Tag: Fine line tattoo

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Interview with tattoo artist Pauline

Tattooer Pauline (taken from his mother’s baptismal name) creates beautifully delicate fineline tattoos at Inktable in Seoul, Korea. We chat to Pauline about capturing the feelings of a specific moment in his tattoos…

Why did you want to become a tattoo artist? There are many reasons, including thoughts and memories that I don’t want to forget. Tattooing allows for elements of beauty in my life. It also indicates a direction and ideals that I want to live in and live by.

How did you become a tattooer? Since I was young I have encountered art in my natural environment. Being around art so much inspired me to go to university to study sculpture.

I was attracted to painting and the field of tattooing and so wanted to study this too. While studying sculpture, I fell in love with tattooing and creating my own paintings, especially the idea of engraving these onto skin.

How would you describe your style? I think my tattoos capture the emotions and stories of the moment. Due to the nature of my line drawings it’s difficult to get the same picture more than once. So, I can only draw the lines and the feelings expressed in that very moment. I think it’s this part that is so attractive to me and my clients.

Have you always tattooed like this? No, there’s been a lot of changes in how I paint. At first I did blackwork and oriental paintings as I liked this painting style. However, I was always drawn to line style paintings without realising it and then I openly fell in love with linework.

Your lines are mainly in black, do you prefer this over colour? I don’t insist on black, but I think I prefer black to color. In my tattoos I like to change the thickness of the line as well as the strength and weakness of it. Personally, I think black can express these things best.

What inspires your designs? In the past I was very inspired by Klimt’s drawings and Egon Schile’s drawings. These artists are one of the reasons why I became more interested in drawing.

I always try to look at other artists’ paintings to broaden my horizons. Mainly because other paintings, music and movies are also inspired by areas of art that surround them.

What do you like about tattoos? Tattoos are a way that you can live with pictures of your own stories. Then when we see a tattoo we remember ourselves and others from that time. You can express your personality through them and to me they’re a part of art.

What do you love the most about being a tattoo artist? I get to do what I like to do. It’s a very good thing as I love painting and I’m able to do a job that’s related to it. I also like having a free schedule and control over my time, that’s one of the many factors that makes it so good.

Can you tell us about the process behind linework tattoos? When you’re painting, you’re drawing and so you’re creating a line without any hesitation. It’s different when you’re transcribing that line into a tattoo. You have to express every line well from the neat ones to those with strong and weak points too. I think it’s better to make a line in the skin rather than draw it on paper.

Tell us about your own tattoos, do you collect them? Yes, I have a lot of tattoos. I have the face of my mother, whom I respect, engraved on me. Then there’s also a figure from Korean history, this tattoo helps to give me direction and live the life I want.

Sometimes I collect tattoos because I just like the artist’s paintings. I have a wide variety of tattoos.

When in your career have you felt the happiest? My tattoo appointments are a time where I can be supportive of people. Everyone has pain and some people want to overcome their pain by getting one of my tattoos. I feel proud and happy to be an artist who can be of any help in other people’s lives.

Do you have any guestspots or travel planned? I have been to so many countries including Germany, America, England and France. I’ll be in Singapore soon but currently I don’t have a planned schedule.

Make sure to follow @pauline.tattoo for more beautiful tattoos and travel plans.

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Interview with tattoo artist Fluffy Tattoo

Fluffy Tattoo creates the cutest mix of floral and animal tattoos we have ever seen! Working at Studio by Sol in Seoul, Korea we chat to the tattoo artist about the inspirations behind her tattoos and how she became and artist…

How long have you been tattooing and how did you become an artist? It will be exactly two years since I started tattooing in June this year. I’ve always liked to draw ever since I was a child. There’s someone who’s always drawing, right? That was me.

As I decided to go to an art university, I started to learn painting with earnest. After entering university I majored in crafts, especially pottery. However, I preferred the process of painting on top of the pottery rather than making it. After graduation, I started to work as a designer while drawing as a pastime, but I felt that it wasn’t for me. I decided to become a tattooist because I wanted to draw again.

What’s your favourite thing about being a tattooer? That people like my drawings. I feel happy that so many people like my style and tattoos. The reactions when I show the results of our tattoo session to my clients makes me feel good .

