Tattoos

September 24, 2008 · Posted in Public Topics/Private Moments 

Tattoos, once a counterculture phenomenon, have entered the mainstream. According to the article cited below, tattooing is growing fastest in a most surprising demographic: suburban women. Nearly half of the people who get tattoos in this decade are women, which is roughly quadruple the percentage of tattoo-wearers in the 60’s. White collar executives working in a decidedly conformist environment have them. The days where every other tattoo said “born to kill” and featured a badly colored dragon on a biker’s bulging bicep are gone. 

What are possible explanations for the growing interest in what was once an art form generally assumed to be for criminals, bums and junkies? Well, for one thing, technology has changed. Tattoo artists can use new techniques for greater detail and more colors. Also, the stigma of being a no-good beatnik hippie bum (etc.) is gone. While peace-tattoos used to be a mark of the counterculture, rock icons have brought nonconformity to the mainstream. Athletes and other celebrities (even those whose bodies aren’t necessarily on display as constantly as those of athletes) have followed suit. Finally, government regulations have changed tattoo parlors from sleazy, dark rooms with unsterile equipment to what could be confused with medical facilities. 

So tattoos are more public-friendly. Does this add to their status as public art, or take away from it? On the one hand, they are certainly more “public”. More people have them, and they’re out in the open. But on the other hand, they stand out less. As they become more and more common, people pay less attention. Ironic statements like “I love mom” on a tough, leather-wearing, bear-sized trucker used to command a certain amount of respect. Now we don’t look twice. It may well be that with the unexceptional nature of some tattoos, their status as public has increased at the expense of their status as art. Still, the price may be worth it. Text is no longer the primary way of making a statement through tattoos. With more shapes and colors available, tattoos are quickly becoming a fine art. 

The image below is an example of a large, detailed tattoo. It depicts more than one subject, and makes use of advanced techniques such as figure-ground, three dimensional perspective, and shading to catch light. The artist gave special attention to where the man’s back would catch more light and colored accordingly.

 

A striking feature of tattoo art is that the statement made is usually a very personal message about the character of the person wearing it. Once upon a time, the message was either “I’m a badass” or “I do my own thing”. Now, however, examples like the one below are far more nuanced in their expression. Perhaps the pain in the faces on this man’s back tells us something about him. This brings me to what I find the most interesting about tattoo art: the statement is made at least as much by the “owner” of the art (inasmuch as public art can have an owner. Can private art?) as it is by the artist. A painting tells us what is in the artist’s soul, but a tattoo tells us what the person wearing it wanted to see. I find this fascinating, because it allows a form of artistic expression to become accessible even to those among us who are drawing-impaired. 

Best Large Tattoo by buckofive.

Tags: no tags

Comments

One Response to “Tattoos”

  1. alex.schindler on September 25th, 2008 9:04 am

    a) i forgot to write my name anywhere. ALEX SCHINDLER.

    b) this was front page, as far as NYT online is concerned. http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/25/fashion/25tattoo.html?pagewanted=2&_r=1

Leave a Reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.