Tattoo around Tamara de Lempicka: a project that found its place.

An attraction that already existed

The aura. That magnetic thing.

Women painted by Tamara de Lempicka have something self-evident. An unapologetic elegance, a quiet strength, a gaze that holds. These are not fragile images.

This connection to his work was never thought out. It was already there. First through my first name, and then by discovering his works for real over time. At one point, the urge came to go further than the reference or the tribute. I wanted to see how these paintings could become real tattoos.

The full-arm project was born like that.

Find the right direction

Initially, the arm was supposed to mix Madame Boucard and a work by Edgar Degas, The Ballet. On paper, the idea worked. But as he went along, and committed to the choice of black and grey, Degas could no longer find his place.

His paintings live through colour. By removing it, the essence was lost. The image became flat. It no longer told the same story.

The choice was made naturally: to stick solely to works by Tamara de Lempicka.

No inspirations. No loose interpretations. Real paintings, adapted to the body.

Adapting the works for the arm

The idea was not to line up images, but to build a consistent arm. Each piece had to work on its own, whilst in dialogue with the others. The placement, the scale, the movement of the gaze across the arm mattered just as much as the subject.

A full-sleeve tattoo requires an overall vision. You don't think about an isolated piece, you think about a global movement. The portraits need to breathe, find their place on the contours, and remain legible over time.

A tattoo like this does not brook improvisation.

An encounter that changes everything

Margot and I didn't know each other at all to begin with. Right from our first date, we realised we were from the same part of the world, in the Drôme, and that we had several mutual acquaintances. That sort of detail creates an instant bond.

We hit it off straight away.

The project also resonated with her on a very personal level. Her mother had painted Madame Boucard. Naturally, that changes everything. This image was already part of his story. The tattoo didn't come out of nowhere. It was an extension of something that was already there.

Build an arm over time

A full sleeve takes time. It requires availability, energy, and genuine continuity. You have to coordinate diaries, make progress when everything is aligned, and make the right choices at every stage.

We build it session after session, keeping a clear direction.

Today, the arm has real coherence. The portraits complement each other, the whole thing is readable, it holds together visually. What I was looking for with this project was to go beyond a simple tattoo to create something closer to a canvas on skin, something that lives with the person wearing it.

The continuation is coming soon.