Brighton has long had a reputation for being the preferred home of countless creatives, and it’s not hard to understand why. From the colourful streets and impressive graffiti displays to the eccentric and thriving art and music scenes, Brighton is the perfect city for creative individuals such as artists, musicians, and writers to call home and hone their skills.
It should come as no surprise, then, that the city is home to a huge number of talented tattoo artists. Brighton has long celebrated alternative culture, and tattoos are no exception to this. Whether you’re a local looking to a new regular artist to go to, or a tourist who wants to try something new while in Brighton, these are some of the most talented tattoo artists in the city.
Our favourite tattoo artists at tattoo shops around brighton and Hove
| Lana Fern | Specialises in fine-line floral tattoos that are inspired by the formation of flowers. |
| George Langford | Creates beautiful freehand botanical pieces inspired by feminism and bodily empowerment. |
| Nikki Venus | Creates fine-line black and grey pieces inspired by nature and folklore. |
| Jimmy Galan | Creates fine-line floral and animal pieces inspired by nature. |
| Sophie Sharp | Specialises in colour botanical and animal tattoos. |
| Poppy Bignell | Hand-poke artist creating pieces inspired by pop culture & their Film Studies degree. |
Lana Fern
Lana specialises in fine-line floral tattoos, influenced by her time visiting botanical gardens and studying the way the flowers form. When I spoke to her, she mentioned that she loves to feel as though her tattoos are “blooming” onto her client’s skin, which can certainly be seen in the photos of the beautiful, elegant designs on her Instagram page.
Lana has always been into art, but she mentioned to me that what she loves about tattooing is how it allows her to connect directly with the people “buying” her art, as well as how it keeps her drawing on a daily basis. In the future, she would love to do more “large-scale flowy botanical pieces”, as well as pieces that combine ornamental and floral designs.
Lana can be found at Love More Tattoo Studio in the North Laines and you can head to her Instagram to book with her when her books are open or grab a cancellation slot when one pops up.
Instagram: @lanaferntattoo
Studio: Love More Tattoo, 2 Orange Row, Brighton, BN1 1UQ
George Langford
George’s beautiful tattoos are inspired by Victorian botanical illustrations and are led by her clients as she tattoos freehand. She says every piece is a collaboration between herself and her client, meaning everything she creates is truly one-of-a-kind.
When I spoke to George, she told me her desire to live a creative life is what led her into tattooing initially, although the other female tattoo artists who had broken into the industry and begun to change the path it was on also heavily inspired her.
Feminism and bodily empowerment, she says, are central to her work, and she loves to create large-scale pieces that allow her to include as much detail as possible, as she mentions this is her favourite part of each tattoo.
She recently completed a full-back piece of brambles and morning glory that she is especially proud of, and would love to do more pieces like this, and more large-scale single botanicals.
George can be found at the Dollhouse, an inclusive feminist tattoo studio in the North Laines, where she is also a co-founder. Her Instagram has many photos of her gorgeous tattoos, and a link to enquire or book appointments.
Instagram: @georgelangfordtattoo
Studio: The Dollhouse, 5 Orange Row, Brighton, BN1 1UQ
Nikki Venus
Nikki’s favourite tattoo subjects, according to her website, are botanical illustration, folklore, whimsical animals, and “anything with a powerful femme presentation”. She tattoos in black and grey exclusively, using fine line work and “peppery grey” shading to create her work. She is vegan, so only uses vegan products in her tattooing.
Nikki can be found at Heartbreaker Tattoo studio in the North Laines and has been tattooing since she was 18 years old. You can head to her website to get more information, or her Instagram to get more examples of her work and to book an appointment or enquire.
Instagram: @nikkivenustattoo
Studio: Heartbreaker Tattoo, 87 Gloucester Road, Brighton, BN1 4AP
Jimmy Galan
Jimmy has always been surrounded by art ever since he was young, as both his mother and sister are artists, but he started tattooing when a friend bought him a tattoo magazine and he found he loved the art. Particularly the “Americana classic imagery”.
His primary influence is nature; almost every single one of his pieces is fineline florals, animals, or both. He recently tattooed a piece featuring a snake, a sword, and lotus flowers all intertwined, which he said is his current favourite creation, and in the future, he’d love to do more freehand floral large-scale pieces.
You can find more examples of his work, as well as his current favourite piece, on his Instagram. You can go to his website to book an appointment or enquire. Jimmy can be found at Love More Tattoo, a safe, vegan, and comfortable eco-conscious studio where he is also the co-owner.
Instagram: @jimmygalan
Studio: Love More Tattoo, 2 Orange Row, Brighton, BN1 1UQ
Sophie Sharp
Sophie’s Instagram is full of examples of her work, which primarily features colourful animals and botanicals, though she also takes influence from pop culture on occasion. She also did one of my first tattoos in 2021, so she comes highly recommended.
Sophie is the owner of True Romance Tattoo Studio in North Laines, and her Instagram account has a link for you to enquire about appointments, as well as all of her current flash designs.
Instagram: @sophiesharptattoos
Studio: True Romance Tattoo, 10 Orange Row, Brighton, BN1 1UQ
Poppy Bignell
Poppy is a hand-poke artist who has been tattooing for the past two years. She has loved drawing from a young age, and they attribute their fascination with tattooing in particular to their love of Amy Winehouse and the Jacqueline Wilson novel The Illustrated Mum when they were younger.
She regained her passion for drawing during lockdown in 2020 while also studying for a master’s degree in Film Studies, which has proved to be highly influential on her work. Poppy uses bold, uncomplicated linework for their tattoos, as they are influenced heavily by their pre-existing drawing style and have focused on simplifying this in order to create good tattoos.
A lot of her work includes influences from film and pop culture, including her Cinema Club flash sheets that include designs inspired by some of her favourite films (a few examples of which are Ladybird, But I’m a Cheerleader, Twilight, and Jennifer’s Body). In fact, one of Poppy’s current favourite pieces she’s created is a tattoo of Robert Pattinson in Twilight, with the words “Team Edward” underneath.
In the future, they mentioned to me that they’d love to work on larger-scale pieces, such as torso or back pieces, and start to experiment with colour. Poppy works Thursday-Saturday at feminist studio The Dollhouse, and you can head to her Instagram for more examples of her work (including her available flash) and for a link to book or enquire.
Instagram: @sweet.divine.ttt
Studio: The Dollhouse, 5 Orange Row, Brighton, BN1 1UQ
