Tattoo Library
Tattoo Styles
Twenty-seven styles, one studio. Compare the look, how each ages on real skin, and which of our artists specializes in it — then book a consultation for the one that fits your subject.
Abstract
Abstract tattooing at Apollo — the Kandinsky-to-Twombly lineage, the four subcategories (gestural, geometric, color-fiel
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Animal Portrait
Animal portrait tattooing at Apollo — the three subcategories (pets, wildlife, fantasy), reference photography requireme
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Black & Gray
The working-studio guide to black and gray tattoos — what the style actually is at the needle, how gray wash is mixed an
Explore → Chicano
Born in East LA — the fine-line black-and-gray tradition of religious and cultural iconography, smooth photographic shading, and lettering that reads like devotion.
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Black Gray Realism
Black-and-gray realism at Apollo — the East LA Chicano tradition, the single-needle technique, gradient work, design dir
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Blackletter
Blackletter tattoos at Apollo — the monastic and Gutenberg lineage, LA Chicano Old English tradition, five subcategories
Explore →Reading the work
A style is a set of choices, not a label
Line weight, contrast, color or none, and how it sits on the body — that is what a style really is. Browse for the feeling you are after and we will translate it into choices that hold up over decades, not just on day one.
Blackwork
The working-studio guide to blackwork tattoos — single-pigment discipline at the needle, the living cultural traditions
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Color
The working-studio guide to color tattoos — what the style actually is at the needle, how saturation and pigment choice
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Color Realism
Color realism at Apollo — the Hurtado/Booth/Tyrrell/DeVries lineage, the layered pigment technique, placement and sun-pr
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Cursive
Cursive tattooing at Apollo — the Palmer/Spencerian/Copperplate lineage, the four subcategories (fine-line, traditional
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Dotwork
The working-studio guide to dotwork tattoos — the UK lineage that built the style, the five subcategories, how stipple a
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Fine Line
The working-studio guide to fine line tattoos — what the style actually is at the needle, the Los Angeles Chicano lineag
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Floral
The working-studio guide to floral tattoos — the botanical illustration lineage, the styles florals cross (fine-line, ne
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Geometric
The working-studio guide to geometric tattoos — the Chaim Machlev / Mo Ganji lineage, the five subcategories, why the st
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Ignorant
The working-studio guide to ignorant-style tattoos — the Fuzi Uvtpk Paris-graffiti lineage, the four subcategories, why
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Illustrative
The working-studio guide to illustrative tattoos — the Rackham / Dore / Gorey lineage, the four subcategories (etching,
Explore →Artist fit
The right style means the right specialist
Every artist here has a lane. Once you know the direction, we match you with the person who lives in that style day in and day out — because specialization is what separates a good tattoo from a great one.
Japanese
A working-studio guide to Japanese Traditional tattooing (irezumi / horimono) — the Edo-period origins, tebori vs.
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Japanese Modern
The working-studio guide to modern Japanese tattoos — the Horiyoshi III / Filip Leu / Shige lineage, how it relates to t
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Memorial
A working-studio guide to memorial tattoos — why it's a theme not a style, the grief-state approach, design variations,
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Minimalist
A working-studio guide to minimalist tattoos — the philosophy of reduction (ma, Scandinavian design, Bauhaus), eight des
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Neo Traditional
The working-studio guide to neo-traditional tattoos — the style that kept American Traditional's bold outline and pushed
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Ornamental
The working-studio guide to ornamental tattoos — what the style is at the needle, the design traditions it draws from (h
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Realism
The working-studio guide to realism tattoos — what the style is at the needle, the LA Chicano lineage it shares with fin
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Sacred Geometry
A working-studio guide to sacred geometry tattoos — the patterns (Flower of Life, Sri Yantra, Metatron's Cube, mandala),
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Script Lettering
The working-studio guide to script and lettering tattoos — the three major traditions (Chicano script, Old English black
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Traditional
The working-studio guide to American Traditional tattoos — what the style is at the needle, the Sailor Jerry lineage tha
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Tribal
A working-studio guide to tribal tattooing — honoring the living cultural traditions (Polynesian, Maori, Hawaiian, Iban,
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Watercolor
The working-studio guide to watercolor tattoos — what the style is at the needle, the with-or-without-black-underlayer d
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