I have a full dark sleeve. I've always loved tattoos, but I probably wouldn't have gone all-out if they weren't as widely accepted/normalized in society these days (or I had to worry about...
I've always loved tattoos, but I probably wouldn't have gone all-out if they weren't as widely accepted/normalized in society these days (or I had to worry about employment prospects). Granted, as a software developer in Seattle, I'm in a bit of a bubble. But almost everyone I know at least has some tattoos, if not mostly covered.
As for affording it, nothing special really. I just viewed it as a piece of art I wanted and budgeted for it. Mine took 6 sessions total and ended up costing around $5k.
Yes! I actually had the logogram tattoo already, and the artist who turned it into a sleeve added some wispiness around it to blend it in and added the heptapod.
Yes! I actually had the logogram tattoo already, and the artist who turned it into a sleeve added some wispiness around it to blend it in and added the heptapod.
I actually got to show Ted my sleeve at a book signing! He loved it, and said he’d seen a bunch of logogram tattoos but this was the first heptapod he’d seen.
I actually got to show Ted my sleeve at a book signing! He loved it, and said he’d seen a bunch of logogram tattoos but this was the first heptapod he’d seen.
Thanks! The circular symbol on my forearm is from the alien language in Arrival, and I already had it by itself before the sleeve. Since then, the more tattoos I’d gotten I started noticing how...
Thanks! The circular symbol on my forearm is from the alien language in Arrival, and I already had it by itself before the sleeve. Since then, the more tattoos I’d gotten I started noticing how much better work I’d get the more I leaned into the artist and let them do their thing. So I just found an artist I loved, and asked if he wanted to go to town on it and make it into a sleeve. He designed the whole thing.
Wow. Idk if it’s the lighting or filter or just the art style but I feel like I’ve never seen a tattoo like the rightmost sleeve in your photo. Beautiful art !
Wow. Idk if it’s the lighting or filter or just the art style but I feel like I’ve never seen a tattoo like the rightmost sleeve in your photo. Beautiful art !
Archie Bronson in Seattle. Though unfortunately, he was recently outed as being a creep, so I can't recommend him any longer. The shop he used to work at, though, Studio Arcanum, has a bunch of...
Archie Bronson in Seattle. Though unfortunately, he was recently outed as being a creep, so I can't recommend him any longer. The shop he used to work at, though, Studio Arcanum, has a bunch of awesome artists!
Man, I should've picked up on that since I did recognize the script from Arrival on part of your sleeve. (I also should watch it someday, I'm just one of those people for whom alien movies have...
Man, I should've picked up on that since I did recognize the script from Arrival on part of your sleeve. (I also should watch it someday, I'm just one of those people for whom alien movies have absolutely terrified me since I was a young child, so I generally avoid the subject matter entirely in films.) Either way, it looks fantastic.
Thanks! It's definitely one of my favorite movies. And for what it's worth, it's not a horror movie at all. I'm sure there will be a certain level of scariness if aliens at all are a trigger, but...
Thanks! It's definitely one of my favorite movies. And for what it's worth, it's not a horror movie at all. I'm sure there will be a certain level of scariness if aliens at all are a trigger, but it's definitely more of a drama about language and communication than horror.
I’ve noticed an uptick in larger and more noticeable tattoos in general since I was a kid ( I’m late gen x / early millennial). There seems to be less social stigma with them and increased overall...
I’ve noticed an uptick in larger and more noticeable tattoos in general since I was a kid ( I’m late gen x / early millennial). There seems to be less social stigma with them and increased overall acceptance of them an an outlet for personal expression. Searching google scholar also shows interesting results for various researched ideas on how tattoos affect people socially across a variety of cultures worldwide.
I think it's superb that so many more people can express themselves in such a permanent and private (and yet public) way. I would attribute it to appreciation for "otherness", and great sociap...
I think it's superb that so many more people can express themselves in such a permanent and private (and yet public) way. I would attribute it to appreciation for "otherness", and great sociap strides in non-discrimination being much more of a social guiding moral compass rather than the puritanical "fear the outsiders" mindset.
As a 0 tattoo person though I'll raise my hand for, there are still dozens of us without full sleeves :)
I'm one of those! Looking back at my life, ten years, twenty years - among those things that I might have considered as a tattoo, there's almost nothing I would like to have permanently on me now....
I'm one of those!
Looking back at my life, ten years, twenty years - among those things that I might have considered as a tattoo, there's almost nothing I would like to have permanently on me now. So no tattoo(s) for me.
10 years ago me isn't me today at all - but my only regret with my first tattoo is that I didn't get it done by a better artist. I like that my thoughts change so much over time and I like that...
10 years ago me isn't me today at all - but my only regret with my first tattoo is that I didn't get it done by a better artist.
