The injured Ukrainian soldiers taking up tattooing as a form of therapy

In December 2023, while fighting in unfamiliar terrain in Donetsk, Mr Samus stepped on a landmine which blew off his right leg.

Nine surgeries later, he was fitted with a prosthetic. It took him nearly seven months to learn how to walk again.

“The rehabilitation went better than I expected,” he recalls. “But there was still the question of what I would do after.”

After nearly four years of war, Ukraine’s government lacks both the manpower and resources to support many wounded veterans as they transition back to civilian life.

Mr Samus was keen to get going as a tattoo artist, but lacked a diploma and equipment. He was also mindful of the health risks that come with tattooing.

“You need a clean environment [to tattoo] – it’s a big responsibility.”

‘I feel like I’m coming back to civilian life’

Research has shown that tattooing, particularly when done in informal settings, can be associated with increased risk of hepatitis infections. Unsafe practices including the use of unsterilised needles or contaminated ink, also raise the risk of other blood-borne infections like syphilis or HIV.

Mr Samus was introduced to the founders of a new tattoo parlour, Vovk Studio, which was set up specifically to help rehabilitate wounded soldiers.

Its founder, Olena Vovk, has close ties to the Ukrainian military and designed a course that covers the history and art of tattooing.

Along with 30 other students, most of them soldiers, Mr Samus practised first on fake skin, before graduating to tattooing models under the guidance of expert teachers.