Rob Klamanis – Traditional Tattoo Artist at Hammersmith Tattoo London
Rob Klamanis, known as @klamanistattoo, is a Traditional tattoo artist working at Hammersmith Tattoo London in W14, West London. He began tattooing more than 10 years ago and has developed a distinctive style rooted in classic Traditional tattooing, with bold outlines, strong shapes, solid colour and clear compositions at the centre of his work.
His portfolio covers a wide range of subject matter, but the overall approach stays consistent. Whether he is working in colour or black and grey, Rob’s tattoos are designed to be readable, balanced and visually strong. He regularly works with classic Traditional imagery, animals, skulls, flowers, daggers, eagles, devils, Western themes, nautical ideas and darker fantasy-inspired designs, as well as more unusual and humorous concepts.
What makes Rob’s work interesting is that it does not feel limited to the most obvious old-school tattoo subjects. Traditional tattooing gives him a strong visual foundation, but within that he can work with playful characters, strange creatures, unusual combinations and personal ideas while still keeping the tattoo recognisably Traditional.
Traditional Tattooing with a Strong, Clear Style
Traditional tattoos are often defined by bold black outlines, simplified shapes, strong contrast and colour that is used deliberately rather than excessively.
That approach runs throughout Rob’s work.
His tattoos tend to have a very clear silhouette and a strong focal point, which means they read well from a distance as well as up close. Bright reds, yellows, oranges, greens, blues and turquoise tones appear regularly, often balanced against large areas of black and softer grey shading.
Black and grey pieces follow the same principles. Even without colour, the designs keep their weight through linework, contrast and shape.
This consistency is important in Traditional tattooing because the style is not just about subject matter. It is about how the tattoo is constructed.
Classic Traditional Subjects with More Personality
Rob works with a lot of classic Traditional imagery, but he often gives familiar subjects a slightly different character.
Animal tattoos are a big part of his portfolio, including predatory animals, birds, dogs and more unusual creatures. Some are aggressive and dramatic, while others are humorous or deliberately strange.
The same goes for skulls, devils, weapons, flowers and Western-inspired imagery.
Rather than making every design feel serious, Rob often leans into exaggerated expressions, odd combinations and playful ideas. That gives the portfolio more personality while still keeping the classic old-school look.
There is also a strong mix of darker work, including horror, fantasy and devil-inspired pieces, alongside lighter and more humorous designs.
Colour and Black and Grey Traditional Tattoos
Rob works comfortably in both colour and black and grey.
His colour tattoos often use a limited palette rather than too many competing tones. This helps the main shapes stay strong and keeps the design easy to read.
Red, yellow, orange, green and turquoise appear frequently, usually against black outlines and darker shading.
His black and grey work strips the style back further, putting more emphasis on line weight, shading and composition.
Both approaches still feel recognisably his because the structure of the tattoo remains consistent.
Custom Traditional Tattoo Designs
Although Rob works within a classic tattoo style, his designs are not limited to standard flash.
He also creates custom work based on a client’s own ideas, references and interests.
The goal is usually to take the concept and simplify it into something that works properly as a tattoo, rather than trying to reproduce every small detail.
That process is especially important with Traditional tattooing, where clarity and balance matter more than unnecessary complexity.
Rob works collaboratively with clients and offers guidance on how to adapt an idea so that it fits both the body and the style while still feeling personal.
Cover Ups, Blastovers and Working Around Existing Tattoos
Rob also works with clients who already have tattoos and want to build around them, change them or use the remaining space more effectively.
Traditional tattooing is particularly suited to cover ups and blastovers because the style naturally uses bold outlines, dark areas and solid colour.
A cover up is usually planned to hide as much of the old tattoo as possible, while a blastover takes a different approach. Instead of fully covering the existing tattoo, the new design is placed over it in a way that deliberately allows some of the older work to remain visible.
This creates a layered look rather than trying to make the previous tattoo disappear completely.
Rob also works with gap fillers for patchwork sleeves and tattoo collections. These are smaller designs made to fit into awkward spaces between existing tattoos and help the overall collection feel more complete.
Freehand Tattooing and Gap Fillers
Some spaces are difficult to plan from a flat drawing alone.
For that reason, Rob also works freehand where appropriate, drawing directly onto the skin so the design can follow the exact shape of the available space.
This is particularly useful for gap fillers and work between older tattoos.
It allows the tattoo to fit naturally rather than forcing a pre-drawn image into a shape that does not suit it.
For people building a Traditional patchwork sleeve, this can make a big difference to how the whole collection looks once the smaller spaces begin to fill in.
Traditional Tattoos for Larger Placements
Rob’s portfolio also includes larger work across areas such as the upper arm, thigh, stomach and other bigger placements.
Larger Traditional tattoos still rely on the same principles as smaller flash pieces, but there is more room to build a full composition.
Instead of simply making the design more detailed, the focus is usually on creating stronger relationships between the main elements.
The tattoo still needs to read clearly as one piece.
This becomes especially important with larger animal, nautical, Western, fantasy and multi-subject designs.
Traditional Tattoos with Humour
One of the most recognisable parts of Rob’s portfolio is the amount of humour in it.
Traditional tattooing has always had room for strange and playful imagery, and Rob makes use of that.
Some designs are intentionally odd, exaggerated or slightly ridiculous, but they are still treated seriously in terms of tattoo composition.
That combination works well because the tattoo can be funny without looking like a novelty.
The strong outlines, limited colour palette and classic shading keep the design visually grounded.
Old-School, Western, Nautical and Fantasy Influences
Rob’s work pulls from several areas that naturally fit with Traditional tattooing.
Western imagery appears throughout the portfolio, alongside nautical themes, old-school animals, weapons, birds, skulls and classic floral elements.
There is also a noticeable fantasy and medieval influence in some of the work, particularly in designs involving darker themes, architecture, weapons and hellish imagery.
These subjects feel different from classic sailor flash, but the tattooing approach is still very Traditional.
That is part of what makes the style so versatile.
Building a Traditional Patchwork Sleeve
Rob’s work is also well suited to clients who want to build a patchwork sleeve over time.
Traditional tattoos naturally work well as separate individual pieces because each design has a strong outline and clear shape.
They can be added gradually without needing the whole sleeve to be planned at once.
Larger tattoos can form the main anchors, with smaller tattoos and freehand fillers added later to make use of the remaining spaces.
This approach works well for people who prefer collecting tattoos over time rather than committing to one full sleeve design from the beginning.
Rob Traditional Tattoo Artist at Hammersmith Tattoo London
Rob is part of the resident artist team at Hammersmith Tattoo London in W14, West London.
His work is particularly suited to clients looking for Traditional tattoos, old-school flash, bold colour, black and grey Traditional work, animal tattoos, skulls, Western designs, nautical tattoos, cover ups, blastovers, freehand gap fillers and custom ideas translated into a Traditional style.
His portfolio also shows that Traditional tattooing does not have to feel repetitive.
The same visual language can be used for something dark, serious, funny, strange or completely personal.
Booking with Rob
To book with Rob, contact @klamanistattoo directly with your tattoo idea, preferred placement and approximate size.
If you are looking for a cover up, blastover or gap filler, it is useful to include a clear photo of the existing tattoos and the surrounding area.
For custom work, reference images can also help explain the idea, even if the final design ends up being very different.
Rob can then advise on what will work best in terms of size, placement and composition.
You can also view more of his work through the Hammersmith Tattoo London artist gallery and contact the studio for general booking enquiries.
If you are looking for a Traditional tattoo artist in London with a strong old-school foundation but plenty of room for unusual ideas, Rob’s portfolio is a good example of how flexible the style can be.
