Bespoke backpiece tattoo show is butt-free and shows off Philly artists’ original designs

A new art show in East Kensington will showcase dozens of Philly tattoo artists — without any blood, needles, models, or even photographs of body art.

Made to Measure, a bespoke backpiece tattoo display, opens Friday at Funhouse Gallery in East Kensington.

The show, curated by local tattoo artist Michael Munter, features hand-drawn and painted tattoo art stretched across a template meant to evoke a human back — it sort of resembles an acoustic guitar body.

Munter distributed the white 22-by-30-inch watercolor paper templates (about the size of an average adult back) to each participant. Invited artists were allowed to use any design medium to create their final product, as long as it was ready to hang by the end of September.

“Our goal is to bring together and showcase the vast community of tattoo artists from all four corners of Philadelphia and the surrounding areas,” Munter said.

The result is a display of different artistic styles and tattoo archetypes done by about 200 artists. While tattoo shops will sometimes host their own show, or art galleries will host tattoo-themed shows, Munter believes the backpiece show with artists from all over the city is the first of its kind locally.

In tattoo culture, backpieces are historically considered a great feat. They’re a way for artists to show off their chops on one large canvas that allows for lots of details. The art can also take many hourslong sessions to complete depending on a bunch of factors, including the subject’s pain tolerance.

“Philly has a huge community of talented tattooers with so many aesthetic points of view,” said exhibiting artist Eva Poleon from Baltimore Ave. Tattoo. “So it’s exciting to see how each artist will take the same template and create something unique to their artistic world.”

The show has American traditional-style pieces that use bold outlines and classic designs, like the work of Hailee Mae Sharkey out of Lucky Penny Tattoo, featuring a group of naked ladies frolicking in flowered vines, or a snake charmer by Justin Rakowski at Homestead Tattoo. But there’s also a colorful portrait of SpongeBob SquarePants by Angi D. Rosa from Pale Horse Tattoo Studio and a Japanese-style crane done by Don Juan at Floating World Tattoo.

“Knowing that nearly all the best tattooers in the area were going to be invited to participate made it an opportunity you can’t pass up,” Rakowski said. “This might be the biggest and most diverse tattoo art show Philly has ever seen.”

Rakowski said he spent around 30 to 35 hours working on the actual painting, plus 10 to 12 hours of research and drawing time.

For Poleon, her submission marks her largest painted piece and her first art show contribution.

“The show will be special in that we are coming together to support each other’s art,” she said. “My submission is inspired by traditional back pieces: vintage, folky, and romantic.”

In planning the show, Munter — who has tattooed in the area for about 16 years — said he realized there are way more tattoo artists in Philly than he ever anticipated.

“New York and Los Angeles have a large tattoo community with big names in the industry that do art events. Philadelphia also has a very big tattoo culture as well, but it isn’t promoted as such,” he said. “I wanted to show that Philadelphia is a place with a diverse amount of very talented artists. And they deserve to be seen in the industry as well.”

Once the show wraps, Munter said, there are plans to make a book to showcase all the participants’ work. Some of the works displayed will be available for purchase. Pricing is up to each artist.

Made to Measure opens Friday, Oct. 2, from 7-11 p.m. at Funhouse Gallery, 2676 Frankford Ave., Philadelphia, 19125. The show is free and open to the public all October with walk-ins Wednesday through Sunday 12-7 p.m. and by appointment Mondays and Tuesdays. For additional information, visit Instagram.com/madetomeasure2026.