JOOPITER, Pharrell Williams's auction platform, launches its first standalone tattoo auction titled 'Inked: Tattoos by Contemporary Artists,' featuring commissioned designs by sixteen artists including Derrick Adams, Thom Browne, Jeffrey Gibson, and the late Lawrence Weiner. The sale runs from October 22nd to 31st, 2025, with select designs previewed at Dover Street Market during Art Basel Paris. Curated by Sharon Coplan, each tattoo design is accompanied by a signed certificate of authenticity, and a complete set will be reserved for institutional donation.
This auction matters because it redefines the boundaries of art collecting by treating tattoos as legitimate, collectible artworks that exist on the body rather than on walls. By involving major contemporary artists and reissuing a posthumous Lawrence Weiner tattoo, the project highlights the conceptual and material connections between tattooing and printmaking, while offering collectors a new way to 'inhabit' art. It also signals the growing crossover between contemporary art, fashion, and digital commerce platforms.