For Mancunian tattoo fans, the choice of artists in the city is plentiful. With a plethora of talent filled studios across Greater Manchester, the selection of needle-wielding artists can be overwhelming so here's a look at the work of ten of the best. Look out for these talented artists on Instagram and let us know your personal recommendations.
Matt Cooley, Rain City Tattoo Collective
Matt has been tattooing for ten years and is part of the Rain City Tattoo Collective based on Chapel Street in Salford. Influenced by artists such as Amelie Fontaine and Joan Cornelia, Matt's style is bold with lots of solid colour work.
Instagram:@cooleytattooer .
Lydia Hazelton, Loaded Forty Four
Lydia is a newcomer to the tattoo-sphere but she's quickly making a name for herself with her gorgeous animal designs. Lydia takes her inspiration from natural and vintage imagery, combining the two to create original and sophisticated tattoos. You can find Lydia at Loaded Forty Four in Swinton.
Instagram: @lydiatattoos.
Gre Hale, Rain City Tattoo Collective
Gre, who enjoys working with clients to make interesting, powerful and unique tattoos, has been tattooing since 2009. The huge torso designs that Gre excels at are breathtaking, both in colour or black and white. Gre is also based at Rain City with Matt Cooley, Danny Rossiter and a host of other talented artists.
Instagram: @grehale.
Phil Wilkinson, One For All Collective
Phil is based at the One For All Collective and produces very distinctive pieces with a geometric feel to them. Concentrating on wildlife and portraiture, Phil's work, heavy with black shading and line work, is easily recognisable. He can often be found touring conventions across the UK when not residing in Manchester.
Instagram: @pwtattoo.
Chris Green, Redwood Studios
Chris is another newcomer, having only been tattooing for a year and a half. The standard of his work at such an early stage in his career highlights his raw artistic talent. Chris' love of Renassiance Art is his ultimate inspiration in his work. Chris is based at city centre studio Redwood.
Instagram: @imchrisgreen.
Dan Hancock, This Mortal Coil
Dan is a multi-award winning artist who works primarily in black and grey. His realistic style suits the portraits and intricately detailed pieces he specialises in. Dan takes influence from Michelangelo and the art and architecture of the Baroque period when designing. His day-to-day inspiration comes from the artists working around him at the studio he owns in Altrincham.
Instagram: @dancocktattoo.
Danny Rossiter, Rain City Tattoo Collective
Zimbabwe-born Danny's travels have taken him from South Africa to New Zealand but now, luckily for us, he's based in this fair city. Danny has been tattooing for 13 years and has developed an evolved Western Japanese style. He is a well admired artist in the industry and it's easy to see why.
Instagram: @dannyrossitertattoo.
Sarah Whitehouse, Redwood Studios
Sarah has surprisingly only been tattooing for a couple of years but her style is recognisable and cute as a button. Her whimsical dot work is inspired by pop surrealism and is particularly well applied to the figures and animals she regularly tattoos. She is based in the city centre with Chris Green at Redwood Studios.
Instagram: @warahshitehouse.
Alex Wright, Grindhouse Tattoo Productions
Alex previously worked at Sacred Art but will soon be opening a new addition to the Manchester tattoo studios on offer: Grindhouse Tattoo Productions. Alex has carved out a niche for himself with his colourful horror movie portraits. Tattooing since 2001, his influences of the dark, macabre and comic art are clear, after years of absorbing the work of Todd McFarland.
Instagram: @thealexwright.
Henbo, Sacred Art
Another newbie, although you wouldn't believe it to look at his work, Henbo has been tattooing for two years. Henbo's blackwork tattooing calls to mind etchings and the level of detail is mind-blowing. Henbo's background as an illustrator is clear and he's certainly one to watch. Henbo is based at Chorlton studio Sacred Art.
Instagram: @henbohenning.
See more art in Manchester with Time Out's guide to Manchester's best art galleries.