Can you tell us about your experiences in the tattoo industry? After years of working as a tattooist, I think tattooers are comprehensive artists. Tattooists often have to schedule work, take pictures, edit and market themselves, not just draw pictures.

There have been so many differences between watching the tattoo industry when I was outside of it, and seeing it inside its boundaries. At first, I thought it was difficult because of these differences. I wasn’t used to dealing with customers or taking pictures. But now I think of all this as being part of a tattooist.

How would you describe your work? Every one of my tattoos is a small world in itself. There are stories to be found in my little works. Most of my tattoos are cute or beautiful and I always try to put a special meaning in them. Most people want to express themselves with tattoos or have them contain stories. Customers also give the tattoos I make for them meanings that even I don’t think of.

You’re open to doing cover-up tattoos, can you tell us more about this? I do about four or five cover-up tattoos a month. My customers usually want to cover their existing tattoos with flowers, animals, the moon and clouds. Cover-ups are more difficult than general tattoos. Not only do I need to cover previous work in a natural and beautiful way, but I also have to pay attention to any damage to the skin. They’re just as interesting as the other tattoos I do and I love that my customers are always very satisfied with the new tattoo. I feel very proud of them.

What would you say to someone wanting a cover up tattoo from you? If you want to get a cover-up tattoo, you must read the cover-up precautions beforehand. Since the cover-up isn’t magic you need to consider that the size and colour can’t be as diverse as a regular tattoo can be. This is because tattoo ink cannot put bright colours over dark colours. Plus, the cover-up design should be larger than the existing tattoo. I make an appointment after the customer has thought about these things.

How do you feel covering and updating another tattooer’s work? I’m not conscious of the tattooist who gave my customers existing tattoos. I just focus on the needs of my customers. I see so many people get cover-ups because their tattoos smudge or the previous tattooer has messed up a lot. But, there are some people who cover them because their tastes change. Therefore, I’m open to someone who has been tattooed by me having my work covered by someone else.

What inspires you? Everything around me. Of course, nature is my greatest inspiration, especially as natural things are always around us. The changes in seasons and temperatures, the flowers and animals I’ve seen along the road and new scenery on trips inspire me. 

Can you tell us about the process behind your tattoos? The first thing I do is draw a design and almost every day I upload one on Instagram. So, in fact, even when I’m not working on tattoos, I keep drawing and editing photos to upload. When the design is sold through Instagram the appointment date is set. I then prepare a stencil, guide customers on placement during our consultation and finally tattoo them.

What do you like to tattoo and what would you like to do more of? These days, the combination of animals and flowers is the most interesting to me. These tattoos are small and delicate and they take a lot of time. But, it’s always fun when I’m working on these. I do, however, want to draw and tattoo bigger pieces.

Can you tell us about your own tattoos? Are you a tattoo collector? I have eight tattoos on my body. Three small doodle tattoos, three plant tattoos, a goldfish tattoo and my cat tattoo. Two of them were given to me by my tattoo teacher, Soltattoo. After I got a few tattoos on my body, the style I wanted became clear. But I don’t think I have enough to say I’m a tattoo collector maybe after another two or three tattoos.

How does it feel making tattoos in Korea when they’re still illegal? I always feel like I’m carrying a certain amount of anxiety. Before I became a tattooist, I hesitated because it was illegal. That’s why I’m always cautious. Now I’m used to the anxiety, but I hope it becomes legal soon so that both tattooists and customers can get tattoos safely.

How are tattoo artists seen by society?There are still two points of view. Contrary to the positive perspective of people who enjoy tattoo culture, there is a conservative and disgusting view of tattoos. As a person engaged in tattoo culture, I am still surprised when I encounter people who feel disgust for tattoos, especially while I’m surrounded by people who love tattoos. Most of the older generations still regard tattoos as a symbol of negative attitudes, which is why tattoos are not legalised in Korea.

Despite all of this what moment in your career are you most proud of? I’m proud every time that people love my tattoos. I’m glad that I do this job whenever I receive good reviews from customers after tattooing.

Make sure to follow @fluffy_tattoo on Instagram for more adorable tattoos.