I like that my thoughts change so much over time and I like that these stamp different points in my life. I think about who I was when I got inked, where I've been with it, what has come and gone in the years since.
It's not for everybody, but I enjoy how tattoos have been a part of my life and how I plan to incorporate them more in the future.
I think that even if you are a different person 10 years down the road, it’s not a bad thing to have a snapshot of who you were at the time. I have a little tattoo on my ankle I got on a trip with...
I think that even if you are a different person 10 years down the road, it’s not a bad thing to have a snapshot of who you were at the time. I have a little tattoo on my ankle I got on a trip with an ex girlfriend. I only got it because she was having a big piece done and I was bored. It’s just an off-the-wall zodiac symbol, and not something I would choose now. But I still think it’s pretty looking, and though that relationship went sour the time when I got it was a fond memory that I might not otherwise look back upon
Got a half sleeve done 20 years ago. Now I'm doing a full sleeve on my other arm. 3 sessions in and probably 3 more to go. I haven't had any ink done between them.
Got a half sleeve done 20 years ago.
Now I'm doing a full sleeve on my other arm. 3 sessions in and probably 3 more to go.
Same for me! I appreciate that tattoos are more widely accepted now and there are many beautiful tattoos out there. But when people ask me if I'll ever get one, I'll tell them, "No. I have...
Same for me! I appreciate that tattoos are more widely accepted now and there are many beautiful tattoos out there.
But when people ask me if I'll ever get one, I'll tell them, "No. I have commitment issues."
I've seen the same trend, but I think earlier than you describe. When I was young, tattoos in the US were associated with the navy, bikers, other less 'respectable' groups of people. I have...
I've seen the same trend, but I think earlier than you describe. When I was young, tattoos in the US were associated with the navy, bikers, other less 'respectable' groups of people. I have watched the trend change over the last 20 years at least, with interest and some confusion/ bemusement. I personally don't like the expense, the permenence, the pain, but I am happy that people feel free to express themselves.
I remember when I was a kid growing up, tattoos were always supposed to be rebellious - but then I saw tattoos in other cultures and contexts and it became art to me. So the second I turned 18, I...
I remember when I was a kid growing up, tattoos were always supposed to be rebellious - but then I saw tattoos in other cultures and contexts and it became art to me. So the second I turned 18, I got a tattoo, but kept it concealed so my job prospects wouldn't suffer. Now I just have multiple tattoos out in the open and literally nobody ever comments on them. No job has ever questioned it, and nobody cares.
The thing is they're just so normal to me I don't ever actually think to ask about them - on the very rare occasion anybody asks about mine, it's only about the Norse futhark I have on an old one...
The thing is they're just so normal to me I don't ever actually think to ask about them - on the very rare occasion anybody asks about mine, it's only about the Norse futhark I have on an old one which literally just spell out my name.
I think I should talk to more people about their tattoos, I think people would be excited to share about their art.
I remember when I was a kid it was even illegal to get a tattoo in my state (MA), and it was notable to see someone with one. I mean, if you wanted one, you'd just go to New Hampshire, so it...
I remember when I was a kid it was even illegal to get a tattoo in my state (MA), and it was notable to see someone with one. I mean, if you wanted one, you'd just go to New Hampshire, so it wasn't a huge blocker, but I think it was reflective of how tattoos were perceived by society.
Sounds so ridiculous I had to look it up. Tattoos were banned in MA until 2000? Is that really true? According to this old press release from the ACLU, there were 4 other states at the time which...
it was even illegal to get a tattoo in my state (MA)
Sounds so ridiculous I had to look it up. Tattoos were banned in MA until 2000? Is that really true?
According to this old press release from the ACLU, there were 4 other states at the time which prohibit tattooing unless done by a health care professional [1]. This is all shocking to me
I have a wild theory. I am sure some people reading this will not like it but I will share it anyway with the caveat that I am not saying it is true - it is one of those "maybe?" things - maybe...
I have a wild theory. I am sure some people reading this will not like it but I will share it anyway with the caveat that I am not saying it is true - it is one of those "maybe?" things - maybe there is something to it, maybe not, maybe it only applies in certain context/culture/environment, who knows. It certainly does not apply to everyone who has a tattoo and I am not trying to offend anyone - it is just a thought I find interesting. Also, I am from a post-communist east-european country, so maybe it is different in the west.
It started years ago when I was talking to my friend, a psychotherapist, and he mentioned that in his opinion, there is no better external marker of low self-esteem and uncertain identity than a tattoo. In his view, it is a compensative thing - when you do not have a clearly defined and secure identity, you try to replace it with something external that you identify with, that makes you "you". He also said it correlates with attention-seeking behaviors (I live in a country where tattoos are still a minority, although much more common than years ago - 30 years ago it was nearly 100% reliable marker that the tattooed person was in prison).
