Tattooist Michele Volpi creates surreal body art crafted from finely inked details. Devoid of color, his delicate drawing style is the focal point of his work. His technique of choice is called dotwork, in which tiny dots comprise the images. Paired with thin lines, he depicts famous works of art, vintage-inspired diagrams, and the insides of the human body.
Volpi has always had an interest in art, even as he attended a technical school—he was always drawing. “My desire for ‘fingers in many pies’ brought me to find a way to exercise my passion,” he tells My Modern Met. After receiving a tattoo starter kit from a friend, he fell in love with this facet of art and persevered through the challenging times that come from learning something new. “It was a hard path to go but I really wanted it,” he recalls.
“At the beginning, after trying many techniques of drawing, the dotwork and linework were two of my favorites, so much so that I started to make sketches using them.” Inspired by geometry, nature, the strange as well as the scientific, the evolution of Volpi’s work never stops. “I like to push myself every day finding inspiration from all around me and trying to go beyond the shallow in what I see.”
Tattooist Michele Volpi creates surreal dotwork tattoos inspired by geometric, nature, as well as the strange and scientific.
Michele Volpi: Instagram
