fine line black and grey and Japanese style work; cover-ups or re-works
Experience: She began tattooing in London in 2007. In 2014, Valerie and her husband opened up their own shop, Modern Classic Tattoo.
What people love about them: That her tattoos are "sick." People have also said that calling her "pretty good" at her job is an understatement.
Belgium — Daniel DiMattia
A post shared by Daniel Di Mattia CalypsoTattoo (@danieldimattiacalypsotattoo) on Mar 21, 2018 at 10:50am PDT
Name: Daniel DiMattia (@danieldimattiacalypsotattoo)
Type of art they're known for: Blackwork, tribal
Experience: He's been tattooing for over 20 years, and owns his own shop named Calypso Tattoo. Daniel uses a lot of African tribes, Polynesian culture, Indian henna designs, ancient Greco-Roman motifs, and modern geometrical forms in his work.
What people love about them: People love that his work is gorgeous and carefully-curated.
South Africa — Alex Muller
Lena's first tattoo made at the @sa_tattooconvention ... yeeeeeeew! ✌🏽#handpoke #machinefree
A post shared by Alex Muller (@weskuswolf) on Mar 24, 2018 at 11:26pm PDT
Name: Alex Muller (@weskuswolf)
Type of art they're known for: Hand poking technique
Experience: Alex is a hand poke artist at The Body Architects in Cape Town, South Africa. Her style of hand poking involves no electricity, hand to skin contact which goes back to the roots of traditional tattooing.
What people love about them: Her tattoo fades are so clean.
Thailand — Ajarn Noo Kanpai
A post shared by Ajarn Noo Kanpai (@ajannookanpai.eng) on Dec 28, 2017 at 2:46am PST
Name: Ajarn Noo Kanpai (@ajannookanpai.eng)
Type of art they're known for: Sak yant tattoos, sacred objects, and spiritual incantations
Experience: He's known for being the world's most famous Sak Yant (Thai spiritual tattoos) tattoo artist. And has inked famous celebrities, like Angelina Jolie, Brad Pitt, Cara Delevingne, and Michelle Rodriguez.
What people love about them: The authenticity and intricacy of his work.
Spain — Matias Noble
A post shared by Matias NobleTattoo (@matiasnobletattoo) on Feb 8, 2018 at 7:20am PST
Name: Matias Noble (@matiasnobletattoo)
Type of art they're known for: Black and grey realism work with little to no line work
Experience: Matias has been tattooing since 2012 and currently is an artist at Noble Art Gallery in Valencia, Spain.
What people love about them: His work is all around "amazing."
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