Dotwork Tattoos

Countless tiny points. Not streaks. Not filled in areas. Only points, one at a time, until shadow and perspective and dimension pop into life. This is dotwork, one of the oldest tattoo methods on the planet and possibly one of the hardest to execute, based on the traditional hand-poked tribal style which is currently one of the most popular styles in tattoos today.

The explosion of dotwork tattoo styles began as a relatively small, localized phenomenon that started in the beginning of the 2010s. As artists like Xoïl (Loïc Lavenu), Thomas Hooper, and Chaim Machlev started using stippling in increasingly elaborate and ambitious works, including whole back pieces, chests, and geometrically designed sleeves, dotwork gained serious momentum. Today, dotwork tattoos are ubiquitous for their hypnotic, meditative quality, as thousands of individual dots are carefully manipulated to create stunning optical illusions on skin. In some cases, clients will go around the world to the right dotwork artist. Many have to wait on lists for at least six months to secure a spot.

What Defines a Dotwork Tattoo

Without hard lines or continuous areas of tonal value, every shade of gray, from the palest to one almost completely black, is achieved through patterns of dots that vary according to tone. Dots close together appear darker while dots widely spaced form lighter, airier tones; it's something you can actually see from a distance.

Technically speaking, it's generally recommended to use round liners, ranging from 1RL to 5RL or single needles, and keep your machine speed a little on the slower side. Some practitioners, however, forego the machine for hand-poke dotwork; the original dotwork practice. The distance between the dots should be determined by following mathematical sequences and progressions to create gradients in the desired direction. While most dotwork artists still use black ink for their work, more grey wash and colour dotwork tattoo styles are starting to appear. There are quite a few requirements in order to create dotwork, and all of them are rather challenging. For example, the ability to be very patient and very consistent. As well as the need for many, many dots, which means many, many needle strikes that all have to be hit with the same depth.

Popular Dotwork Tattoo Subjects

In the realm of dotwork, sacred geometry rules supreme. Patterns that have their foundation in math, such as Metatron's Cube, Flower of Life, the Sri Yantra, Platonic solids, you name it, someone is probably putting it in dots. Mandalas, too, are widely represented in this niche, varying between very basic concentric circular ones and sprawling full-piece back designs influenced by various Hindu, Buddhist and unique geometric practices. It makes sense that mathematically-based subjects would go hand-in-hand with a mathematically-influenced technique.

Dotwork isn't restricted to geometric designs, however, and it can be used to great effect with realistic depictions of animals or plants, and otherworldly scenes of stars and planets. Ornamental elements like batik and tribal patterns from Indonesia and Polynesia, as well as the borders of art nouveau designs also benefit from a dotwork treatment. More experimental designs can even incorporate abstract elements where dots themselves are used to create optical illusions and shifting moiré patterns that change depending on your angle of view, as well as gradient designs that undulate like waves over skin and muscle.

Best Placements for Dotwork Tattoos

Smooth, even surface is what you want. Dotwork does its best work when there is enough space to fully realize the pattern. For first-timers the upper arm, and shoulder offer a nice amount of surface for a solid sized mandala or geometric motif that is still easy to cover up if needed. The forearm can work with elongated sacred geometry design or a tattooed cuff. If you can pick one body part to feature a dotwork tattoo, the back is king. It is the largest area of skin to be tattooed, so a really nice, expansive map of sacred geometry, or a large mandala matrix could fit beautifully there.

If you want symmetrical mandalas, the sternum and chest are great areas for that. They look gorgeous, but also have very sharp points, and it does hurt quite a bit. But thighs are very spacious and have more room for bigger designs without being as painful. If you're going with a smaller mandala, then wrists, ankles and the back of the ear are great areas for them, especially with a simple, minimalist mandala, geometric design or some other type of accent. You definitely wouldn't want to get your hands on your palms or the soles of your feet, though, since the skin is constantly regenerated in those areas and your dots can start to blur really fast.

Dotwork Longevity and Aging

Will my dotwork tattoo look like a grey blob in five years? The answer is probably the most frequently asked one by dotwork artists. Short answer: It depends on how the job is done. Dots placed at the right depth, i.e., the middle of the dermis, will stay where they are and where they should be. They stay there for many decades. In a 10-20 year perspective they will expand a little bit, and here is the beautiful thing: it will usually get even better because that’s what the gradient does. Shallow dots that vary in depth, however, will spread and look very patchy. Find a good artist!

Exposure to the sun is actually what kills your tattoo, as UV rays cause the dots to fade the quickest as they're more spaced out in these low-density areas. Applying SPF 50+ (or more!) every day will help to significantly lengthen your tattoo's lifespan, and keeping your skin well moisturized on a regular basis is important for keeping a smooth skin texture as well as making the dot pattern more clear to see. Of course, your tattoo may still fade with time, but you don't need to worry about the dotwork losing its crispness and clarity; any faded areas can easily be touch up by a professional dotwork tattoo artist who will know exactly how to fill in the dots without ruining the overall shape of your piece. Dotwork tattoos are fairly easy to maintain as you can see!

Choosing the Right Dotwork Artist

Not all tattoo artists can do dotwork, okay? All right? You have to zoom in when looking through portfolios, make sure the dots are evenly distributed throughout the entire tattoo. You have to ask for healed photos too, because fresh dotwork can look really, really nice, and then when it heals it doesn't look quite so good. You want to know how they set their needle up too, whether they work with a machine or hand poke. How long do you have to sit for, for an entire tattoo?

Waitlists for good dotwork artists are frequently six to twelve months long, and that's to be expected. That shouldn't stop you from booking an artist, but instead it should signal that you're doing it right. On the other hand, avoid the artists that "do a little dotwork alongside five other styles", as the demands are so specific that dotwork specialists usually produce higher quality tattoo. If there are no dotwork tattooists near you in major tattoo cities like Berlin, London, Barcelona or Amsterdam, then consider travelling to meet a specialist who can get you the results you're after. Factor in more expensive and longer sessions compared to other forms of tattoo, so have an open discussion with a tattoo artist about what to expect before you commit to any design. Big dotwork tattoos will often be split up into several sessions over a number of weeks or months.