Tokyo is the city that welcomed her: but it is also the lens through which Nitzan Dor interprets tattooing. An Israeli artist now based in Harajuku, at the renowned Tattoo Studio Yamada, Nitzan has developed a precise and recognizable visual language, capable of transforming the aesthetics of anime and manga into refined black and grey stippled work.
Her compositions, often enclosed in clean, defined frames, seem to come straight off a printed page: meticulous details, suspended emotions, characters vibrating with life. In this interview, Nitzan tells us about her origins, her journey into the tattoo world, and her personal connection with Japanese visual culture.
Hi Nitzan, where are you from, would you like to introduce yourself to our readers?
My name is Nitzan Dor. I’m originally from Israel, and I’m currently based in Tokyo, Japan, working as a tattoo artist at Tattoo Studio Yamada. I create anime- and manga-inspired tattoos in a detailed black and grey style.
How long have you been in the tattoo world? How did you first get into it?
I’ve been tattooing for about four and a half years, and I’ve been drawing for as long as I can remember. Tattoos were already part of my world from a very young age. My family has tattoos, and one of my strongest early memories is from when I was around seven or eight years old, when my father invited a tattoo artist to our home to tattoo both him and my mother as an anniversary gift. I remember standing behind the door, listening to the sound of the tattoo machine, feeling curious and strangely drawn to it. That moment stayed with me for years.
As I grew older, many of the music artists I admired were tattooed, and tattoo culture was becoming more visible and popular around the world, which made me even more fascinated by it. Over the last decade, as the tattoo industry grew strongly on Instagram, I was increasingly exposed to tattoo artists and their work, and I began seriously thinking about entering this world myself. During the COVID period, I had just left my job and decided to take a tattoo course.
I fell in love with tattooing immediately, and from that moment I knew I wanted to fully commit to it and become a tattoo artist.
You’re based in Tokyo and you work at Studio Yamada, very famous in the city’s alternative scene. Would you describe it for us?
Tattoo Studio Yamada is located in Harajuku (Jingumae), one of the most lively and creative areas in Tokyo, surrounded by galleries, cafés, fashion, and constant movement. It’s a place that feels inspiring just to walk through, and I truly love this part of the city. The studio is owned and led by Len Yamada, who is not only the owner but also a very talented and successful artist.
Working under someone who is active as an artist himself is something I really appreciate and learn from. Each artist in the studio has their own direction and style, which creates a very natural and unique team that works and creates together. For me, the studio feels like a place where I can grow and really focus on my work. Everyone is kind and supportive, and there’s a shared motivation to keep developing. I feel very comfortable there, and I’m very happy to be part of the studio.
How would you describe your tattoos to our readers?
I create anime- and manga-inspired tattoos, mostly in black and grey, using a stippling shading technique that builds smooth surfaces out of tiny dots. This technique is inspired by the way manga pages are printed, and it helps the tattoos feel very close to the original artwork.
I love designing different kinds of frames and playing with the idea of the character breaking out of the frame, as well as adding text from the manga or symbolic elements that represent the character or the story. I always try to stay true to the unique style of each manga and pay close attention to the smallest details, so the tattoo feels like it was taken straight from a manga page. I specialize in creating precise framed compositions—squares, rectangles, and hearts—with a clean, graphic look that translates in a very striking way onto the skin.
Are there particular subjects you especially love to work on, the ones that really define you?
I’m especially drawn to certain manga and anime styles that I feel a deeper connection to, and I naturally enjoy tattooing from those worlds the most. For example, I deeply love NANA and the shōjo style (a genre known for its emotional storytelling, soft atmosphere, and delicate, expressive art style), which is often characterized by gentle lines, soft shading, and a very dreamy feel.
I simply really love this kind of style and atmosphere.
At the same time, I’m also very inspired by darker manga such as Death Note and Tokyo Ghoul, where there is strong contrast, heavy blacks, and many intense, small details. I love working with that depth and darkness as well.
In addition, I also really enjoy working on tattoos from manga and anime that I personally love, such as Hunter x Hunter, Jujutsu Kaisen, My Hero Academia, Chainsaw Man, and many others. There is always a very special feeling when my clients share the same love for certain characters and series as I do. It creates a sense of excitement, connection, and even a feeling of community and friendship. That shared passion is a big part of what I love so much about this style of tattooing.
Where do you take inspiration for your style?
Most of my inspiration comes directly from manga and anime, especially from the way emotions, movement, and atmosphere are created through lines, shading, and contrast. I’m very drawn to the look of printed manga pages and to all the small details that make a character feel alive.
Outside of that, I’m inspired a lot by music, fashion, photography, and simply by everyday life in Tokyo. The city itself is a constant source of inspiration—from the streets to exhibitions to the people around me—and all of that influences me when I design my work.