I did not think too much of it at first, but... and maybe it is just confirmation bias... the tattooed people I know seem to fit that pattern so well. I have to admit that I now kind of believe it enough to look for underlying patterns - has something changed that caused that parents paid less attention to children in the latest decades, or something? That could maybe also explain why depression and all kinds of mental problems are on the rise in young people?
Well... I know it is far-fetched. And I am pretty sure that other things (like tattoos simply getting trendy) play a role. I just wanted to mention it in case someone has something interesting to say to it.
I don't think its far-fetched at all. A complementary behavior to tattoos in my opinion is the entire fitness-hysteria in the last 15 years or so - particularly for men. We know from research that...
Exemplary
low self-esteem and uncertain identity
attention-seeking behaviors
I don't think its far-fetched at all. A complementary behavior to tattoos in my opinion is the entire fitness-hysteria in the last 15 years or so - particularly for men.
We know from research that the reason why prison inmates oftentimes commit extremely strongly to either tattoos (and even get the low-quality "prison" tattoos) or workout to increase muscularity is that it is the last resort of autonomy they have. They can still have an influence on their physical appearance. Tattoos and fitness are the areas where a last shred of choice is available.
I don't think its to crazy to extent that logic to many people in contemporary western (and maybe even more so post-communist) societies more broadly. We have been slipping from one crisis to another since 2001, and for many they have gotten increasingly personal - the climax of course for most during Covid.
Trying to create some stability through the permanence of tattoos doesn't seem so unlikely to me. "Finally, something that lasts and that is not beholden to external forces which are beyond my control!"
I would also say that the western ideal of individualization and freedom of choice have really been essentialized in the last 15 years or so too. Social media suggests to us that every one is unique and has to aspire to being ever more unique (although ironically, we all become more similar), and so a tattoo can be a marker of your uniqueness. After all, whose entire arm is also covered in a large white narwhal shooting lasers our of his eyes?
Your parallel between prison populations and the wider population is a little unsettling in it's plausibility. That sounds like the most compelling explanation of both tattoos and contemporary...
Your parallel between prison populations and the wider population is a little unsettling in it's plausibility.
That sounds like the most compelling explanation of both tattoos and contemporary orthorexia/exercise addiction that I have heard in a long time.
I'm a psychotherapist and believing that tattoos are a visible expression of self-harm is an old school of thought. More recently therapists have seen that tattoos often play an important role in...
I'm a psychotherapist and believing that tattoos are a visible expression of self-harm is an old school of thought. More recently therapists have seen that tattoos often play an important role in the healing process for individuals who have experienced mental health struggles. Body art allows people to reclaim control over their bodies and mark their progress toward healing, especially in a world in which people often feel powerless. It may make people feel like they have the power of expression of mental health rather than mental illness which actually boosts self-esteem and promotes empowerment.
I recently completed a sleeve on my arm that covers self harm scars. It wasn’t to “hide” them but to reclaim the space with something beautiful, and to have a physical reset. I think that tattoos...
I recently completed a sleeve on my arm that covers self harm scars. It wasn’t to “hide” them but to reclaim the space with something beautiful, and to have a physical reset. I think that tattoos can definitely be part of the healing
To be clear, my friend never said anything about self-harm and I never believed that either - that would be very different theory than believing a tattoo might be a signal the person does not have...
believing that tattoos are a visible expression of self-harm is an old school of thought
To be clear, my friend never said anything about self-harm and I never believed that either - that would be very different theory than believing a tattoo might be a signal the person does not have an optimal relationship with themselves - the supposed goal of a tattoo in this, ehm, "theory" is to compensate, not to harm.
Also, I am no psychotherapist, but I did study psychology (although only to a bachelor's degree), and I have to admit that I have a hard time believing something so superficial can really boost self-esteem and promote empowerment in any meaningful way. I would have guessed, that it is a band-aid and the reason why so many people continue getting more tattoos is that the first one did not fix the underlying issue - and the next one will not fix that either. However, I am no expert and I have no hard data, so the chances of my opinion being wrong are clearly pretty high.
I'm sure that can be true but not that it always is true. My tattoos are for me and me alone, I don't care if anybody sees them or likes them. I use them as a way to signify a point in my life and...
I'm sure that can be true but not that it always is true. My tattoos are for me and me alone, I don't care if anybody sees them or likes them. I use them as a way to signify a point in my life and index my memories. I also just like the designs I put there, it's art after all.
I don't think you're wrong necessarily, but I do know plenty of people who've got tattoos that don't exhibit the type of behavior you describe. I'd like to think I'm that camp as well, but it's not for me to decide how other people view me.
Maybe you are right. I used to be a pretty insecure guy and did my first tattoo when I was 22 I think? I'm reaching 37 now and while I'm way better about my insecurities, I think some traits that...
