Tattoo

By Alex Keenan

Tattooing has been practiced since time immemorial. Whether applied for cultural reasons or simple decoration, tattoos are one of the earliest art forms. They are not entered into lightly: they perform a lifetime statement and a serious commitment, particularly with regard to the physical pain that the wearer has to endure to have the design etched onto their skin. At times and in some locations tattoos have been fashionable and socially acceptable; during other periods they have been unacceptable, with undesirable and often criminal connotations. Tattoos are currently enjoying a renaissance in popularity—everyone who is anyone has a “tat”—and the choice of design and meaning is dazzling. (Insert name of book) displays an enormous range of some of the most edgy and exciting tattoos ever inked. Ideal for anyone who enjoys the skill and imagination of the wearer and the practitioner, it gives a brief history of tattooing as well as examining pictorially the development and meaning of this incredible art form.

• Language: English
• Publisher: TAJ Books International
• Release date: Mar 1, 2011
• ISBN: 9781844062072

Book preview

INTRODUCTION

A tattoo is the ultimate physical adornment. It is chosen by the wearer as a permanent indication of style, status, and personal beautification. Being tattooed is not something entered into lightly: tattoos are made by piercing the skin hundreds of times with a sharp implement that inserts a drop of indelible pigment into the dermis layer of the skin. This means they are, to all effect, permanent, a lifetime statement and a serious commitment to that marking, particularly with regard to the physical pain that the wearer has to endure to have the design etched onto his or her skin.

It is probable that the use of tattoos is as old as mankind itself, but because skin rarely survives any form of burial, the premise is unprovable. The earliest known example of tattooing is on the body of Otzi the Iceman, who was discovered in the Schnalstal glacier on the border between Italy and Austria in 1991. This naturally preserved Neolithic corpse dates from c.3,300 BC and is covered with 57 different tattoos of mostly simple dots and lines. The very earliest tattoos were certainly tribal markings to distinguish different family groupings or clans, and in many societies they were believed to bring good luck, protect the wearer from harm, and provide healing powers. There is no reason to think Otzi’s tattoos are anything different.

Anthropologists know that most ancient societies tattooed their hunters and warriors and that the