Case study (in progress)

Still working on expanding and refining my case study, but a couple tattoo artists that inspire me are:

Ferank Manseed
https://www.instagram.com/mudraink/

Boff Konkerz
http://www.boffkonkerz.com/tattoos

Habba Nero
http://theravenvalkyrie.tumblr.com/

Meatshop tattoo (Peter Walrus Madsen)
http://meatshop-tattoo.deviantart.com/

Little Swastika
http://www.little-swastika.com/tatu

Skin and Bone (Colin Dale)
http://www.skinandbone.dk/

Sascha Unisex
https://www.instagram.com/sashaunisex/

Since handpoked tattoos are my personal fascination and interest, I tend to follow up on artists who use that technique more, since they are far and few in between. There are also a great deal of machine tattooists which really inspire and impress me, but more like "Oh wow, I'd like a tattoo from them some day" or "Oh wow, they're a really skilled artists", whereas with others I'm more like "I want to be able to do that!".
I love tattooists that redefine the tattoo world and push boundaries. There are tons of tattooists out there, of which many do a shoddy job or make uninspired work, which is possibly part of the reason why tattoos still experience negative stereotyping today. But to me, tattoos are pure art, and I find it amazing, magical even, to think about imprinting something beautiful into someone's skin for ever. A human being is the most personal canvas you can ever get, which is an unappreciated fact by many, I think. People get tattoos like they get cars or iPods, as goods, things, to flaunt to friends, whereas my personal view on the subject couldn't be more different.
Which is also why I am more interested in machine-free tattooing. It goes back to those spiritual times, when tattoos were more like a rite of passage or medal of honour rather than a 'thing' you buy. The 'stick-n-poke' world is still small and not yet as commercialised as the 'regular' tattoo world, and I feel like it's closer to the "essence" of what it means to be a tattoo artist.