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Artist Creates Bold Blackwork Tattoos That Look Like Charcoal Sketches

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These incredible blackwork sketch tattoos are the work of Polish artist Inez Janiak, who has amassed a significant Instagram following by regularly sharing images of her spectacular pieces. Treating the skin as her canvas, Janiak's tattoos seem to dance across the flesh, with broken lines and shading giving the illusion of charcoal sketches. The pieces are often tinged with a dark, Gothic feel, but remain balanced by the light, feathery strokes that create depth and movement.

Her ability to change the emotive force of each piece is significant. A growling bear snarls aggressively enough to make you think twice before approaching its owner, while a dancer's hair twirls around her, lost in the enthusiasm of her movement. Janiak's work also takes on a geometric quality, with the raw sketches revealing the shapes and forms used to compose the overall figure. Whether tattooing animals, elements of natural, or human figures, her distinctive style is instantly recognizable.

Janiak is primarily tattooing out of the Od Świtu Do Zmierzchu studio in Lódź, Poland, but the artist has taken to Facebook to hint that she may be heading to the UK for some guest stints in the coming year.

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Inez Janiak: Facebook | Instagram
via [Illusion]

All images via Inez Janiak.

Jessica Stewart

Jessica Stewart is a Contributing Writer and Digital Media Specialist for My Modern Met, as well as a curator and art historian. Since 2020, she is also one of the co-hosts of the My Modern Met Top Artist Podcast. She earned her MA in Renaissance Studies from University College London and now lives in Rome, Italy. She cultivated expertise in street art which led to the purchase of her photographic archive by the Treccani Italian Encyclopedia in 2014. When she’s not spending time with her three dogs, she also manages the studio of a successful street artist. In 2013, she authored the book 'Street Art Stories Roma' and most recently contributed to 'Crossroads: A Glimpse Into the Life of Alice Pasquini'. You can follow her adventures online at @romephotoblog.
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