Chaim Machlev

Chaim Machlev (born November 7, 1980) is an Israeli-born German tattoo artist based in California, known professionally as DotsToLines. He is known for large-scale, line-based tattoos designed to follow the body’s contours. Machlev’s work has been featured in GQ and Elle India. His tattoos have also been exhibited in museums including the Museum of Contemporary Art of Rome and the Eretz Israel Museum.

Early life and education Machlev was born in Tel Aviv, Israel, and initially worked as a project manager in information technology. After receiving his first tattoo at age 30, he decided to leave his corporate career and pursue tattooing full-time. Machlev has stated that during a period of isolation in the desert he decided to leave his IT career and begin tattooing full-time, describing it as a personal turning point. In 2012 he relocated to Berlin and shortly after founded his studio, which became known for its focus on geometry and minimalism. In 2013 he won the TätowierMagazin Nachwuchscontest (Newcomer Contest) for emerging artists, gaining national attention in Germany. The following year Total Tattoo Magazine published the first extensive English-language profile of his work, describing his practice as combining mathematics and spirituality.

In 2016 Machlev’s work was included in the museum exhibition Tattoo Forever at the Museum of Contemporary Art of Rome, In 2017 he collaborated with Mercedes-Benz on the design of a special-edition GLA 200 d Peak Edition presented at the Bread & Butter by Zalando events in Berlin. Machlev’s design collaborations include projects with BMW and works that merge tattoo aesthetics with design and architecture. Among his clients are musicians such as Simon Gallup of The Cure and the members of the Scottish band Biffy Clyro, for whom he created a single interconnected geometric tattoo spanning the bodies of all three bandmates, symbolizing their unity as a musical family. Inked Magazine cited Machlev’s “blast-over” technique, layering new line work over existing tattoos, as seen in his piece for Machine Gun Kelly, as an example of stylistic innovation. This approach is consistent with descriptions in La Veine Graphique and The Tattoorialist, which portray his practice as an intimate spiritual exchange that merges geometry, anatomy, and mindfulness. Ink The Art of Tattoo further characterizes his aesthetic as merging mathematical structure with organic flow, resulting in large-scale compositions that appear both minimal and monumental. The same year his geometric line-art tattoos were featured in Tattoos: The Human Body as a Work of Art at the Eretz Israel Museum (MUZA) in Tel Aviv, curated by Yasmin Bergner. According to institutional press coverage, Tattoo Forever was recognized by BMW Group Italia as part of a broader cultural collaboration promoting tattooing as fine art. Also in 2016, Machlev organized and curated Project 24, a 24-hour global tattoo charity event held in Berlin and other cities, with proceeds donated to humanitarian causes. The event was featured in airberlin Magazine.

His inclusion in the museum exhibitions Tattoo Forever and Tattoos: The Human Body as a Work of Art is also noted in the book Tattoo Forever (Gangemi Editore Spa, 2016) and in Tattoo & Religion, which identifies him among contemporary artists redefining the medium as fine art.