Maybe you are right.
I used to be a pretty insecure guy and did my first tattoo when I was 22 I think?
I'm reaching 37 now and while I'm way better about my insecurities, I think some traits that came from that place just stays with you. We are what we are and I'm pretty content with myself.
I just think tattoos are cool, but not on the face.
Media has increasingly normalized tattoos over the years. The Girl with the Dragon Tatoo became hugely influential, spawning movies, miniseries, and countless books that aped it. There's even a...
But even without the media, it was gaining popularity, particularly among women. Almost all of the women I have known have either gotten tattoos or have expressed a desire to have one. I think my sister and mother got some circa 2000. I remember Chinese characters and "tramp stamps" becoming very popular as well, though I can't be certain what time period those happened in.
Girl with the Dragon Tattoo was in the 2000s, but I think tattoos starting to become more widely culturally accepted (in North America, at least) actually goes back a little further than that. I...
Girl with the Dragon Tattoo was in the 2000s, but I think tattoos starting to become more widely culturally accepted (in North America, at least) actually goes back a little further than that. I remember celebrities' latest tattoos getting heavily focused on in the tabloid media in the '90s, and there was also a massive boom in tattoo parlors/studios then too. And it's no coincidence that 1997 is when NYC finally revoked their tattooing ban which had been in place for almost 40 years prior.
There is no denying that tattoos have just kept gaining in popularity and acceptance since then though, with reality TV shows like Miami Ink, the Ed Hardy clothing boom, and fully tatted up celebs becoming more common, all starting in the 2000s.
I was thinking it was probably starting around the 90s, too. I remember it being a thing in the early 2000s, but my memory before that isn't too great.
I was thinking it was probably starting around the 90s, too. I remember it being a thing in the early 2000s, but my memory before that isn't too great.
I don’t have a full sleeve (yet) but I do have a large tattoo covering my forearm with plans to extend. I also have some on my back and legs. I think the last few years were weird for tattoos...
I don’t have a full sleeve (yet) but I do have a large tattoo covering my forearm with plans to extend. I also have some on my back and legs.
I think the last few years were weird for tattoos because the people that still had full time employment had money that they could not use for their usual fun. Bars were closed, most clubs went on a hiatus of some sort, and there was nothing to burn the "fun fund" on.
What was open? The shop that already had people wearing masks, already sterilized equipment, and already had very few people around each other.
For a lot of people, a thousand dollars is not particularly hard to save, especially when you can't do your normal spending and a lot of student loan payments were on hold.
All in all I don't think that they are just more accepted, I think it is just a case where they finally went from "maybe someday" to "today" for a lot of people because of the weird couple of years.
This is just my guess/opinion and I have no hard data to back it up. But like most fashion trends, I think it's cyclical. People like to be trendy/unique, and right now we're deep in the cycle...
This is just my guess/opinion and I have no hard data to back it up. But like most fashion trends, I think it's cyclical. People like to be trendy/unique, and right now we're deep in the cycle where tattoos are trendy. But I think eventually we'll reach a point where it will be more trendy/unique to not have them, and they'll fall out of favor again. Tattoos were popular in the 40's, and then fell off in the 50's and 60's Popular in the 70's, and then fell off again in the 80's and 90's. Now they're back, and they'll decline again just like high waisted jeans and graphic tees.
About 20 years ago it was simple filled in stars on the back of women's ankles or smaller ones in a group in the legs, and sometimes a faux stockings seam running up the back of the leg from ankle...
About 20 years ago it was simple filled in stars on the back of women's ankles or smaller ones in a group in the legs, and sometimes a faux stockings seam running up the back of the leg from ankle up. I saw so many tattoos on women of that type and still see it occasionally.
I’ve noticed the same trend in Germany and attributed it to a generational change. In the early 2000s I was working in a theater and remember a colleague who had a small wristband tattoo. The...
I’ve noticed the same trend in Germany and attributed it to a generational change. In the early 2000s I was working in a theater and remember a colleague who had a small wristband tattoo. The supervisor asked her to cover it up with a watch or something so that the customers wouldn’t see it.
Today, I see neck tattoos in much more formal retail situations. Not sure what exactly shifted, bur yes, tattoos seem to be much more accepted nowadays.
I do find it odd when people commit to something like a full back or sleeve right away. I think a lot of commenters are on to something with cycles in fashion as well as a general drop in...
I do find it odd when people commit to something like a full back or sleeve right away. I think a lot of commenters are on to something with cycles in fashion as well as a general drop in stability and security leading to people making permanent decisions in an unstable world.
I thought about my first tattoo for about ten years. Met with an accomplished, well-vetted artist and had a medium/large piece done. The next two were more impulsive.. I knew what I wanted and artists were available. I like getting them for a lot of reasons.
