Tattoo Life March/April 2026

Cover girl: VEXX, a combination of modelling, singing and writing

The cover girl of this issue of Tattoo Life is the chameleon-like VEXX, a volcanic creative who makes her body a vehicle for her soul. She lives in Medellín, Colombia and she defines herself as an artist, a combination of many arts, such as modeling, singing and writing. As a solo artist, she sings mainly jazz, blues, R&B.

Chat at the top with Dokgonoing

From the creative heart of Seoul, Dokgonoing works on tattoos that combine the play of bold and fine lines with alternating areas of light grey and black, recreating the interplay of positive and negative space found in traditional Asian prints, but with a particular focus on body composition. His tattoos feature traditional subjects that nod to his academic journey, which brought him closer to Dalí and the Surrealists.

Luca de Gennaro

From graffiti to tattooing, through travel, experimentation, and visual distortion: Luca de Gennaro, from Bali, has made the “glitch” the core of his visual language. An unconventional approach that breaks academic rules and transforms traditional subjects into unstable, dynamic, and powerfully contemporary images.

David Handsmark

From the underground spirit of the ’90s to a life spent travelling, David Handsmark, known in the tattoo world as Handsmark, has built his artistic identity through travel, his passion for Blackwork tattooing, and his love for the tattoo ritual. Today he is recognized for his ornamental style inspired by Asian temple motifs, enriched with Japanese influences, sacred geometry, and a solid black foundation. Based in Helsinki, where he works in a private studio by appointment, David continues to explore new ways to adapt ornamental designs to the human body, making them flow in the most harmonious way, driven by his passion for black ink and his great skill in cover-ups.

Nohoarii

Rooted since childhood in the culture of his island, Tahaa, Nohoarii — known in the tattoo world as Nohotatau — brings a deep cultural responsibility to his work. His style blends the graphic and symbolic strength of traditional Polynesian tattooing with a modern, clean, and rigorous structure, refined through years of study, travel, and practice. His tattoos combine a deep respect for ancestral symbols, the wisdom of body placement — a key element of Polynesian art — and a personal artistic vision that seeks to keep a millennia-old cultural heritage alive while taking it on a journey around the world.

David Peyote

With a handle like that, it’s easy to lose yourself in the many influences that shape the work of this Canadian artist, co-owner of Velours in Montreal. In David Peyote’s own words, his psychedelic tattoos “are never fully Traditional, NeoTrad, Japanese or Geometric. They draw from all of these styles without truly belonging to any of them.” To understand him a bit better, we had to meet up and subject him to our precise list of questions…

Julia Pagneaux

Young (just twenty-four) and remarkably determined. Talented and pragmatic. Romantic and dreamy, yet often grounded (or vice versa). Sociable, though sometimes her solitary side emerges — especially when it comes to work. If you want to discover her art, you’ll have to make your way to the French department of Vaucluse, with its capital Avignon. A stunning, ancient region, fragrant with lavender, where you can experience the skill of Julia Pagneux, specialized in both oil painting and passionate Realistic tattoos distinguished by an intense use of light and colour.

Welcome to Ravens Hollow Melbourne

We are in the heart of Melbourne, in Hawthorn, at Ravens Hollow, a tattoo studio that stands out for its atmosphere, a space that feels outside of time, suspended between pagan undertones, Nordic influences, and a dark, highly distinctive aesthetic. Founded in 2019 by Kristian Kimonides and later joined by Harrison and Fabian Ardino, the studio has become a reference point for Black & Grey, Realism, and large-scale Dark Surrealism. It is a place where open artistic dialogue, creative exploration, and strong visual impact shape every project, transforming each tattoo into an immersive experience. We pass beneath the arch of taxidermy ravens to enter this unusual pagan sanctuary of tattooing.

Cristopher Mendez

Cristopher Mendez is an artist whose journey began in Santiago de Chile and led him to Valencia, shaped by his travels, life-changing decisions, and an insatiable curiosity that has led him to experiment with intense colour, closely tied to his love of nature-related subjects, above all, animals. Initially trained in technical and architectural drawing, Cristopher transformed these foundations into a personal, vibrant language that moves effortlessly between painting and Neo Traditional tattooing. Today, his work is defined by saturated tones, stylized animals, and the elegant influence of watercolour, a medium which continues to guide his creative choices on both paper and skin.

Katie Gamb

A visual universe suspended between sweetness and unease, pastel palettes and disturbing details, which unfolds through muffled atmospheres, recurring symbols, and subtle narrative. Katie Gamb’s painting is a window onto silent emotions, personal memories, and inner tensions—an intimate, layered visual language. We met her to step into her world, and she told us about her relationship with contrast, her creative process, the importance of stillness, and the themes that run through her artistic practice.

Loko, Quentin Challier

In the tattoo world, he is known by just one name: Loko. Behind this nickname, now a bona fide visual signature, is Quentin Challier, a French photographer whose personal journey between France and the Dominican Republic, where he lived from the age of five, eventually led him to the Big Apple. There, he discovered that New York reflects the very spirit of the cultures he captures: hybrid, rebellious, and deeply human.

…and much more