LOCATION: Hamburg, Germany
SIX KEYWORDS THAT DESCRIBE YOUR WORK: traditional / modern / timeless / romantic / refined / heritage
FOUR SONGS IN YOUR PLAYLIST NOW: “Moje Jedyne Marzenie” by Anna Jantar, “Como Quisiera Decirte” by Los Angeles Negros, “Ridin’, Slippin’ and Slidin’” by Tha Dogg Pound, “You Dropped a Bomb on Me” by The Gap Band
If your work had a fragrance, which perfume would it smell like?
My work would smell like my first fragrance, Ego Romantic “Papillon”: citrusy, woody, and powdery. To me, it represents freedom, transience and my roots. It is a timeless, slightly faded elegance that feels familiar.
You’re given the keys to any historic home, museum, or architectural masterpiece for one night. Where are masterpiece for one night. Where are you spending the evening, and what draws you there?
I would spend the night in Frédéric Chopin’s birthplace in Żelazowa Wola. Old wooden floors, classical rooms, history, and that quiet, melancholic elegance fascinate me. I am drawn to the atmosphere of a world that has almost disappeared.
What’s one luxury purchase you’ve made that wasn’t practical at all, but completely transformed how you live or create?
Probably my old Mercedes S500 W140 from the 1990s. The smell, the leather, the craftsmanship. That kind of quality and character is becoming rare. I feel the same way about vintage Rolex watches or rare vinyl pressings. I don’t really need any of these things, but I am willing to spend money on objects with history, patina, and a soul of their own. Maybe that reflects my tattoos and the people who are drawn to my work.
If you could tattoo one completely impossible thing, not a design but an emotion, memory or human experience, what would it be?
My specialty is actually making stories and character visible through classic imagery. I take familiar symbols and visual traditions, reinterpret them in a modern way, and turn them into something personal. To me, a tattoo needs a clear form, but within that form, an entire story, memory, or emotion can still exist.
Tattoos have evolved from rebellion to luxury, from underground culture to high fashion. What do you hope the industry never loses as it continues to grow?
Tattooing should never lose its attitude, individuality, or craftsmanship. I am not interested in whatever happens to be trending or performing well on Pinterest. Good tattoos should carry history, personality, and a recognizable artistic hand. That is what makes tattoo culture interesting to me in the first place.
What’s the most meaningful thing you’ve learned about humanity, not through conversation, but simply by spending hours tattooing people?
That status and appearance tell you very little about who someone really is. After a few hours in the chair, a lot of facades disappear. People may seem completely different from one another, but underneath they often carry the same features, memories, and longings.
What’s a tattoo you’ll probably never create – not because you can’t but because it doesn’t align with your philosophy as an artist?
I would rather not tattoo something simply because it follows a trend or because it has been copied directly from somewhere else. A tattoo should always have something of its own, even when it is based on a classic motif. I do not want to simply reproduce images. I want to give them character.
If someone wanted to understand your taste in under a minute, which five brands, whether fashion, furniture, cars, hotels, watches, or objects, would you show them?
Antique furniture from around 1880 to 1930, space-age and 1960s and 70s design, classic bespoke suits with older cuts, vintage Mercedes and Porsche models, and vintage Rolex watches and old jewelry. I am also drawn to the elegant gangster aesthetic of films like The Godfather, Goodfellas, and American Gangster. I am interested in things with character, craftsmanship, and a strong sense of their time, not whatever happens to be modern,
If every tattoo you’ve ever created disappeared overnight except one, which would you choose to preserve and why?
It would be an old image of Bonnie and Clyde that I tattooed on my wife. It is one of my earliest pieces that I am still especially proud of today. To me, it is more than a tattoo; it is symbolic of us, of my beginnings and of many of the things that still define my work today.