The pain releases a host of hormones which is therapeutic. Then there is the mental aspect... each tattoo comes with an internal dialog that lasts a couple days as the piece integrates into my self-image. First comes critique... it's on me how do I feel about it. Even the most perfect tattoo is going to have minor variations, it was literally drawn on my a human hand. How do you see the piece as a whole and how do perceived imperfections lend to the whole? It's easy to find blemishes in someone else's work that is permanently dyed into your skin. What about our own imperfections, how do we recognize them and improve? How do we make peace with our own shortcomings? I like all my tattoos, no ragrets, but this is the process that brings me into a parlor. They generally mark transitions in my life, moments where I had to take deep introspection.
I'm in my late 20s in a large US city and at this point, a non-tattooed person is rarer than someone with them. That's probably false if you were to do a survey but it certainly feels that way.
I'm in my late 20s in a large US city and at this point, a non-tattooed person is rarer than someone with them. That's probably false if you were to do a survey but it certainly feels that way.
I work in a geographically somewhat conservative/religious area so if I ever change jobs I will worry about employment- but I've started to get interested in getting my first tattoo, and I have a...
I work in a geographically somewhat conservative/religious area so if I ever change jobs I will worry about employment- but I've started to get interested in getting my first tattoo, and I have a feeling if I get one, it will be one of many (including possibly sleeves)
No plans to fix it. I'm just at a different point in my life, marriage, family, looking at moving to a country where tattoos are still quite taboo. I don't hate the tattoos (well most of them) and...
No plans to fix it. I'm just at a different point in my life, marriage, family, looking at moving to a country where tattoos are still quite taboo.
I don't hate the tattoos (well most of them) and I feel like they are more like stamps of various times in my life (the sleeve was built over time), but I can't deny that my professional and personal life would be a bit easier without them.
I don't have a full sleeve because I'm more of a several tattoos together sleeve guy. I ramped up pretty fast tho. From zero tattoos on my arm to 5, with 4 more on the way.
I don't have a full sleeve because I'm more of a several tattoos together sleeve guy.
I ramped up pretty fast tho. From zero tattoos on my arm to 5, with 4 more on the way.
I got it all this year. My first was on the left leg when I was 22 I think. Second on the right leg when I was 26? Can't remember exactly. This year I got 5 on my right arm and one on my left
I got it all this year.
My first was on the left leg when I was 22 I think. Second on the right leg when I was 26? Can't remember exactly.
This year I got 5 on my right arm and one on my left
I have a full dark sleeve.
I've always loved tattoos, but I probably wouldn't have gone all-out if they weren't as widely accepted/normalized in society these days (or I had to worry about employment prospects). Granted, as a software developer in Seattle, I'm in a bit of a bubble. But almost everyone I know at least has some tattoos, if not mostly covered.
As for affording it, nothing special really. I just viewed it as a piece of art I wanted and budgeted for it. Mine took 6 sessions total and ended up costing around $5k.
Is that an arrival reference I see in there?
Yes! I actually had the logogram tattoo already, and the artist who turned it into a sleeve added some wispiness around it to blend it in and added the heptapod.
I love Arrival! I've read Ted Chiang's works and they're amazing.
I actually got to show Ted my sleeve at a book signing! He loved it, and said he’d seen a bunch of logogram tattoos but this was the first heptapod he’d seen.
Also the black hole from Interstellar, I'd wager.
Looks like it!
Super clean work on that sleeve.
Thanks! The circular symbol on my forearm is from the alien language in Arrival, and I already had it by itself before the sleeve. Since then, the more tattoos I’d gotten I started noticing how much better work I’d get the more I leaned into the artist and let them do their thing. So I just found an artist I loved, and asked if he wanted to go to town on it and make it into a sleeve. He designed the whole thing.
Yeah, that sleeve is totally amazing.
Wow. Idk if it’s the lighting or filter or just the art style but I feel like I’ve never seen a tattoo like the rightmost sleeve in your photo. Beautiful art !
That looks nice - who did it?
Archie Bronson in Seattle. Though unfortunately, he was recently outed as being a creep, so I can't recommend him any longer. The shop he used to work at, though, Studio Arcanum, has a bunch of awesome artists!
Is that hand The Presence from the Year Zero album cover/AR game?
Oh cool, very similar! Mine is actually a heptapod from Arrival/Story of Your Life.
Man, I should've picked up on that since I did recognize the script from Arrival on part of your sleeve. (I also should watch it someday, I'm just one of those people for whom alien movies have absolutely terrified me since I was a young child, so I generally avoid the subject matter entirely in films.) Either way, it looks fantastic.
