IN THIS FORMAT WE INTRODUCE YOU TO A TATTOO SHOP PRESENT IN THE “TATTOO ARTISTS YEARBOOKS”, A HANDY GUIDE TO THE TATTOO SHOPS IN EUROPE.
Maybe “all the gods have abandoned us” but Florian Karg, the owner of ‘Vicious Circle’ in Blaichach (Bavaria/Germany) has never stopped believing strongly in his deeply emotional Dark Horror tattoos…
Florian, one thing I liked about you is that you always had clear ideas about your future, including becoming a tattoo artist. Do you confirm?
Yeah! I became enthusiastic about art and street art at a very young age. In fact, when I was young, I first trained as a farmer. But during that time I quickly realized that I wanted to do art and tattoos and then became self-employed at the age of 18.
How much do you think your art and style have evolved since you opened ‘Vicious Circle’ back in 2004? I mean: does that Florian Karg of twenty years ago still exist in some way?
I’ve always been of the opinion that standing still is death, in every respect. That’s why I always try to develop myself further, but I think I have never lost my dark bloody soul and will never lose it.
‘Vicious Circle Tattoo’ has moved once before, right? You were originally in Weiler im Allgäu, and now you’re in the small town of Blaichach. But your philosophy hasn’t changed: always surrounded by nature and peace…
Blaichach is my birthplace and I always knew that I ‘d come back to my parents’ farm. It took a few years to plan and implement the renovation but now we have the tattoo studio, art gallery, home and farm all in one place (IG: @vicious_circle_tattoo)… and I love it!
Do you think that your tattoos are not only beautiful examples of Black-n-Gray Realism with various references to a dark/horror world, but also deeply emotional?
Well, over the years I have also had a lot of fun with animal tattoos and nature. But dark horror and deep emotional projects are still my favorite and suit me best.
A while back, you said there wasn’t much “craziness” left in the tattoo world. In 2024, do you think everything has been fully normalized, or is there still room for wild creativity?
I think I should take back what I said… Maybe artists back then weren’t as exposed to social media as they are today.
Now, I discover new artists that fascinate me almost every day.
Do you listen to music while you’re working on projects (tattoos, paintings etc)?
I love music and it actually depends on the season. In summer I like to listen to metalcore and in winter it’s more like melodic black metal and deathcore but also a lot of other genres. Bands like As I Lay Dying, Breakdown Of Sanity, Insomnium and Heaven Shall Burn have been with me for a long time.
When it comes to tattoo conventions, do you have a particular one you wish to attend?
Since I don’t go to conventions anymore I don’t have a specific wish, but if I had one wish I would want the ‘London Tattoo Convention’ back.
And what about your tattoo art in general? Do you have any unexpressed projects you’re working on?
I work on great projects every year and try to take a lot of time for each one. I also use the winter time to paint a lot because there is less to do on the farm in winter.
Last question – In the photo that appears on the ‘Vicious Circle’ website (www.vicious-circle.vc) you wearing an Architects black t-shirt that says ‘All Our Gods Have Abandoned Us’ which is also the title of their 2016 album…
Yeah, I can confirm it!
So do you just like the phrase or are you a fan of their music?
I definitely like the band a lot, but I really like the older albums. But the saying on the t-shirt fits wonderfully into today’s times and makes you think…
Follow ‘Vicious Circle’ tattoo studio on Instagram: @vicious_circle_tattoo
PUBLISHED IN GERMAN, ITALIAN, FRENCH, ENGLISH AND SPANISH EDITIONS. EVERY YEAR EACH VOLUME SHOWS HUNDREDS OF TATTOO IMAGES AND PRESENTS THE TATTOO SHOPS IN EACH COUNTRY WITH ALL THE INFORMATION YOU NEED.
