The wonderful world of tattoos offers such a huge selection of different styles of tattoos that clients are simply at a loss for choice. This is especially true for lovers of bright colors. For those who prefer only classic black, things are simpler. By immersing yourself in the Blackwork style, you can quickly find what you want.

Blackwork style involves applying black paint to large areas of the body. An ordinary tattoo made in black has no right to be called Blackwork, but applying, for example, a black square to the body is undoubtedly Blackwork style. Not everyone is ready to transform their body in this style, but to the surprise of fans, there are plenty of such large-scale tattoos. The choice of this style is the choice of people who admire the minimalism and severity of black.

Combining Blackwork with other styles

Most often, artists combine the Blackwork tattoo style with other styles. Having done high-quality work, unique, beautiful tattoos appear on the body. Blackwork harmonizes best with the Dotwork style. Thanks to the black background, the dot tattoo will have good contrast.

Many people come to this style because of a not very pleasant experience of getting a tattoo in the past. To hide the artist’s unsuccessful work, a new one is applied on top of the old tattoo in the Blackwork style. This technique works well and saves many from disappointment with their body.

Those who decide to get a tattoo in this style must be warned by the artist that this type of work cannot be corrected in the future. Applying another style on top of the Blackwork style will only make the situation worse. The tattoo will turn out to be of poor quality and cloudy.

The most common tattoos in the Blackwork style are:

• geometric figures,
• areas of the body completely covered in black paint,
• patterns.

There are other images, but most often they perform the above.

Blackwork gives direction to the following styles:

• Neo-tribalism.
• Art Brut.
• Ethnic tattoos.
• Buddhist/Thai tattoos.

For tattoos in the Blackwork style, good artists will ask for quite a lot of money. A seemingly simple and unpretentious tattoo is actually a painstaking work of a master. This style should be performed by a person with extensive experience; beginners cannot do this. The master must have a good feel for the working machine and understand the specifics of human skin.

Blackwork translated from English means “dirty work.” Tattoos made in this style fully correspond to their name.

The work is done in rich black, painting mainly large areas of the body. The basis for this style was the ritual tattoos of Buddhists, since they were also done in black colors. This direction completely excludes other shades that are possible in this art, revealing to us all the mystery and mysticism of darkness.

If you are a lover of black color and respect large tattoos, you will like the blackwork style. Of course, the sketches can be different; you can depict anything in this style.

Men love designs in the form of clear geometric shapes, which give a special brutality and effectiveness. The blackwork forest tattoo is considered popular - it is an image of a mysterious black forest on white skin. If desired, other details can be added to the drawing, for example, birds flying over the treetops. The picture fascinates with its mystery and gloom. You don’t want to hide such work under layers of clothing, so it is depicted on the sleeve.

The strength of this trend is the rejection of fashion trends. Even if the whole world decorates their bodies with colorful paints, blackwork tattoos do not lose their relevance and are considered true classics that are unable to disappear or become obsolete.

Often, unsuccessful tattoos, the so-called “portaki”, are painted over with blackwork. Any imperfection in the skin or portac will be hidden under a layer of black pigment. But you should understand that this style permanently pigments the skin, so it will most likely be impossible to remove a blackwork tattoo.

As a rule, tattoo lovers are divided into two camps and distinguish for themselves, respectively, two types of tattoos: colored or black and gray (Black and gray tattoo). The very roots of the tattoo (in the ethnic sense) are saturated mainly with black ink. Actively developing in a traditional environment over many centuries, they have grown into something more than just a tribal tattoo. Currently, tribal tattoos have become widely known as the Blackwork tattoo style or Neo-tribal tattoo, which are becoming increasingly popular today. Well friends, welcome to the monochrome kingdom...

Some may mistake blackwork tattoos for extremeness or a lack of aesthetic taste, but the choice of true blackwork connoisseurs deserves great respect for their courage! Blackwork shows Dotwork tattoo and Linework tattoo, their impressive sizes filled more than completely with black paint; its complex geometric and symmetrical patterns inherited from Polynesian tattoos, as well as unsurpassed graphic art. Blackwork is focused on design, mainly ornamentalism, and not on meaning or realism. From minimalist to extremely complex, blackwork tattoos are varied. However, you can always add white ink to soften the black outline. Blackwork is also great for covering up old tattoos. There are a huge number of well-known tattoo artists in this style and even specialized tattoo parlors, so take the time to find a reputable artist if you want to go black...

Well, does anyone have a desire to paint themselves black?:D Let's now explore in more detail the possibilities of blackwork on this selection of black tattoos covering the body from 1% to 90%...