Thanks! It's definitely one of my favorite movies. And for what it's worth, it's not a horror movie at all. I'm sure there will be a certain level of scariness if aliens at all are a trigger, but it's definitely more of a drama about language and communication than horror.
I’ve noticed an uptick in larger and more noticeable tattoos in general since I was a kid ( I’m late gen x / early millennial). There seems to be less social stigma with them and increased overall acceptance of them an an outlet for personal expression. Searching google scholar also shows interesting results for various researched ideas on how tattoos affect people socially across a variety of cultures worldwide.
I forgot to add: I’m looking to get a sleeve done sometime in the next few years. I’ve only got a small tattoo on my back at the moment.
I think it's superb that so many more people can express themselves in such a permanent and private (and yet public) way. I would attribute it to appreciation for "otherness", and great sociap strides in non-discrimination being much more of a social guiding moral compass rather than the puritanical "fear the outsiders" mindset.
As a 0 tattoo person though I'll raise my hand for, there are still dozens of us without full sleeves :)
I'm one of those!
Looking back at my life, ten years, twenty years - among those things that I might have considered as a tattoo, there's almost nothing I would like to have permanently on me now. So no tattoo(s) for me.
10 years ago me isn't me today at all - but my only regret with my first tattoo is that I didn't get it done by a better artist.
I like that my thoughts change so much over time and I like that these stamp different points in my life. I think about who I was when I got inked, where I've been with it, what has come and gone in the years since.
It's not for everybody, but I enjoy how tattoos have been a part of my life and how I plan to incorporate them more in the future.
I think that even if you are a different person 10 years down the road, it’s not a bad thing to have a snapshot of who you were at the time. I have a little tattoo on my ankle I got on a trip with an ex girlfriend. I only got it because she was having a big piece done and I was bored. It’s just an off-the-wall zodiac symbol, and not something I would choose now. But I still think it’s pretty looking, and though that relationship went sour the time when I got it was a fond memory that I might not otherwise look back upon
Got a half sleeve done 20 years ago.
Now I'm doing a full sleeve on my other arm. 3 sessions in and probably 3 more to go.
I haven't had any ink done between them.
Same for me! I appreciate that tattoos are more widely accepted now and there are many beautiful tattoos out there.
But when people ask me if I'll ever get one, I'll tell them, "No. I have commitment issues."
I've seen the same trend, but I think earlier than you describe. When I was young, tattoos in the US were associated with the navy, bikers, other less 'respectable' groups of people. I have watched the trend change over the last 20 years at least, with interest and some confusion/ bemusement. I personally don't like the expense, the permenence, the pain, but I am happy that people feel free to express themselves.
I remember when I was a kid growing up, tattoos were always supposed to be rebellious - but then I saw tattoos in other cultures and contexts and it became art to me. So the second I turned 18, I got a tattoo, but kept it concealed so my job prospects wouldn't suffer. Now I just have multiple tattoos out in the open and literally nobody ever comments on them. No job has ever questioned it, and nobody cares.
I like this trend.
The thing is they're just so normal to me I don't ever actually think to ask about them - on the very rare occasion anybody asks about mine, it's only about the Norse futhark I have on an old one which literally just spell out my name.
I think I should talk to more people about their tattoos, I think people would be excited to share about their art.
I remember when I was a kid it was even illegal to get a tattoo in my state (MA), and it was notable to see someone with one. I mean, if you wanted one, you'd just go to New Hampshire, so it wasn't a huge blocker, but I think it was reflective of how tattoos were perceived by society.
Sounds so ridiculous I had to look it up. Tattoos were banned in MA until 2000? Is that really true?
According to this old press release from the ACLU, there were 4 other states at the time which prohibit tattooing unless done by a health care professional [1]. This is all shocking to me
[1] https://www.aclu.org/press-releases/massachusetts-tattooing-ban-declared-unconstitutional
Oklahoman here, we didn't get legalized tattoos until 2006. Yyyaaaaay bible belt
Go Navy!
I have a wild theory. I am sure some people reading this will not like it but I will share it anyway with the caveat that I am not saying it is true - it is one of those "maybe?" things - maybe there is something to it, maybe not, maybe it only applies in certain context/culture/environment, who knows. It certainly does not apply to everyone who has a tattoo and I am not trying to offend anyone - it is just a thought I find interesting. Also, I am from a post-communist east-european country, so maybe it is different in the west.
It started years ago when I was talking to my friend, a psychotherapist, and he mentioned that in his opinion, there is no better external marker of low self-esteem and uncertain identity than a tattoo. In his view, it is a compensative thing - when you do not have a clearly defined and secure identity, you try to replace it with something external that you identify with, that makes you "you". He also said it correlates with attention-seeking behaviors (I live in a country where tattoos are still a minority, although much more common than years ago - 30 years ago it was nearly 100% reliable marker that the tattooed person was in prison).
