Had a small break during my holiday to start this back piece for a strong client from Houston Texas. The fact that people travel so far to get work is truly something I feel proud of. It’s not only a tattoo that people come to get but it’s also an experience, an energy a moment of transformation. I’m looking forward to finish this work from September.
“Silence is not absence. It is presence without noise.”
Like the stillness before a storm, silence holds a quiet tension — not of weakness, but of readiness. In the world of movement and chaos, it’s often the silent ones who see the most, feel the deepest, and react with precision when the moment comes.
This tattoo speaks to that energy — the restrained force, the controlled power behind calm eyes. It’s a reminder that still waters run deep, and that being quiet doesn’t mean you’re not ready… it means you’re already listening.
A moment frozen in time
The Art of Becoming Through Darkness
In the heart of darkness, I met myself —
not the version shaped by ease, but the one forged in silence and flame.
Suffering did not steal my light; it revealed its depth.
Even death, in its stillness, whispers of renewal.
Beauty is not the absence of shadow, but the grace with which we walk through it
Work in progress, on a strong client from Switzerland.
Reference by Mystherion
Dragon themed sleeve
The meaning of a good tattoo
Tattooing is more than ink on skin — it’s a dialogue between the body and the soul.
Whether you’re a fellow artist striving to elevate your craft, or a collector searching for someone who can breathe life into your vision, we can agree on one essential truth: true quality in tattooing is not just technical — it’s emotional, architectural, and timeless.
A great tattoo isn’t just clean — it tells a story, both up close and from a distance. It holds emotion in its details, yet remains bold and readable from afar. But above all, it belongs to the body — not just placed on it, but shaped by it.
Tattooing is not the simple act of reproducing an image. It is the art of listening to the human form. Each body offers its own unique rhythm, its own landscape. The role of the artist is to study it, to understand it, and to create something that exists in harmony with it — something that feels as if it was always meant to be there.
This is where technique meets intuition. This is where art becomes eternal
The philosophy behind Abstract Realism
Abstract realism is the dance between order and chaos — a delicate negotiation between control and surrender.
Each graphic element introduced into a portrait is not random, but intentional — like ripples in still water, they create movement, break symmetry, and amplify the invisible tensions hidden within every line and curve.
Nothing in this visual language is accidental. Every stroke of the machine becomes a meditation: is it there to release tension? To draw the eye? To soften a transition or to carve a sharp edge into the silence?
In this kind of work, intuition is guided by precision. Purpose breathes through each mark. In tattooing, as in life, the most powerful gestures are the ones made with intention — where nothing is left to chance, and even the chaos has its place within a greater harmony.
Portraiture, the art of capturing emotions
Portraiture is, in my eyes, one of the most underrated forms of art.
Unlike grand compositions filled with motion and narrative elements, a portrait strips everything away—leaving only presence, truth, and emotion.
There is no story to distract you, no setting to guide the feeling.
There is only the soul behind the eyes.
Tension. Joy. Silence. Wounds. A lifetime held in skin and subtle expression.
To create a portrait that speaks—whether through tattooing, painting, or drawing—is to listen deeply to the subject.
To understand not just how they look, but what they carry.
For collectors, if you’re ever drawn to a portrait, look closely.
Does it make you feel something real?
If so, you’ve found more than a face. You’ve found a fragment of life, frozen in ink.
This piece was created a few years ago, during a time when I focused more on smaller, intimate works.
Even now, I still find deep joy in returning to projects like this—where simplicity holds just as much emotion as scale.
Poseïdon, a timeless subject
Certain themes in tattooing seem to resurface time and time again, especially when you spend a moment observing the vast stream of images flowing through the internet. I believe this recurrence is no accident. Some subjects are simply timeless — they speak a universal language that transcends culture, background, and geography.
As artists, it’s a meaningful pursuit to revisit these archetypal themes, not to repeat them, but to reinterpret them — to carve something deeply personal and unique for each collector.
Those of us who are truly passionate about tattooing understand that what we choose to wear on our skin is more than just an image. It’s a fragment of strength, a symbol of transformation, or perhaps a piece of energy we didn’t know we were missing until it became part of us. In the end, these marks are not merely decorative — they are reminders of who we are, and who we strive to become.
This piece was done over 2 days of around 6h per day of work.
Personal connections
Our personal relationship that we have towards elements or culture that inspires us is a connection that defines us. It can give you motivation and power to ink this connections in your skin. Giving you the feeling of being part of this culture.
This Leg sleeve was done over 6 sessions, around 6h per sessions.
Thomas Carli Jarlier 