David Hale is an American tattoo artist who lives in Athens, Georgia. He owns and runs his own tattoo shop; LoveHawk Studios, where he creates individualized tattoos based on his illustrations. Hale’s designs are inspired by the natural world, affected by his imagination and inked onto the canvas of human skin. See more tattoos in David Hale Tattoos the Textures of his Imagination

An amazing tattoo design by David Hale that combines an ox skull, a mandala, Native American spirit objects and rose flowers. Many of Hale’s illustrations and tattoo designs include mandalas. These floral, circular patterns are used in spiritual cultures around the world as a symbol of harmony and wholeness. [source]

Artistic, Illustrated Tattoos by David Hale

Hale’s tattoo designs are based on his own illustrations. These drawings are often very stylized, influenced by folk art and tribal design. Tribal tattoos were very popular about a decade ago, but has since declined in popularity. Most tattoo artists now sneer at anything tribal-looking, but David Hale has instead embraced the shapes, lines and color most often used in tribal tattoos and made them his own. Compare this tribal tattoo of an eagle to David Hale’s style to spot the similarities.

This cool tattoo of an owl in flight shows David Hale’s signature illustrative style. He has used the red and black color scheme that was so popular in tribal tattoos, as well as retaining the typical pose used for birds in tribal tattoos; with its wings outspread and claws poised ready to strike. Owls are a symbol of darkness and the underworld and are said to be messengers between the land of the living and the realm of the dead. [source]

David Hale is a very spiritual person. In an interview with hybridsessions.com, he says that when he was a child he would sign his drawings, “to God, from David.” This connection with spirituality has accompanied Hale through his life, finding expression in his art works in the form of mandalas and natural subject matter. Mandalas are circular patterns that have been used in religions and spiritual cultures around the world to symbolize balance and completeness. You can learn more about mandala tattoos in The Spiritual Magic of Mandala Tattoos.

Mandalas are sometimes called the “flowers of life” because they are used to represent the living parts of the human spirit. Most mandalas will have six sides, like this flower tattoo with its six petals. There is balance between the two halves of the mandala, even when the flower is turned. [source]

This David Hale tattoo is based on the long legged elephants painted by Salvador Dali. Hale has used a mandala to represent the sun, giving the sun a spiritual symbolism in this tattoo design. [source]

Tattoos Inspired by the Spirit of the Wild

David Hale’s awesome tattoos often have an animal as a subject, especially animals that are significant in Native American folklore. These animals are called totem animals; spiritual animal guides that protect and lead a person through their life. A totem animal represents psychological, physical and spiritual characteristics such as courage, wisdom, beauty and strength. Examples of totem animals are North American bears, wolves and eagles. Foxes, hunting birds and fish also play a large symbolic role in David Hale’s tattoo art.

This tattoo of a red fox combines tribal designs and David Hales unique illustrative style. The red fox is a favorite character in folk tales and myths as a clever and cunning plotter. This doesn’t necessarily mean that the fox is an evil creature, it simply means that the fox is able to create a plan and carry it through. [source]

The snow leopard is a type of wild cat that symbolizes strength, skill and agility. It is highly territorial and will protect its young at all costs, making it a powerful symbol for parents to have in a tattoo design. Like all of David Hale’s tattoos, this design boasts beautiful, intricate patterns. [source]

David Hale uses more than just mandalas in his tattoo designs. He includes patterns in his designs that add texture, visual interest and meaning to the the tattoos. Sometimes these patterns will resemble the shapes found in paisley designs while in other designs these patterns will be either architectural, organic or tribal in form. David Hale’s use of patterns works well in his tattoo designs of insects. Not only does he include the patterns on the insects’ wings, where you would expect to see patterns of some kind, but often in the shape of the insects’ bodies as well.

David Hale’s use of strong silhouette means that the outline of his subjects don’t get lost among the patterns of the background. These two beetles sport David Hale’s signature use of patterns and repetitive designs. [source]

Even though this butterfly tattoo design seems to have natural patterns, they are the product of David Hale’s creativity, rendered in Hale’s artistic style. The muted colors give this tattoo a warm, welcoming feel. [source]

The natural world plays a huge role in David Hale’s amazing tattoo designs. Birds, fish, trees, the sun, moon and stars all find their way into his art works either as the main subject of the tattoo or as symbols in the background of the design, waiting  for the viewer’s eye to find them and therefore find more meaning in the tattoos. Trees are becoming a popular subject in tattoo art, as people begin to realize that our planet’s supply of trees is rapidly dwindling. Hale depicts trees in his tattoos as spiritual beings with an important role in the circle of life.

A tree of life tattoo by David Hale in which the tree grows on a mandala and has mandala leaves. The tattoo is divided into three sections; earth, trunk and leaves, each of which has its own textural style. [source]

A clever tattoo by David Hale that is a visual pun on the word “Treehouse”. Trees are used in tattoo designs as a symbol of life, while a house is used as a symbol of home and of childhood. The symbolism of this tattoo is that the person wearing the tattoo has a strong bond with his home and family: this is where his roots are. [source]

Visit David Hale’s website or Facebook page for more illustrations tattoos by this artist.