I did not think too much of it at first, but... and maybe it is just confirmation bias... the tattooed people I know seem to fit that pattern so well. I have to admit that I now kind of believe it enough to look for underlying patterns - has something changed that caused that parents paid less attention to children in the latest decades, or something? That could maybe also explain why depression and all kinds of mental problems are on the rise in young people?
Well... I know it is far-fetched. And I am pretty sure that other things (like tattoos simply getting trendy) play a role. I just wanted to mention it in case someone has something interesting to say to it.
I don't think its far-fetched at all. A complementary behavior to tattoos in my opinion is the entire fitness-hysteria in the last 15 years or so - particularly for men.
We know from research that the reason why prison inmates oftentimes commit extremely strongly to either tattoos (and even get the low-quality "prison" tattoos) or workout to increase muscularity is that it is the last resort of autonomy they have. They can still have an influence on their physical appearance. Tattoos and fitness are the areas where a last shred of choice is available.
I don't think its to crazy to extent that logic to many people in contemporary western (and maybe even more so post-communist) societies more broadly. We have been slipping from one crisis to another since 2001, and for many they have gotten increasingly personal - the climax of course for most during Covid.
Trying to create some stability through the permanence of tattoos doesn't seem so unlikely to me. "Finally, something that lasts and that is not beholden to external forces which are beyond my control!"
I would also say that the western ideal of individualization and freedom of choice have really been essentialized in the last 15 years or so too. Social media suggests to us that every one is unique and has to aspire to being ever more unique (although ironically, we all become more similar), and so a tattoo can be a marker of your uniqueness. After all, whose entire arm is also covered in a large white narwhal shooting lasers our of his eyes?
Your parallel between prison populations and the wider population is a little unsettling in it's plausibility.
That sounds like the most compelling explanation of both tattoos and contemporary orthorexia/exercise addiction that I have heard in a long time.
I'm a psychotherapist and believing that tattoos are a visible expression of self-harm is an old school of thought. More recently therapists have seen that tattoos often play an important role in the healing process for individuals who have experienced mental health struggles. Body art allows people to reclaim control over their bodies and mark their progress toward healing, especially in a world in which people often feel powerless. It may make people feel like they have the power of expression of mental health rather than mental illness which actually boosts self-esteem and promotes empowerment.
I recently completed a sleeve on my arm that covers self harm scars. It wasn’t to “hide” them but to reclaim the space with something beautiful, and to have a physical reset. I think that tattoos can definitely be part of the healing
To be clear, my friend never said anything about self-harm and I never believed that either - that would be very different theory than believing a tattoo might be a signal the person does not have an optimal relationship with themselves - the supposed goal of a tattoo in this, ehm, "theory" is to compensate, not to harm.
Also, I am no psychotherapist, but I did study psychology (although only to a bachelor's degree), and I have to admit that I have a hard time believing something so superficial can really boost self-esteem and promote empowerment in any meaningful way. I would have guessed, that it is a band-aid and the reason why so many people continue getting more tattoos is that the first one did not fix the underlying issue - and the next one will not fix that either. However, I am no expert and I have no hard data, so the chances of my opinion being wrong are clearly pretty high.
I'm sure that can be true but not that it always is true. My tattoos are for me and me alone, I don't care if anybody sees them or likes them. I use them as a way to signify a point in my life and index my memories. I also just like the designs I put there, it's art after all.
I don't think you're wrong necessarily, but I do know plenty of people who've got tattoos that don't exhibit the type of behavior you describe. I'd like to think I'm that camp as well, but it's not for me to decide how other people view me.
Maybe you are right.
I used to be a pretty insecure guy and did my first tattoo when I was 22 I think?
I'm reaching 37 now and while I'm way better about my insecurities, I think some traits that came from that place just stays with you. We are what we are and I'm pretty content with myself.
I just think tattoos are cool, but not on the face.
Not all people with tattoos are trashy, but all trashy people have tattoos.
Media has increasingly normalized tattoos over the years. The Girl with the Dragon Tatoo became hugely influential, spawning movies, miniseries, and countless books that aped it. There's even a character in a big Disney movie with sprawling tattoos all over his body.
But even without the media, it was gaining popularity, particularly among women. Almost all of the women I have known have either gotten tattoos or have expressed a desire to have one. I think my sister and mother got some circa 2000. I remember Chinese characters and "tramp stamps" becoming very popular as well, though I can't be certain what time period those happened in.
Girl with the Dragon Tattoo was in the 2000s, but I think tattoos starting to become more widely culturally accepted (in North America, at least) actually goes back a little further than that. I remember celebrities' latest tattoos getting heavily focused on in the tabloid media in the '90s, and there was also a massive boom in tattoo parlors/studios then too. And it's no coincidence that 1997 is when NYC finally revoked their tattooing ban which had been in place for almost 40 years prior.