Those who most often come for blackwork are those who are going to paint over old drawings. However, now it has become more mainstream - I have clients who like minimalism and large areas of color on clear skin.

Blackwork began to appear in the form in which it now exists in Russia three or four years ago. This is such primitiveness and minimalism using the volume and dynamics of the body. Just painting your hand black is boring, there is no dynamics in it. The composition of spots of color in blackwork, as in any painting, is based on conflict - dark-light, sharp-round. If everything is filled with black, then the eye does not cling to anything.

Blackwork is such primitiveness and minimalism using lines and body dynamics. It can be done quickly with a certain skill - in a three-hour session you can paint half an arm. The simpler the shape and the fewer angles, the faster the work goes - in fact, you just sit and monotonously paint it black. But there are also some nuances - you need to understand the specifics of the machine, the specifics of the skin. Well, experience - if you look at a working person from the outside, it seems that everything is simple - draw a line and paint it over. To be able to paint black and make it look good is a certain skill, a certain skill. Understanding of physiology and technical aspects.

Blackwork tattoo is a tattoo style that is characterized by large areas covered with black pigment, simple geometric shapes and color density. Not every tattoo done only in black can be called blackwork. This style involves large designs or completely black body parts.

In addition to using the blackwork style in its pure form, modern artists often combine elements of blackwork tattoos with other styles, for example, with ornaments, and ethno. Undoubtedly one of the most popular stylistic tandems is blackwork +.

Popular Subjects in Blackwork Tattoo:

1. Blackwork - Geometry

The blackwork style is close to everyone who shares the views of futurist artists, and in particular cubists. Let us remember the famous “Black Square” by Kazimir Malevich. For art lovers, a perfect geometric shape completely covered in black is the standard of perfection, complete nothingness and absolute everything. The idea of ​​Suprematism in painting gave rise to the development of modern design. The simplicity of forms, harmony and purity of lines are glorified in the works of many artists, architects and designers.

Blackwork tattoo, as a direction that has a direct connection with all types of fine arts, has not been left aside. Geometry and purity of lines, simple forms and the dominance of black attracts a lot of people.

2. Blackwork - Full Coverage

A separate example of a blackwork tattoo is the complete coverage of any part of the body with black pigment. For example, arms, legs or necks. If you combine a blackwork sleeve with small ones, you can create a softer tattoo border. The transition from a solid coating to air dots gives the effect of volume and does not look as sharp as a clear line of transition from a tattoo to clean skin.

3. Blackwork - Patterns

When we mention patterns in a tattoo, tattoos in . Indeed, the blackwork style takes on some elements of ethnic style. It is only worth emphasizing that in blackwork it is not the sacred meaning of the patterns and their mystical meaning that is important, but their visual beauty and correct geometric interweaving.

Many masters identify a separate direction that combines blackwork - neotribalism.

Using Blackwork Style to Cover Another Tattoo

In the world of tattoos covering one tattoo with another called a cover(from the English cover - to cover, cover). Some tattoos can only be corrected with thick black blackwork. We can say that this moment slightly spoiled the reputation of the blackwork style and large black tattoos are often perceived as an extreme measure of despair. This is partly true, but it does not reflect reality.

If the previous tattoo has too thick outlines, then they will still protrude from under the layer of black paint. Therefore, sometimes masters advise going to at least one tattoo removal session, and after that covering it with black. In any case, you should initially show your old tattoo to a tattoo artist and get his advice.

How long does it take to get a Blackwork Tattoo?

If you decide to do blackwork sleeve, then get ready for several sessions. Blackwork requires time and patience, like any other voluminous tattoo. The specificity of the style is that the master does not need to change colors or work on gradients and contours. But there are some difficulties: for example, the paint must lie evenly, tightly, without gaps. After restoration, the artist once again examines the tattoo for gaps and completely corrects his work, if necessary.

Is it painful to get a Blackwork Tattoo?

Blackwork tattoos are in most cases voluminous and require dense coverage. Therefore, during the entire tattoo session, repeated trauma to the same area of ​​the body with a needle increases pain. But experienced artists know how to switch to different areas of the tattoo and thereby minimize pain.

Read more about and methods in our materials.

Blackwork Tattoo Sketches for Men and Women

There are no fundamental differences between blackwork tattoos between men and women. This style is chosen by people free from prejudices and the influence of other people's opinions. As a rule, men are more likely to decide on larger, voluminous tattoos, while girls prefer something. This is not applicable in blackwork. Black, voluminous, laconic tattoos are equally loved by both men and girls.