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Interview with Hernán Giamberardino

Tattoo artist and founder of Cry Baby tattoo in Palma de Mallorca, Spain, Hernán Giamberardino (best known as “Adamexiste”) tells us about his journey to become a tattooer, his appreciation for his clients and the detailed tattoos he creates…

What inspired you to become a tattoo artist? I got my first tattoo at the age of 15, but what inspired me to become a tattoo artist was actually TV shows. Back then we didn’t have social media, so I was exposed to the tattoo scene by the pictures hanging outside of tattoo shops in my hometown. I never thought about it as an art expression until these TV reality tattooing shows came out and I became obsessed.

How did you become an artist? My grandfather was a musician, my mother is a painter, so I guess art is in my DNA. I knew that if I wanted to become a good tattoo artist I would need more information. I was studying fine arts in Barcelona at the time, but I wasn’t getting what I wanted out of it, so I quit and got into Illustration at the Superior School of Design in Palma. That was game changing for me, I finally got the knowledge I needed and became more confident about tattooing.

My first job as a tattoo artist was in a nightclub, I always say if you can tattoo in a nightclub you can tattoo anywhere! It was a lot of fun and I gained what felt like years of experience in just a couple of months. I’m very grateful for that opportunity, although I would never do it again. I then worked for the same company in downtown Palma and after three years I had gained enough clients that I decided to open my own tattoo shop.

How long have you been tattooing? Ive been tattooing for almost 10 years and hope to keep doing it for a very long time.

How would you describe your work? I would describe my work as “delicate and detailed”. I have some sort of Horror Vacui, so even if it’s a small piece it needs to be full of details. I’m a perfectionist and in small tattoos there’s no space for errors. I think that’s what I love the most about fine line and small tattoos, every piece is a challenge and you need to be focus a 100%. I also love the aesthetic, love to see a sleeve full of small tattoos and think of the story behind each one of them.

Have you always tattooed like this? When I started tattooing I tried a little of every style, mainly because when you work for a company you don’t really get to choose what you tattoo or just do the things you like. You have to do a bit of everything. Instagram and social media really helped me develop the audience and clients that I wanted. I only posted the kind of tattoos that I wanted people to ask me for. Now I’m very grateful that I can decide what I want to tattoo and what I don’t.

What do you love to tattoo and what would you like to do more of? I love tattooing anything related to nature. Now more than ever tattoo trends change so quickly and I find something timeless in nature related tattoos. You can see them 10 years from now and they will still work. Insects and plants are my favourite, and pet portraits too when you see the client’s reaction. I would love to do more portraits of people, I absolutely enjoy it and it’s the biggest challenge for me.

How has the pandemic affected you and your tattooing? I can’t really say the pandemic affected my business in a negative way. I had to close the shop for four months and stay at home and that gave me the chance to work on other projects that I had going on.

Once we could reopen I think I had even more clients than before. Bars and restaurants were closed, social events were cancelled so people that love tattoos had the time and money. I’m very aware that this hasn’t been everyone’s situation so all I can say is how grateful I am to all my clients that kept on coming to the shop in this hard times.

The bad part of the pandemic for me was the fear. Obviously the nature of our job demands us to take extra care regardless if we are in a pandemic or not. In the beginning it was very unclear what was the best way to keep everybody and ourselves safe.

Can you tell us about your own tattoos? Are you a tattoo collector? Most of my tattoos are handpoke. I’m very lazy on the aftercare, and handpoke doesn’t require a lot of it. I always have to think a lot for my clients, so when it comes to my own tattoos I prefer to go to my friends’ flashbooks and choose the first thing that calls my attention. 

I’m more of a friends’ tattoo collector, I love tattoos that makes me laugh when I see them or remind me of a special person. I have a lot of tattoos that were made by friends that had never done a tattoo before and they’re my favourite. I also have a lot of insects, animals and matching tattoos with people I love.

Plans for the future? I’m currently in the process of opening a second tattoo shop so I can have more artists with me. I love working with people and the inspirational flow it creates so I’m very excited about it. I’m also gonna be participating, for the first time, in a tattoo convention in October and I think that will be an amazing experience.

Give Hernán a follow on Insta for more incredible tattoos and keep up to date with his future plans.

