The coolest ink we saw at Arizona Invitational Tattoo Expo 2025

Some of Phoenix’s best tattoo artists got under people’s skin this past weekend. More than 200 skilled ink-slingers from throughout the Valley and across the U.S. gathered at the Renaissance Phoenix Glendale Hotel from Feb. 7 to 9 for the Arizona Invitational Tattoo Expo to create amazing body art.

The three-day event was a celebration of artistry and ink that created a major buzz inside the hotel’s conference center.

Dozens of local shops participated in this year’s expo – which was launched in 2016 by Arizona artists Jon Lewis and Sage O’Connell – including Everlasting Ink, Glendale’s Fifth Finger Studios, Mesa’s Urban Art Tattoo and Sun City’s Decorum Art Studios.

Lewis, who owns Tucson’s 4 Forty 4 Tattoo, recently told Phoenix New Times the focus of the event is to showcase a curated selection of high-caliber artists.

“We only invite artists with a high level of skill and talent,” Lewis says. “You have to display abilities that are in the upper echelon of tattooing to be able to participate.”

You didn’t have to look far to see the quality of their work. Amazing tattoos were seen adorning the skin of the thousands of ink enthusiasts who flocked to the expo to go under the needle.

Some pieces were absolutely bursting with color and energy, like the vibrant work of Phoenix artist Angela Marshall. Meanwhile, an epic leg sleeve by Tucson’s Stephanie Heffron – a former “Ink Master” contestant – felt truly otherworldly, featuring an astronaut gazing into the cosmos as planets collide in a mesmerizing display.

There were also tattoos inspired by pop culture touchstones like “Star Wars” and “Beetlejuice,” the old-school Nintendo Entertainment System, anime, UFOs and traditional folklore.

Here’s a glimpse at some of the coolest tattoos we encountered at this year’s Arizona Invitational Tattoo Expo in Glendale.