Manuel Rogaschewski: Geometry, body-flow and his girlfriend’s bodysuit

Based in Austria, Manuel Rogaschewski began tattooing in 2015 and opened his private studio in 2021. His work developed through experimentation with patterns, blackout and large-scale projects, including an ongoing bodysuit on his girlfriend Marrruana. He shares his approach to body flow, the limits of his style, and the challenge of achieving an even healed result.

1. Who or what influenced you most when you were starting out?

I don’t think anyone influenced me at the beginning because I got into tattooing by accident. It wasn’t planned. But over time, the first person to influence me was the legend Raimundo Ramirez.

2. What do you wish someone had told you before you started tattooing?

If someone had told me how it worked, how I could start or how to improve, I probably wouldn’t have believed them. I only wish I had started ten years earlier.

3. Have you ever refused to tattoo someone’s idea? Why?

Yes, even today I sometimes refuse an idea because people want geometric or blackwork tattoos with realistic elements. I don’t do that because realism isn’t my thing.

I also refuse colour work. Sometimes I get enquiries for pieces with colour, which is something I don’t do.

4. Why do you think humans have such a strong desire to decorate or modify their bodies?

I think they want to look different from others.

5. Do you think a heavily tattooed body eventually becomes a new identity rather than simply a modified version of the original?

Yes, everything changes: their appearance, their confidence in themselves. The whole person changes.

“We’re always upgrading.”

— Manuel Rogaschewski

6. The bodysuit project with your girlfriend was never planned as a full bodysuit. How has the plan changed since you started?

As we continued with the project, it grew more and more. Then we started the back, then the legs, and we knew it would be a bodysuit.

Over time, you sometimes have better ideas, and that’s what happened. We changed parts of the flow and some blackout areas, and added some white on black too. We’re always upgrading.

7. Do you remember the first tattoo you did on her?

Yes, it was a black forearm at a convention.

8. How do you make geometric work flow naturally with the body’s anatomy rather than simply placing a design on top of it?

I focus mostly on the flow of the muscles and the shape of the body, and I always go bigger with the designs.

9. What is technically the most challenging aspect of creating large-scale blackwork?

Getting a smooth, even surface that heals well, with a nice healed result.

10. What do people get wrong about blackwork?

Some people think it’s easy, but you need the right know-how.

Follow Manuel on Instagram: Manuel.rogaschewski.tattooer