Reykjavík Grapevine - mar. 2021, Blaðsíða 14

Where To Get Your
Grapevine Tattoo
You can even just get our logo! We love free
advertising!
Words: Hannah Jane Cohen Photo: Art Bicnick
The last few years have seen a boom of tattoo
parlours around Reykjavík. In fact, there’s now so
many that we literally don’t have the space to fea-
ture them all here, which we sincerely apologise
for. That said, here’s a diverse selection of what
this city offers. (Email that GV ink to grapevine@
grapevine.is)
Íslenzka Hú#flúrstofan
Ingólfsstræti 3
This classic shop caters to all styles, with a
roster of artists that serve up everything from
realism to new-school and more, all done
beautifully. We’d particularly recommend
the hand-poked pieces by Habba (@habba-
nerotattoo), Reykjavík’s resident witch-stave-
runic genius. Not only are they gorgeously
ornate in that straight-out-of-800-AD-way,
but they might save you from evil spirits.
White Hill Tattoo
Laugavegur 25
For illustrative, watercolour and similarly
bright and ethereal works, head to White
Hill. The one and only Marlena (@marle-
na_sweet_hell, formerly of Sweet Hell) is a
master of this stuff, who you can trust to give
you jewel-eyed animals surrounding by flow-
ing pastel clouds or other enchanting things
like that. That said, we’d particularly like to
compliment Hrefna Maria (@haria_art) on
the gothy blackwork she’s got going on. As an
(internally) goth magazine, her devotion to
the darker arts must be celebrated (sullenly).
Street Rats Tattoo
Hverfisgata 37
Runner-up for our Best of Reykjavík 2020
award for Hidden Gem, Street Rats Tattoo is
the personal playground of Kristófer, a.k.a.
Sleepofer Tattoo (@sleepofertattoo). He
does that sort of full-on thick traditional
shit that never goes out of style. Think naked
ladies, skulls, snakes and spiderwebs. You
know, devil-may-care things that make you
look cool.
Valkyrie Tattoo Studio
Fiskisló" 31
First off, this studio no doubt has the best
view of any in Reykjavík so we’d love to offer
to switch offices with them. Second off, this
is another place that runs the gamut of styles
beautifully. It's notably a great place for nerds,
as they have a dedicated artist Joel (@geeks_
ink) who does, as you could guess, geeky shit.
Black Kross
Hamraborg 14a, Kópavogur
A really, really, really good place for old school.
Actually, the artists there do everything well,
but their old school is particularly *chef’s
kiss*. In my experience, people who like Black
Kross are weirdly culty about it—like they
only get tattooed there and go a lot and just
really love it—so watch out, they might be
putting something in the ink. (For legal rea-
sons, that's a joke.)
Memoria Collective
Hverfisgata 52
Another place that does most styles and does
them really well. That said, Balli’s (@bal-
liiagnars) got some particularly stellar neo-
traditional and Deborah Lilja (@treespirits.
tattoo) just started serving up some anime
stuff which we—an office stacked to the brim
with untranslated manga—love. We must
also shout out the black and grey work of Emii
Dun (@emii.dun.tattoos), who has tattooed
the author of this article many times. No fa-
vouritism here, folks.
Bleksmi#jan Tattoo & Piercing
Kringlan 7
Located next to Kringlan, Bleksmi!jan is an-
other fan favourite. Ingi (@bleksmidjan.
ingi) is a go-to for colour-realism, which you
don’t see a ton of in this country. Also, nota-
bly, Bleksmi!jan has some amazing piercing
people (@bleksmidjan.piercing) who can do
everything from smilies to dermals. No word
as to whether or not they can install a $24 mil-
lion pink diamond in our forehead, though.
Apollo Ink
Sí"umúli 3
Apollo Ink is probably the number one place
for black and grey realism in Reykjavík, con-
sidering most of the artists here specialise in
it and just do it really fucking well. Adrian
Chou’s (@adrian.chou.art) surrealist take
on the style is particularly trippy, but seri-
ously, Jesus Christ, everyone here is just really
good ain’t they? Isn’t realism supposed to be
super hard? Where did they find these people?
Reykjavík Ink
Frakkastígur 7
The one. The only. No doubt a downtown
institution by this point, Reykjavík Ink is a
tried-and-true locale that has been serving
the local community faithfully for 13 lucky
years. Pro-tip: They get really fantastic guest
artists, so keep an eye on their Instagram to
see who’s coming over.
Irezumi Ink
Laugavegur 69
Great location. Classic team. Takes walk-ins
daily. That's kind of like the golden trio for a
good ole' tattoo parlour, yeah? If you need an
even sweeter deal, they are also now offer-
ing 20% off big black and grey arm pieces for
March. So you really have no excuse do you? I
mean it's downtown for God's sake.
Also Check Out:
- Aura Reykjavík: The new studio on the
block. We’re excited to see what 2021 holds
for them.
- Ritual Tattoo: Another great bunch that
seems to get some truly unique guest artists.
Follow on Instagram (@ritual_tattoo_ice-
land) to keep up.
- After 6 Tattoos: Kind of a supergroup col-
lective featuring @uglybrothers, @sleep-
lessinrvk, @mottandi and @kocane_
wayne. Message on Instagram to talk about
your groundbreaking ideas.
- Other various Instagrams to follow:
@thorst1tattoo, @hopingnopolice and
wow there are so many people right now
please don't be sad if we forgot anyone.
14The Reykjavík Grapevine
Issue 03— 2021Best of Reykjavík
You sure you don't want a dandelion blowing into birds?
Note: Anyone who gets a Grapevine tat-
too gets a free year subscription to the
Grapevine and an article dedicated to
them. We'd prefer it in that blackwork-
with-red-lines we know you’re lusting
after right now. E-mail for designs.
Joy, Sustainability
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tel: +354-471-2450
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Best selection of Icelandic
Beers in the East
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Homemade cakes & soups,
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