David Corden is one of the UK’s leading realism tattoo artists. While his work may not have the social impact or exotic skullduggery of, say, Russian Prison Tattoos, his impressive pin-ups and portraits demonstrate talent with a very keen attention to detail, smooth color transitions and striking resemblance to the source image. All of which […]

Jail is the worst place ever and if you go to prison for a long time your best bet is probably to join a gang. If you ever find yourself in a South African prison the three speeds of gangs are thusly organized: 26, 27 & 28. 26s are scammers and counterfeiters. 27s are “Manskap of blood” or […]

Master Japanese tattoo artist Horiyoshi III (born Yoshihito Nakano) first became stunned by the artistry of tattoos after running into a fully inked Yakuza at a bathhouse as a boy. After seeing the gangster’s shocking full body suit, Horiyoshi III was inspired to learn the craft himself, and at the age of 25 earned a […]

The nation of Russia has undergone dramatic transformations in the past decade, and those metamorphoses have been starkly reflected in its infamous prisons. Home to the second highest prison population per capita in the world (after only USA, who also claims the dubious title of most overall prisoners), the Russian penal system is a sprawling, […]