29 Museum-Worthy Tattoos Inspired by Art History

Modern tattoos inspired by art history

The Great Wave off Kanagawa by Hokusai
Tattoo: Oozy

Great works of art are timeless, transcending the artists who created them. Think about paintings like Da Vinci’s Mona Lisa or Van Gogh’s Starry Night—they're permanently embedded into our memories. Their beauty and cultural significance inspires us in our everyday lives and often in ways you might not expect. As tattoos grow increasingly popular, people are using their skin to honor art history.

From classical busts to bold cartoons, these types of tattoos run the gamut in subject matter. Some are by-the-book interpretations of an artwork while others take creative liberties. In one version of Gustav Klimt’s The Kiss, tattooist Rita Zolotukhina depicts it with incredible accuracy. Others, like Oozy, alter their sources. On his client’s chest, the Seoul-based tattoo artist has visually fractured some of Da Vinci’s greatest works. The result is a stunning fusion of history and modernity, all contained on the skin.

Check out 29 of these museum-worthy tattoos, below. Which ones are your favorites?

Modern tattoos inspired by art history

Based on The Creation of Adam by Michaelangeo
Tattoo: Phellipe Rodrigues

Modern tattoos inspired by art history

Guernica by Picasso
Tattoo: Okan Uckun

Modern tattoos inspired by art history

Rothko
Tattoo: Jamie Luna

Modern tattoos inspired by art history

Water Serpents I by Gustav Klimt
Tattoo: Alexey Buzunov

Modern tattoos inspired by art history

Picasso (left) and Matisse (right)
Photo credit: Cristina Folsom

Modern tattoos inspired by art history

Jackson Pollock
Tattoo: Anton Senkov

Modern tattoos inspired by art history

Keith Harring
Tattoo: Megan Oliver

Modern tattoos inspired by art history

Starry Night by Van Gogh
Tattoo: Bob Price

Modern tattoos inspired by art history

Water Serpents I and II by Gustav Klimt
Tattoo: Amanda Wachob

Modern tattoos inspired by art history

Inspired by Cubism
Tattoo: Peter Aurisch

Modern tattoos inspired by art history

Kim Hong Do
Tattoo: Oozy

Modern tattoos inspired by art history

Inspired by classical sculpture
Tattoo: Tanya De Souza-Meally

Modern tattoos inspired by art history

Alphonse Mucha
Tattoo: Natan Alexander

Modern tattoos inspired by art history

Wheatfield with Crows by Van Gogh
Tattoo: Chris Walkin

Modern tattoos inspired by art history

Dance by Matisse
Tattoo: Omegalfa Tattoo

Modern tattoos inspired by art history

Banana by Andy Warhol
Photo source: Postmodernism Ruined Me

Modern tattoos inspired by art history

Picasso
Tattoo: Olivia Harrison

Modern tattoos inspired by art history

Bicycle Wheel by Marcel Duchamp
Tattoo: Lucas Cordeiro

Modern tattoos inspired by art history

Judith and the Head of Holofernes by Gustav Klimt
Tattoo: Ville Prinsen

Modern tattoos inspired by art history

Da Vinci
Tattoo: Oozy

Sara Barnes

Sara Barnes is a Staff Editor at My Modern Met, Manager of My Modern Met Store, and co-host of the My Modern Met Top Artist Podcast. As an illustrator and writer living in Seattle, she chronicles illustration, embroidery, and beyond through her blog Brown Paper Bag and Instagram @brwnpaperbag. She wrote a book about embroidery artist Sarah K. Benning titled 'Embroidered Life' that was published by Chronicle Books in 2019. Sara is a graduate of the Maryland Institute College of Art. She earned her BFA in Illustration in 2008 and MFA in Illustration Practice in 2013.
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