Alexandra Fische is a tattoo artist working out of 9th Realm Gallery in Salem, MA. Alexandra is the perfect artist to feature during October, as 30 seconds on her Instagram will show you.
Black Philip from The WitchNeo-traditional werewolf
Alexandra’s main focus of work is cute neo-traditional and new school Halloween and horror themed pieces. While spooky themed work is what you’ll mainly see on her page, Alexandra is also known to do watercolour, black and grey, and some more realistic work.
Salem themed graveAFI’s All Hallow’s E.P album cover
You can tell Alexandra is passionate about horror and Halloween from the incredible care and attention to detail she puts into every piece. Her takes on classic horror icons, creatures, and monsters are one of a kind and really showcase her unique style.
Lock, Shock, and Barrel from the Nightmare Before Christmas Vlad the Impaler portrait
Alexandra has brilliant flash to choose from, as well as the ability to draw up something original.
Creepy black catBarbara and Adam from Beetlejuice done up as The Lovers Tarot card
If you’re in the Salem area Alexandra is a must see artist. What horror movie do you want a tattoo from most?
Spider-Man remains one of the most popular superheroes ever created, thanks to writer Stan Lee and artist Steve Ditko. Fans have been enamoured with Spider-Man ever since Peter Parker was first bitten by a radioactive spider in 1962, and today, many are even getting Spider-Man tattoos.
Spider-Man half sleeve done by Richy Price at Dark Souls Tattoo in Birminham, UKSimpsons meets Spider-Man by Chelsea Matthews at Bold as Brass Tattoo in Liverpool
Spider-Man had a humble beginning as a comic book character and has since been in cartoons, live action and animated movies, video games, and even a Broadway musical. Spidey’s movies are probably the most well known and currently consumed amidst pop culture out there (aside from possibly Batman), and he’s been played by Tobey Maguire, Andrew Garfield, and Tom Holland in the live action films, and was voiced by Shameik Moore, Chris Pine, and Jake Johnson as various versions of Spider-Man in his most recent animated film.
Spider-Man by Blanca Secco in SpainComic book style Spider-Man by Zineb Slaimi in Cambodia
The first villain in the comics was the Chameleon, but other villains include Dr. Octopus, Venom, Electro, and one of his main arch-nemeses the Green Goblin.
Spider-Man and New York’s skyline by Tom Osvath at Ink and Iron in ChicagoA cute cartoon spidey by Danny Elliott at Rebel Muse Denver
While most folks ship Peter with Mary Jane or Gwen Stacey, his original love interest was Betty Brant, the secretary at The Daily Planet.
Miles Morales by at PMA JayA hyper realistic Spider-Man by Lui Color Tattoo at Bunte Tinte Tattoo Dresden
Peter Parker is the most well known version of Spider-Man, but other versions within the spider-verse include Miles Morales, Spider-Ham, Miguel O’Hara, Mayday Parker, and Gwen Stacey (as Spider-Gwen) among others.
Miles Morales by Yeray PerezComic book Spidey by Joäo Paulo Matos
She tattoos in a hybrid style of old school and new school. Her old school techniques consist of thick bold lines and the classic colour scheme, with an added almost cartoon-ish look.
Mickey and Minnie meets Ice CreamMaui, Hei Hei, and Pua
Lots of her work features cartoon characters from popular Disney movies and shows like Mickey and Minnie, Moana, Mulan, and more. Her Instagram is also full of old school classics like swallows, reapers, skulls, pinups, and lady heads.
Mulan, Mushu, and Cri-KeeGrim Reaper on holiday
Much of the work she does can be done as smaller pieces if you’re a tourist in the area, and she also puts together fantastic larger pieces such as full sleeves.
Party sharkA beautiful red cardinal
If you’re traveling in the area be sure to send her an email and get yourself an appointment, or if you live nearby add a few new pieces to your collection.
A classic swallow and rose on the neckDaria’s Jane Lane
Jennah works out ofBluebird Tattoo in Winnipeg, Manitoba. She has become well known in the city and throughout Canada as a must see artist for anyone who loves anime, cartoons, video games, or comic books.
“Fight like a girl” Sailor Moon themed pieceBrilliant Miyazaki leg sleeve.
Jennah mainly works in new school or neo-traditonal styles, but also does brilliant black and grey.
Some water type Pokemon for the gamers.Shenron from Dragon Ball/Dragon Ball Z.
If you’re a lover of the nerdier things in life, Jennah is a must see artist. Her own love of cartoons and anime shines through in her exquisite attention to detail in the characters she recreates.
Beautiful Inuyasha piece with cherry blossoms.Batman/Joker piece inspired by Batman’s “Death of a Family.”
