Black-and-white photo of heavy blackwork across a man’s shoulders and neck, a woman looking over his shoulder

No. 01 / The Collective

Est. 2016 — Gowanus, Brooklyn

Black
Work
Collective

Four residents, one guest chair and a single rule: black ink only. Dotwork, ornamental, tribal and blackout pieces drawn from scratch for the body they go on.

4 Residents ✕ 1 Guest Chair

Black ink only — since day one

Dotwork

✕

Ornamental

✕

Tribal

✕

Linework

✕

Illustrative

✕

Blackout

No. 02 / Roster

Four hands,
one ink.

No front desk, no house style. Four residents who share a room, a supply order and an opinion about solid black. Each keeps their own books — write to the one whose work you want on you.

01

Portrait of Jonah Kress, blackwork tattoo artist, holding out fists full of silver rings

Jonah Kress

Blackwork · Ornamental · Sacred geometry

Books

Open — Jan 2027

02

Ilse Marrow’s heavily tattooed hands wearing silver rings

Ilse Marrow

Dotwork · Stipple shading · Mandala

Books

Waitlist — 8 weeks

03

Teo Banks in nitrile gloves tuning a coil machine at his station

Teo Banks

Neo-tribal · Blackout · Heavy fill

Books

Open — Dec 2026

04

Nova Kerr tattooing a client’s hand, black and white

Nova Kerr

Linework · Script · Etching

Books

Closed — opens March

No. 03 / Work

Solid black,
on skin.

Full ornamental back piece on a client standing among dark leaves
01 — Ornamental back piece, 11 sessions · Jonah Kress
Blackout bear and crescent moon tattoo on a forearm
02 — Bear & crescent, forearm · Teo Banks
Fresh neo-tribal wolf tattoo between the shoulder blades
03 — Neo-tribal wolf, upper back · Teo Banks
Close-up of a single needle pulling a fine script line
04 — Single-needle script, in progress · Nova Kerr
Artist pulling the outline of a hand-lettered tattoo
05 — Hand-lettered outline · Nova Kerr
Black and grey figure wrapped in barbed wire and smoke across a torso
06 — Stippled figure & barbed wire, ribs · Ilse Marrow

No. 04 / Guest Chair

Guest spots,
winter run.

One chair by the window is kept for visiting artists. Each guest works six days with us, then flies home — if you have been waiting for one of them, this is the closest they get to Brooklyn.

Nov 03 — 08

Saskia Lund

Dotwork mandalas · Geometry

Copenhagen, DK

Fully booked

Nov 17 — 22

Kai Moreno

Blackout · Neo-tribal

Mexico City, MX

Books open

Dec 01 — 06

Ottilie Brandt

Etching · Engraving style

Berlin, DE

Books open

Jan 12 — 17

Ren Aoki

Bold black botanicals

Osaka, JP

Fully booked

Feb 02 — 07

Mateus Coelho

Ornamental linework

Lisbon, PT

Books open

To book a guest, email guests@example.com with their name in the subject line. Deposits and designs go straight to the visiting artist.

No. 05 / Manifesto & Rates

House rules

Signed by all four residents

I

Black ink only.

No colour, no grey wash. Solid fill, dots and line — the parts of a tattoo that age best.

II

Never copied.

We never copy another artist’s work and never tattoo the same design twice.

III

Bold will hold.

Heavy black stays readable for decades. If a piece is too small to last, we will say so.

Hourly

$180

Billed in 15-minute steps after the first hour.

Day session

$1,200

Up to six hours in the chair, one artist, breaks included.

Minimum

$150

Covers setup, needles and a fresh station.

Deposit

$100

Holds your date and comes off the final session.

No. 06 / Contact

Write
to us.

No forms, no DMs. One email with your idea, placement, rough size and two or three references — and the artist you want, if you know. Every message gets a reply within five working days.

Studio

214 Douglass St, Unit 3
Gowanus, Brooklyn, NY 11217

Hours

Tue–Sat · 12–8 PM
Consults Thursdays, by appointment

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