Blackwork tattoo ideas

2,168 photos and flash · Forearm most common

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Solid black silhouette of a greyhound head with ears, combined with swirling black and white filigree scrolls in a blackwork style design.
Greyhound head with scrollwork
Black mandala tattoo with a compass star at its centre, shown in two photos on a forearm against a white wall.
Mandala and compass rose on a forearm
Four black ink flash designs on a beige background: a skull with a bandana and feather, a feather headdress, a skull with a feather headdress, and a dreamcatcher with feathers.
Four skull and feather designs on beige
Solid black heart design built from curling swirls and teardrop shapes on a white background, suited to a blackwork stencil.
Ornamental swirl heart design
Black ink tattoo of a bare, branching tree with small birds perched on the limbs, spanning the upper back in a botanical blackwork style.
Bare tree branches across a back
Black and grey blackwork and dotwork tattoo on a forearm showing an eye inside a geometric outline above a marbled abstract figure and a small sphere.
Eye and geometric figure on a forearm
Black and grey blackwork back tattoo of a turtle shell with a turtle head, tribal patterns and two reptilian eyes across the lower back.
Turtle shell and tribal back piece
Black and grey engraving-style tattoo covering the upper arm and shoulder, with a wolf, skeletons, a bird, an eye, a snake and a crescent moon.
Engraved skeleton and beast scene on upper arm
Black dotwork tattoo of an anatomical heart above a face with a third eye and a tear, on the forearm.
Anatomical heart above a face on a forearm
Black line drawing of a wolf head wearing a ram skull with curled horns, flanked by roses and hanging feathers, shown as a tattoo design with no body part visible.
Wolf with ram skull and roses
Close photo of a hand with a bold black tribal blackwork tattoo of chevrons, hexagons and bands covering the back of the hand, fingers and wrist.
Blackwork tribal pattern across the hand
Black ink flash design of a cat face built from tribal-style swirls, dots and small cat motifs, with no body placement shown.
Ornamental cat face tattoo design
Black ink tattoo of a front-facing elephant covered in intricate ornamental patterns, placed on the calf.
Ornate elephant tattoo on a calf
Black and grey tribal phoenix tattoo with spread wings across a man's upper back, shown in a black and white photograph.
Tribal phoenix with spread wings on upper back
Black line drawing of a tree with an eagle perched on top, a curled creature in the trunk and serpents coiled among the roots, with dotted shading in the canopy.
Tree with eagle and serpents design
Black and white photo of a blackwork tribal tattoo with flowing spirals and curved lines running down a person's back.
Tribal spiral design down a back
A tattooist applies black tribal blackwork linework to a bare arm, holding a tool above a small ink cap.
Tribal tattoo being applied to an arm
Black tribal-style lion head design with bold, spiked mane and solid black shading on a white background.
Tribal lion head design
Small solid black elephant tattoo with raised trunk on the upper back near the shoulder blade, in a blackwork style.
Small elephant tattoo on upper back
Solid black Volkswagen logo with dripping ink lines on the calf, in a blackwork style, with a red car blurred in the background.
Volkswagen logo with dripping ink on calf
Black and grey dotwork full sleeve tattoo of a mandala, eye and heart ornaments on a woman's upper arm and shoulder.
Ornamental mandala full sleeve on an arm
Solid black tribal-style howling wolf head tattoo on a forearm, with bold blackwork linework and a spiral pattern in the neck.
Tribal howling wolf on a forearm
Black tribal sun tattoo on one inner wrist and a matching tribal crescent moon on the other, shown in black and white.
Matching tribal sun and moon on wrists
Black and grey cat head tattoo with a star and geometric lines on the inner forearm of a person in a white top and grey joggers.
Cat head within geometric lines on a forearm
Two solid black moustache tattoos on the side of two fingers, held together, in a black and grey blackwork style.
Matching moustache tattoos on fingers
Black and grey knotwork tattoo shaped like armour bands with a central emblem, across the upper arm and forearm with the elbow bent.
Knotwork armour bands on upper arm and forearm
Black and grey tribal tattoo covering the back of a man's neck and upper back, with bold chevrons, triangles and shaded panels.
Tribal neck and upper back tattoo
Black and grey diptych of a shirtless man with two bold chevron stripe tattoos, one running down the side of his ribs and one from the shoulder down the upper back.
Chevron stripes along ribs and back
Black tribal-style cross tattoo with scrollwork flourishes on the upper arm, shown in a photograph of healed skin.
Tribal cross on an upper arm
Two solid black eagle designs with outstretched feathered wings, shown as a blackwork tattoo flash sheet.
Two spread-wing eagle designs
Black and white flash design of two arrows set on a diagonal, with solid black feathered fletching and dashed shafts, shown on a plain white background.
Two arrows tattoo flash design
Black and grey dotwork octopus tattoo with tentacles wrapping across the lower abdomen and hips.
Octopus tattoo across hips and abdomen
Black and grey blackwork tattoo of an owl in flight carrying an envelope, inked on the outer thigh.
Owl carrying a letter on a thigh
Solid black blackwork tattoo of a paw print with a wolf head in silhouette inside the main pad, on the lower leg.
Wolf head within a paw print on a lower leg
Black blackwork-style eye tattoos with stylised linework on the fingers of clasped hands, with red painted nails against a dark background.
Eye tattoos across clasped fingers
Shirtless man seated on a bed with a black tribal sleeve on his upper arm and a grey rose tattoo on his chest, head cropped out of frame.
Tribal sleeve and chest rose on a shirtless man
Three black Polynesian-style sea turtle tattoo designs on a white background, one with a plumeria flower on its shell and one with a sunburst centre.
Three Polynesian sea turtle designs
Black ornamental blackwork tattoo of a flower, heart and scrollwork with teardrop details across the upper back and nape of the neck.
Ornamental heart and flower on the upper back
Two mirrored black and grey raven tattoos with sketchy linework and dotwork shading, one on each thigh.
Twin raven tattoos on thighs
Black ink elephant tattoo with a raised trunk and decorative patterned fills, placed on the side of the ribs.
Ornamental elephant on the ribs
Woman sitting cross-legged on grass with a black geometric blackwork band tattooed on her upper arm and down towards her forearm.
Black geometric band on upper arm
Black mandala tattoo with scrolls and pointed petals curving across the side of the ribs on a bare torso, in black and grey.
Mandala tattoo on the side ribs
Back view of a person with hair tied up, showing a small solid black circle tattoo on the upper back near the neck, in a blackwork style.
Small solid circle on upper back
Black tribal-style flash design of two dolphins leaping above curling swirls and water splashes, with no body placement shown.
Two dolphins with tribal swirls
Solid black dinosaur skeleton tattoo running along the inside of a forearm, shown in two stacked photos.
Dinosaur skeleton tattoo on a forearm
Large solid black Triforce crest with wings tattooed across the upper back of a person with red hair, arms raised.
Triforce crest with wings on upper back
Small black blackwork tattoo of a spiky hedgehog-like animal on a patch of skin with fine body hair.
Small tribal hedgehog tattoo
Close view of a black blackwork-style ornamental tattoo across the back of a hand, with a darker tattoo on the forearm beside a steel wristwatch.
Black ornamental tattoo on hand and forearm