The ’blackout tattoo’ trend sweeping the internet

“暗黑风暴”纹身风靡外网

Tattoos, once the reserve of the rebellious by nature, have become a mainstream beauty accessory over the past few years. But the latest trend for ’blackout tattoos’ is only for extreme ink lovers.

纹身一度是桀骜不驯的象征，在过去几年内却一跃成为主流的装饰品。但最新的“暗黑风暴”纹身只适用于重度纹身发烧友们。

Singapore-based artist Chester Lee of Oracle Tattoo recently drew attention to the trend when he posted a photo on Instagram of one of his clients sporting a large tattoo with scalloped edges spreading across her upper torso and covering her arms. The image has since gone viral, garnering thousands of likes and sparking online debate about the daring look.

来自新加坡Oracle纹身艺术家Chester Lee近期在Instagram上发布了一张作品，图片内容是一片硕大的扇形图案覆盖着她的上部躯体，继而延伸到她的手臂。这张图片获得极大关注，获赞无数，并且广泛流传，还在网络上引发了论战。

The artist has also shared pictures of other clients who have opted to completely cover different body parts such as lower legs or backs. Some have opted for a design that combines large sections of block color with intricate designs, giving the impression that large swathes of the body are entirely covered up. The overall effect is not unlike that of body paint, with the difference being, of course, that this art form cannot be washed off.

这位艺术家还分享了其他图片，图片里的客户们分别用纹身覆盖住身体的不同部位，如下肢或者背部。有些人还选择了大色块交错繁杂的设计，给人留下了身体被黑色布带完全包裹住的感觉。这种纹身的整体效果和人体彩绘并不相同。当然，它不能被洗去。

As Lee explains to Cosmopolitan.com, one of the principal advantages of blackout tattoos is their capacity to conceal and correct past mistakes, although this is a look customers will want to be sure about before they commit. Meanwhile, other ink fans are using the concept as a way to create a background for striking graphic designs that are created via the negative space created by the bare skin left peeking through.

Lee向《大都会》杂志解释说，这类纹身的关键优点是能够覆盖之前的缺漏，然而这必须得到顾客的同意和确认。同时，其他纹身发烧友运用这个概念作为平面设计的背景，利用供人窥视的裸露肌肤创造出负空间。

Additional tattoo artists to have taken to Instagram to show off their spin on the trend include the UK-based Northside Tattooz and Second City Tattoo Club.

其他的纹身艺术家们也在Instagram上发布了他们呼应该潮流的作品，其中包括英国的Northside Tattooz和Second City纹身俱乐部。

The concept is in stark contrast to the recent trend for minimalist micro tattoos led by fashionable but clean-cut celebrities such as Kendall Jenner, Selena Gomez and Vanessa Hudgens. Other key looks that have become popular over recent years include ’watercolor tattoos’, whose abstract multicolored designs give the appearance of a watercolor painting, and the more temporary metallic flash tattoos.

这种类型的纹身和近期流行的极简派微型纹身形成了鲜明的对比。如肯达尔·詹娜、赛琳娜·戈麦兹、凡妮莎·哈金斯等时尚却轮廓分明的女性酷爱这种极简纹身。其他近几年风潮还包括“水彩纹身”和更具有现代感的金属闪光纹身。水彩纹身具有抽象的多彩图案，呈现出一种水彩的朦胧感。