Modern Rituals is the photo book chronicling London’s tattoo scene

“The audience for tattooing only sees the final one per cent of the process – I’m showing the 99 per cent that is usually totally hidden away,” says Hannah Guyer, photographer and studio manager at London’s The Church of England tattoo studio. The space has become home to a rotating roster of guest artists from across the globe, working in styles that range from eurotrash and loose scratchers to blocky, ignorant tattoos. It’s a whirlwind of approaches that Guyer has been documenting over the past year, photographing clients, artists and the everyday processes that unfold at the studio, bringing it all together in a photo book and exhibition titled Modern Rituals.

What first drew Guyer into the space were the parallels she noticed between tattooing and her wider interests in the fetish world. “Both exist on the fringes, celebrate non-conformative beauty and rely on a ritualistic exchange of power, trust and intimacy,” she says. Describing the studio as “a sanctuary where my interests in beauty, taboo and identity naturally converge,” it felt instinctive for her to begin documenting the exchanges she witnessed day-to-day.

While many of the images initially pull you in through the intricate designs being pressed into skin, Guyer was keen to focus on the often-overlooked liminality of the tattooing process itself. Instead, the project homes in on quieter details: laid-out stencils, wrapped skin, the waiting around between moments. “I’m interested in the details that make each artist unique: their setups, the talismans they place around them, their style.”

Modern Rituals takes shape as both a printed photobook and a series of exhibitions hosted within the studio. The physicality of these formats was a deliberate choice, pushing back against the algorithm and the growing pressure on tattoo artists to rely on digital platforms to market and archive their work. “Social media is ephemeral. Incredible pieces are scrolled past in a second, and artists constantly risk having their images flagged or shadow-banned,” Guyer says. It speaks to the wider double-edged nature of the algorithm, where nudity or provocation may draw attention, but can just as quickly lead to suppression.

Below, we talk to the photographer about the making of Modern Rituals and the importance of physicality in the scene.

What inspired Modern Rituals, and how did the exhibition and photobook come about?

Hannah Guyer: Modern Rituals was born from a desire to honour the parts of the practice that exist beyond the actual tattoos – the fleeting exchanges that usually disappear once the appointment ends. There is so much more to it than the final images you see on Instagram. This world moves so fast that it feels important to capture this specific era before it shifts again.

I remember having a conversation with a guest artist earlier this year about the loss of print magazines, and how there is minimal physical documentation of the progressive scene today beyond social media. This planted the seed of the idea to start archiving and to one day create a physical artefact that preserves the contemporary landscape. 

How did your approach to documenting the studio evolve over the months of shooting, and what did you begin to see differently as the project unfolded?

Hannah Guyer: As a non-tattooer, I occupy a unique position in the studio. I exist as an observer, primarily there to listen to and facilitate the needs of the artists. Once I started shooting, I became more aware of the choreography – the specific organisation of each artist’s station, the positioning of a client’s body, the constant checking in. 

I keep a camera close by when I’m in the studio, and when I see something interesting, I shoot. Initially, I tried to stay very passive, not wanting to impose or interrupt artists as they worked. However, I’ve learned that artists are generally really on board with being photographed and are more than happy to let me move lights around and give the subtle direction needed to get a nice shot. 

Why is physical documentation, like a photobook, so important in a world where so much of tattoo media is online?

Hannah Guyer: A photobook is an act of resistance against the algorithm. It acknowledges the tattooers as artists rather than just ”content creators” and offers an archive that exists in the physical world. Beyond that, I think it honours the ritual itself as a source of beauty. It captures the intimacy between client and artist, the constant checking in with each other, and the therapy sessions that happen on the bed – moments that get lost when you only post the final result online.

What is the community of the studio like?

Hannah Guyer: It’s incredibly tight-knit. Artists often know each other from the circuit, having met while guesting in other studios around the world, so even when someone is new to London, there are often familiar faces.

What do you see as the defining characteristics of the London tattoo scene right now?

Hannah Guyer: London exists in this special geographical location. Being between Europe and the US, we attract such a range of diverse artists from across the world. This is reflected in the styles that we see, from the loosest scratchers to hyper-refined technical work, to super blocky, ignorant style stuff. It feels like a melting pot of experimentation right now.

How do you see Modern Rituals fitting into the wider conversation about tattooing?

Hannah Guyer: It serves as a timestamp. The tattoo industry moves so fast, shaped by broader culture and trends. Modern Rituals freezes this specific moment of the London underground before it evolves into something else. It’s a document of the ‘now‘ that will hopefully inform the future.

Do you plan to continue documenting this scene, or expand to other areas?

Hannah Guyer: This book is really a ‘first look’. I plan to continue documenting the artists and community at The Church of England, expanding this archive into a larger, more fully fleshed-out project next year that delves deeper into the sociology of tattooing. I’m excited to see how the studio grows and how the culture evolves, and to continue documenting it.