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Interview with tattoo artist Fan Wu

New York based anime tattoo artist Fan Wu tells us about her journey into becoming a tattoo artist and how her love for anime inspires everything she does…

What inspired you to become a tattoo artist and how did you become one? I really love drawing, have done since I was a kid. I’m introverted so I spent most of my time drawing. My major was printmaking in college, which is similar to tattooing as it’s a handmade process. Now I’m drawing on the skin instead of on the paper.

I was so curious about the tattoo process, that at first I started to learn it by myself. The more I got to know about the tattoo world the deeper I fell in love with it. I could, and still can, see lots of different styles and techniques from all over the world. So, I transformed into a tattoo artist instead of a printmaker, after I finished a tattoo apprenticeship.

How long have you been tattooing? Have you always worked in New York? I’ve been tattooing for almost four years now. I started to learn to tattoo when I was in college in Philadelphia. I used to tattoo on myself and my friends to practice, after graduation, I moved to New York and started my real tattooing life.

What inspires your work? What is it about anime that made you want to make it your signature style? I think what inspires my work the most is anime, florals, geometry, and galaxy patterns. I remember during my childhood the main thing I was doing was drawing and watching anime. The anime world is full of magic, craziness, and imagination. I’m always impressed by the characters and the stories. It’s so real, but it’s also not real.

Every time I watch anime I’m encouraged and touched by the spirits of the characters. I can tell how the author wants to express himself to the human world, and that’s the most important and impressive part to me. It’s just so amazing! So, I want to create more anime designs and custom pieces related to anime. Like the authors of the anime I love, I want to show people, who also love anime, the view I can see. I want to express my feelings through anime pieces.

How would you describe your work? Have you always tattooed like this? What drew you to this type of tattooing? My work is all fine line style. When I was an apprentice, I started to learn fine line style. It suited me as I really enjoy doing details and I love to spend time practising thin line. I worked as a printmaker for a while after graduating. Printmaking requires lots of detailed hand drawing and similar techniques, so I transferred these to tattooing. 

Can you tell us about the process behind your tattooing? I like to play my favourite music playlist before I draw., as songs inspire me too. Whenever I get a strong inspiration, I will start the sketch immediately. If I decide to finish a drawing, no matter how late it is, I will finish it.

What do you love to tattoo and what would you like to do more of? I love to do anime work the most. I also like to do custom pieces, like animal portraits, florals, and things that are meaningful to my clients. But I will say anime work is my favourite. I think I will try more coloured work in the future.

Can you tell us about your own tattoos? Are you a tattoo collector? Yes I am a tattoo collector! I’ve done loads of guest spots in different cities and I’ve met lots of amazing tattoo artists. I’ve been so impressed by all the different styles and the artists’ flash work, that I love to collect flash pieces from different artists that I like. I also like to draw the design myself and find the right tattoo artist to do it on my body.

Give Fan a follow on Insta.

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Interview with tattoo artist Jing

Fineline tattooer Jing works in a private studio in the Arts District of Los Angeles, a hidden gem of a place where she has lots of plants and sunlight. Jing tells us her Chinese name is 静月 meaning peaceful moon, which fits beautifully with her private studio, a space she can focus on her designs in and work peacefully.

What inspired you to become a tattoo artist? How did you become an artist? To be honest, I never planned to become a tattoo artist. I became a tattoo artist by accident. In China, tattoos are still connected with gangs and gangsters, and I had negative opinions about them for this reason. It took me almost half a year to understand why people were getting tattoos. But I will share how I got from there to where I am today…

My uncle is an artist, specialising in oil painting. He has an art studio in Chengdu, China. I was his very first student when I was a little girl. After high school I got accepted by the China Central Academy of Fine Arts (中央美术学院) to study arts and design. During senior year, I went to Zurich University of the Arts in Switzerland (Zürcher Hochschule der Künste) to study style and design. At that time, my dream was to become a visual merchandise designer or a UX designer.


One day while helping a friend shoot for a video, we went to a tattoo studio. At that time, my life was boring as I was preparing for the GRE exam. So I thought learning to tattoo could be a fun hobby. So I started my apprenticeship, and because of Instagram, I was lucky to have clients who supported me and helped me move to Los Angeles. Then luckily again, I met Eva Karabudak. She was a big inspiration for me, and she helped me to see the value of my work, and build a stronger technique.

