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Gustavo Barahona (El Bara)

Bold American traditional (old school), plus Japanese

True Love Tattoo, Calle Velarde 22, Malasana, Madrid, Spain

Gustavo Barahona, who works as El Bara, is an Argentine traditional tattooer based in Madrid, owner of True Love Tattoo in Malasana and one of the best-known old-school tattooers in Spain.

Archive Note

Barahona is from Buenos Aires and came to tattooing through the Argentine punk and hardcore scene, surrounded by tattooed people; by the official studio account he began tattooing in 1990. He ran his own studio in Argentina before seeking new horizons in Spain, and in 2006 he founded True Love Tattoo at Calle Velarde 22 in the Malasana district of Madrid. He works in a bold, classic American traditional register often framed in relation to the Sailor Jerry lineage and the retro character of Malasana, with a stated love of traditional and Japanese work, and reports a long waiting list with clients traveling from outside Spain. He guests and works conventions internationally, with named circuits including Italy, Scotland, England, Russia, and Belgium.

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