Jennah does brilliant large scale pieces such as full arm or leg sleeves, but happily does small one-offs such as singular characters and creatures.
An in progress Disney sleeve.Super Smash Bros and Legend of Zelda sleeve.
What’s your favourite anime?
An adorable Baby Groot from The Guardians of the Galaxy.Adventure Time’s Lumpy Space Princess in all her lumpy glory.
In this blog post, the Golden Age of Disney refers specifically to Disney’s animated films and does not include live action.
Snow White by Jordan Baker. Thumper by Camille Gualtieri.
The Golden Age of Disney spans from 1937-1942 and includes Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs, Pinocchio, Fantasia, Dumbo, and Bambi.
Jiminy Cricket by Nicole Zulianello. Black and grey Snow White by Piotrek Taton on Grace Neutral.
Despite the name “Golden Age” this was actually a quite unsuccessful chapter in terms of financial gain, other than Snow White and Dumbo. In fact, Dumbo was originally supposed to be a short film but was made longer to make up for the financial losses suffered by Fantasia.
Dumbo by Silvia Damiano. Figaro the cat done by Emilia Rose.
The films created in this time were all overseen by Walt himself, and helped cement Disney as a leader in animation.
Bambi and Thumper by Jordan Baker. Dumb and his mother by Mason Stoner.
While Disney films are generally regarded as mainly happy and upbeat, these films all tell quite dark stories and actually contain some quite frightening scenes, especially for the young audiences they were aimed at. I know scenes in Snow White and Pinocchio certainly scared me as a child.
Poison apple from Snow White done by Eugenios Simopoulos. A creative Thumper portrait by Nicole Robinson.
As tattoos, Disney animation are almost entirely done in new school style, with some realism and more experimental styles also making the cut.
Pinocchio transforming into a donkey done by Gold Marie.
I found no shortage of tattoos from this era of Disney, other than Fantasia, of which I only found tattoos from the newer 2000’s version which will be seen in a later post.
Alex is an artist working out of Santa la Muerte Tattoo in Madrid.
Realistic tiger eyes on the forearm.Ariel from the Little Mermaid.
He has three styles that he works in, and he does them well. Realism, micro realism, and cartoon.
Micro realistic pooch head with a dash of colour.The Mad Hatter and Alice, a Disney classic.
His realistic works are heavy on the black and grey, but he does use colour sparingly in these to make certain aspects pop, such as eyes and mouths in portraits of both people and animals.
Full realistic back piece of a snarling tiger. Black and grey with green eyes.
His cartoon pieces are like plucking a screenshot straight out of a movie or show, with great detail and colour throughout.
A classic Homer Simpson piece from Treehouse of Horror.
His micro realism pieces are great for those who want a small tattoo, and the amount of detail he’s able to pack into such a small space is unbelievable.
A portrait of Tupac done in black and grey.
If you’re passing through Madrid don’t hesitate to set up an appointment with Alex via his Instagram linked above.
The “original” zombie has come a long way. From White Zombie in 1932 (often considered the first zombie movie) to shows like The Walking Dead and movies like Shaun of the Dead and World War Z, zombies have been around in popular culture for almost 100 years.
Zombieland’s Bill Murray done by Craig Mackay in the UK in a black and grey realistic style.Realistic black and grey zombie head done by Pavel Polovnikov at Red Berry Tattoo Studio in Poland.
Some popular zombie movies to get your tattoo ideas started include Dawn of the Dead, Day of the Dead, 28 Days Later, Zombieland, Zombieland Double-Tap, Planet Terror, Dead Snow, Shaun of the Dead, I am Legend, and The Return of the Living Dead, to name a few.
American traditional frosty zombie done by Dan Gagné at Mortem Tattoo in Montreal.Realistic colour Dawn of the Dead zombie done by Kristian Kimonides, in Melbourne Australia.
In tattoo form many people choose to get their zombies in a realistic style, with both black and grey or colour being popular.
Cute cartoon zombie done by Joshua Hoiberg.Huge realistic colour Walking Dead sleeve done by Taryn Lee in Nottingham, UK.
American traditional or neo traditional is also a popular choice when getting the undead inked.
Classic Shaun of the Dead themed piece done by Matthew Limbers at Dearly Departed Tattoo in Milford, Michigan.Hyper realistic tarman zombie from The Return of the Living Dead, done by Paul Acker at Séance Tattoo Parlour.
As with most spooky tattoos, some people go for “cute”, usually meaning a more new school or cartoon style, or neo traditional.
Fun cartoon zombified Bart Simpson done by Shawn Havron at Artisan Body Piercing and Tattoos in Norfolk VA.A neo traditional zombie ready to party, done by Moira Ramone in Rotterdam, NL.
