The London show “Russian Criminal Tattoos” gives you a rare glimpse into the dark world of post-Soviet prison life, featuring a series of photographs of prisoners and their artistic tattoos. From the cells of Russian prison settlements in far-off places, many of the tattoos were forcibly (and disgustingly) removed by other inmates who disagreed with it or by authorities, since the art form was illegal.

Photographs by Sergei Vasiliev and the compliment drawings by Danzig Baldaev, who from 1948 to 2005 collected 3,000 drawings created by prisoners. Both Vasiliev and Baldaev worked as Soviet prison wardens, providing them easy access to the works.

The exhibiton runs until  November 30th at 4 Wilkes Street, E1 in London.

Read the original blog post here on Cool Hunting.