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Music portraits

Music portraits are a large part of his work, and the hip hop leg sleeve below is the piece of his that has been seen most, photographed healed and unfiltered.

Healed black and grey hip hop leg sleeve shot in daylight with no filter
Hip hop leg sleeve
Black and grey Notorious B.I.G. portrait with the New York skyline and street signs
Biggie and New York
Black and grey portrait of Travis Scott on the forearm
Travis Scott
Black and grey rapper portrait on the arm
Rapper portrait
Black and grey portrait of Chester Bennington
Chester Bennington
Black and grey sleeve of hip hop portraits with graffiti lettering
Portrait sleeve

Faces that everyone already knows are the hardest kind of realism: the viewer has the reference in their head, so a likeness that is nearly right reads as wrong.

The practical part

Already tattooedNotorious B.I.G., Tupac, Nas, Ice Cube, Travis Scott, Keith Richards, Chester Bennington.
Best formatOne artist per panel, one light source across the whole piece.
Themed sleevesA music sleeve works when the portraits are planned together, not collected one by one.
LetteringGraffiti lettering and city elements tie a music piece together. Both age better large.

Questions

Can you tattoo a portrait of a musician who has died?

Yes, and it is a large part of this work. Bring the specific photograph you want, because most people have one particular image of an artist in mind without realizing it.

Will it look like them?

That is the whole job, and it is decided by the reference. Send the photo before booking and you will get an honest answer about whether it will work.

Can you combine several musicians in one piece?

Yes, and that is what a themed sleeve is. It needs to be designed as one composition from the start, with one light direction.

Color or black and grey for music portraits?

Black and grey. It is what photographs of these artists mostly are, and it holds contrast far longer.

Related

Ask about a piece like this

Requests go straight to Federico, not to an agency inbox. He answers from his own address.