What’s your zombie apocalypse plan? Let us know down in the comments!
Mario first appeared in the classic Nintendo game, Donkey Kong, in 1981. Though in this game he was still named Jumpman. It wasn’t until 1982 when he reappeared in Donkey Kong Jr. that he finally became the classic character, “Mario”.
A very realistic Mario done by Ben Kaye at Ship Shape Tattoo in New Zealand.Terrifyingly realistic version of Bowser done by Javier Antunez at Tattooed Theory.Zombie Yoshi and King Boo done by Missi Robbe at Evolution Tattoo Reno.
Super Mario was indirectly influenced by Jackie Chan! The creator, Shigeru Miyamoto, has stated that Super Mario was largely inspired by a video game called “kung-fu”. The Japanese version of this game was based on a Jackie Chan movie called “Spartan X”.
Bowser done by Dave ‘Junior’ Nicholls.Bright and colourful sleeve done by Jeanzito Hernandez.Nintendo themed sleeve done by Robert Pup in Byington.
Super Mario characters include the brothers Mario and Luigi, the iconic villain, Bowser, Princess Peach, Princess Daisy, Boo, Donkey Kong, Yoshi, Bowser Jr, Wario, Waluigi, the Koopas, Goombas, and more.
a brilliant 8-bit sleeve done by Day May in Salt Lake City, Utah.Luigi! Done by Kyle Williams at Grindhouse Tattoo Productions in the UK.Wario! Done by Rodney Eckenberger at Stillhouse tattoo in South Bend and Ink Couture in N.Y.
The backstory for Super Mario is actually much darker than you might think! For those of you who haven’t read the instruction manual, here’s the gist of it. Bowser and his Koopa minions are actually black magic wielding wizards who turned the people of Mushroom Kingdom into bushes, blocks, and mushrooms. Yes, that means every time you use a mushroom or punch a block, you’re actually killing a citizen of Mushroom Kingdom.
A Neo traditional Mario done by Felipe Rodrigues in Brazil.Adorable Mario and Peach done in a new school design. Done by Michela Bottin.New school Mario and piranha plant done by Zedtattoo in China.
As a tattoo, all Super Mario characters are popular designs. Usually done in either neo traditional style, new school, blackwork, or 8-bit.
Blackwork version of Boo done by Kakao in Hongdae.Classic mushroom done bu Mike Guinn.
A bodysuit is the ultimate way for a tattoo collector to show their dedication to the craft. A bodysuit is most often done as one cohesive piece, usually in one style. But some people do start getting tattooed without the intention of having a bodysuit, then end up growing into it.
Japanese bodysuit done by Adam Craft at The Tattooed Heart.The late Rick Genest’s bodysuit done by Frank Lewis in Montreal Canada.Hyper realistic suit completed by Matt Jordan at Ship Shape Tattoo.Brilliant black work/tribal bodysuit done by Samuel Christensen.
Japanese is the most well known style for creating bodysuits. Done by one artist, tied together with background work such waves, clouds, and other nature themes.
Back and legs done by Shige at Yellow Blaze in Yokohama.The recognizable line work of Guy Le Tattooer.Black work and geometric bodysuit done by Nissaco in Osaka.Black work/tribal bodysuit done by Tomas Tomas at Seven Doors Tattoo in London.
More recently black work is becoming more popular for full bodysuits. Either heavy black work or smaller pieces.
Heavy black work torso and arm piece. A collaboration between Gerhard Wiesbeck and Little Swastika.Beautiful black and grey bodysuit done by Jason Butcher at immortal ink tattoo studio.Colourful bio mechanical bodysuit done by Paco Dietz in Santa Clara, Ca.Heavy black work done by Valerio Cancellier.
Similarly people get bodysuits of American traditional pieces. Hundreds of small pieces filling up a body to make it look more or less like one huge suit.
Geometric and dotwork done by Cory Ferguson at Good Point Tattoo in Ontario Canada.Arm, Back, and leg done by Julian Siebert at Corpsepainter Tattoo Munich, Germany.Black/geometric bodysuit done by Pierluigi Deliperi.
Black and grey, neo traditional, and realism styles are also being used for bodysuits now, making for eye popping artwork.
Black work torso and shoulders done by Duncan X in the UK.Full body Japanese suit with lots of black done by Koji Ichimaru.American traditional bodysuit done by Rich Hadley in the UK.
The word bodysuit may make you think of really a full body covered in tattoos, but it also refers to torso pieces that lead onto the arms, and/or legs.
Beautiful and heavy black work nature themed bodysuit done by Gakkin.Heavy black Japanese done by Lupo Horiokami Italy at mushin studio.American traditional mostly black work torso and arms done by Rich Hardy in the UK.
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