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Dec 08, 2023

This London Fine Line Tattoo Artist Is Beckham

By Hannah Coates What do Cruz and Romeo Beckham, Sabine Getty and Lioness Beth

By Hannah Coates

What do Cruz and Romeo Beckham, Sabine Getty and Lioness Beth Mead all have in common? They are all clients of fine line tattoo artist Pablo, also known as Certified Letter Boy, whose minimalist designs have been setting the bar for body art since he set up shop in Soho's The London Social tattoo studio.

"Fine line tattoos really became a ‘thing’ in Los Angeles, and now they’re becoming popular in London because they’re delicate and less aggressive than other old school tattoos," Pablo, whose work is inspired by old school Californian graffiti artists like Jack Rudy and Mister Cartoon, tells me. But his journey towards becoming a celebrity go-to for tattoos was not always an easy one.

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He began his career in Peru, where he lived in a slum as a teenager. "I bought my own tattoo machine and started practising on my friends," he says, recalling how he used to charge 10 pesos (around 50p) to tattoo people on a favela football pitch. "I taught myself to tattoo until I believed I was good enough to move to London. Eventually I managed to get a job in Dalston (east London)."

While elements were tough, Pablo credits his Peruvian background with his love of the written word: "All the street art in Peru is to do with lettering, so I feel like I just identify with the alphabet," he says.

What's the secret to his success? "We have wireless machines now so you don't have to compromise on line work – and I take a lot of pride in straight lines," he says. "The needle configuration and the way it's soldered are so important to how you tattoo – you can't do a fine line without a single needle. A lot of artists are using three and claiming it's a single needle – even though it might look good on the day, 10 years down the line… not so much."

His social media aesthetic also sets him apart from grimy tattoo studios, which can feel dark and uninviting. "I work with my creative director, Alexander Pover, who is like my Kris Jenner. Together we work on the photographs, style of tattoos and overall Instagram aesthetic," he says. "The studio is also light, bright, clean and clinical – it's not like a typical studio where there are stencils on the walls."

Among his most requested designs? Ornamental finger tattoos, which Pablo says have "exploded in recent months". "I think people think of them as permanent jewellery for their skin," he says. "They were used by ancient civilisations for identification purposes. For example, in some cultures, dots on the fingers indicated how many children you had. Now, it's just aesthetically pleasing."

His advice for anyone considering getting their own tattoo? "Research your artist, look at their healed work and talk to them – you might be spending a lot of time with them," he suggests. "Understanding their art and expression is definitely necessary – it's an intimate act because you’re sharing time with someone who's going to mark your skin forever."

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