Today, I study Chinese traditional painting and Chinese calligraphy. My goal is to bring traditional Chinese Arts into tattooing and integrate them.


How would you describe your work? Have you always tattooed like this? What drew you to this type of tattooing? I say the tattoo is my client’s “mark of the soul”. As a HSP (highly sensitive person), I can easily have connections with my clients, and help them to make their ideas come to life. Even though right now, during this crazy time, I can’t do consultations in-person. Even so I always spend hours talking with my clients and adjusting the designs with them.

I know perfection is impossible, but I always try to make my designs and tattoos as close to perfect as I can. I treat my clients with love from the bottom of my heart. That’s why I can’t tattoo too many people in a day, otherwise I would burn myself out. 

For the style: from the beginning, I’ve done small fine line work. Now I would like to take those skills and tattoo more East Asian style arts, both colour and fine-line. I will say my master Pingguang Zhou 周平珖 helped me to step into the traditional Chinese art world. I paint with him every week, and this work draws me closer towards to this type of tattooing, and also the peaceful lifestyle of a Chinese artist. It guides me on my way to becoming a better artist and a better person.


Can you tell us about the process behind your tattooing? Actually, my tattoo process is really casual. That’s why I hope my clients are chill people. (Luckily almost all of them are chill and nice people!)

  • Step 1: Clients fill the booking form from my website when I open booking.
  • Step 2: After the appointment is confirmed, I will read their tattoo ideas before we meet. If they already have certain ideas, usually I will have the designs prepared for them. But sometimes, clients don’t have specific ideas, maybe either it’s their first tattoo, or they want too many elements in one small tattoo. Then I will talk with them in person first and design the tattoo with them.
  • Step 3: I will wear my earphones and focus on tattooing. My rectangle tattoos usually take one to one and a half full days, depending on the placement, size and details of the design.
  • Step 4: When the tattoo is fully healed, clients will give me feedback on how their skin took the ink. Because I do colour packing (which means each spot packed colour three to five times), most tattoos heal great. If there is any spot that didn’t heal great, I welcome them to come back for a free touch up session within a year.


What inspires your designs? East Asian culture is always my biggest inspiration, especially traditional Chinese painting (especially from Song Dynasty), Japanese Ukiyo-e, Jingdezhen porcelain, Dunhuang Murals etc.

What do you love to tattoo and what would you like to do more of? I like tattooing both fine-line and colours. For fine-line, I love tattooing Chinese meticulous line drawings. For colour tattoos, I love the rectangular designs with many details. I feel satisfied after seeing my client’s surprised face after their tattoo session. In the near future, I want to design and tattoo more shapes with Chinese paintings.


Can you tell us about your own tattoos? Are you a tattoo collector? I don’t have many tattoos yet. But all of them are important to me. My first one is by my friend @yuantattoodesign, it’s a moon. I got it during my apprenticeship, mostly because I wanted to experience the pain that I was causing to others when I tattoo them.

My second one is from @gloriatattoo. We tried nine machines on a two and a half inche fine-line tattoo. I used myself to test which machine was good for fine-line, the differences of pain levels and healing progress.

My third one is from my friend @ink_by_bae. I got it when I became a tattoo artist. During that time, I felt huge peer pressure and competition. So I got the tattoo to remind myself: “Don’t compare your life to others. There’s no comparison between the sun and the moon. They shine when it’s their time.” 

My fourth and fifth tattoos were made together from my friends @ink_by_bae and @frommay_tat: they’re a leaf branch and my grandma’s favourite flower, Japanese honeysuckle. She is the one who raised me, and I really miss her.


What is the tattoo scene like in L.A? How are women in the tattoo industry treated, how has your experience been? Los Angeles a city that’s very tolerant of different cultures and immigrants. I feel happy, safe, respected and blessed to work as a tattoo artist in this city. Most of my clients are women, so I feel lucky as a female tattoo artist. I can create really feminine designs, and also neither of us will feel awkward about sensitive body placement, like the chest. There are some times that I don’t feel safe to work late alone, but all in all, my experience is really great.

Make sure to follow Jing on Instagram for more beautiful fine line tattoos.