Eastern Promises, the excellent 2007 film directed by David Cronenberg, explores the secretive underworld of Russian criminals who have immigrated to and settled in London. The film's startling brutality and pervasive creepiness have a lasting effect—you may have trouble shaking some images from your mind. Viggo Mortensen plays Nikolai, whose skin reads like a business card; each tattoo signifies his accomplishments and status.
Fuel Design created an exhibition of Russian criminal tattoos (on view through November 28) with a selection of drawings created by Danzig Baldaev during his time as a prison guard and photos by Sergei Vasiliev, whose prints are for sale.
Sergei Vasiliev
The Guardian has a fascinating article on Russian criminal tattoos, definitely worth a read.
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