There is no denying that tattoos have just kept gaining in popularity and acceptance since then though, with reality TV shows like Miami Ink, the Ed Hardy clothing boom, and fully tatted up celebs becoming more common, all starting in the 2000s.
p.s. Google Ngram viewer shows the '90s as the start of the trend too: https://books.google.com/ngrams/graph?content=tattoo&year_start=1900&year_end=2019&corpus=en-2019&smoothing=0
I was thinking it was probably starting around the 90s, too. I remember it being a thing in the early 2000s, but my memory before that isn't too great.
I don’t have a full sleeve (yet) but I do have a large tattoo covering my forearm with plans to extend. I also have some on my back and legs.
I think the last few years were weird for tattoos because the people that still had full time employment had money that they could not use for their usual fun. Bars were closed, most clubs went on a hiatus of some sort, and there was nothing to burn the "fun fund" on.
What was open? The shop that already had people wearing masks, already sterilized equipment, and already had very few people around each other.
For a lot of people, a thousand dollars is not particularly hard to save, especially when you can't do your normal spending and a lot of student loan payments were on hold.
All in all I don't think that they are just more accepted, I think it is just a case where they finally went from "maybe someday" to "today" for a lot of people because of the weird couple of years.
This is just my guess/opinion and I have no hard data to back it up. But like most fashion trends, I think it's cyclical. People like to be trendy/unique, and right now we're deep in the cycle where tattoos are trendy. But I think eventually we'll reach a point where it will be more trendy/unique to not have them, and they'll fall out of favor again. Tattoos were popular in the 40's, and then fell off in the 50's and 60's Popular in the 70's, and then fell off again in the 80's and 90's. Now they're back, and they'll decline again just like high waisted jeans and graphic tees.
I'm 35 and have been part of the alternative scene for most of my life. Tattoo's have become massively widespread and accepted in the past few years.
About 20 years ago it was simple filled in stars on the back of women's ankles or smaller ones in a group in the legs, and sometimes a faux stockings seam running up the back of the leg from ankle up. I saw so many tattoos on women of that type and still see it occasionally.
Is it because of My Octopus Teacher and the widespread awareness they are incredibly intelligent and self aware?
I’ve noticed the same trend in Germany and attributed it to a generational change. In the early 2000s I was working in a theater and remember a colleague who had a small wristband tattoo. The supervisor asked her to cover it up with a watch or something so that the customers wouldn’t see it.
Today, I see neck tattoos in much more formal retail situations. Not sure what exactly shifted, bur yes, tattoos seem to be much more accepted nowadays.
On a related note, what's with all the German ladies with hair that is dyed some shade of red?
Run Lola Run? Since we’re talking about various cultural influences :)
Same with Dame Edna for older ladies in Australia and the UK?. ;)
Ha! That is well outside of my cultural knowledge. Terrific read though, i can see what you mean.
Japan has specific history re the Yakuza and tattoos is my nonexpert understanding.
I do find it odd when people commit to something like a full back or sleeve right away. I think a lot of commenters are on to something with cycles in fashion as well as a general drop in stability and security leading to people making permanent decisions in an unstable world.
I thought about my first tattoo for about ten years. Met with an accomplished, well-vetted artist and had a medium/large piece done. The next two were more impulsive.. I knew what I wanted and artists were available. I like getting them for a lot of reasons.
The pain releases a host of hormones which is therapeutic. Then there is the mental aspect... each tattoo comes with an internal dialog that lasts a couple days as the piece integrates into my self-image. First comes critique... it's on me how do I feel about it. Even the most perfect tattoo is going to have minor variations, it was literally drawn on my a human hand. How do you see the piece as a whole and how do perceived imperfections lend to the whole? It's easy to find blemishes in someone else's work that is permanently dyed into your skin. What about our own imperfections, how do we recognize them and improve? How do we make peace with our own shortcomings? I like all my tattoos, no ragrets, but this is the process that brings me into a parlor. They generally mark transitions in my life, moments where I had to take deep introspection.
I'm in my late 20s in a large US city and at this point, a non-tattooed person is rarer than someone with them. That's probably false if you were to do a survey but it certainly feels that way.
I have no tattoos and I intend to keep it that way. With each year that passes, I become cooler and cooler!
We're the counter culture freaks now for NOT having them.
I work in a geographically somewhat conservative/religious area so if I ever change jobs I will worry about employment- but I've started to get interested in getting my first tattoo, and I have a feeling if I get one, it will be one of many (including possibly sleeves)
Had my sleeve for well over 10 years...I forget it's there, but I do regret it when I think about it now.
So why do you regret it? Any plans to fix it some way?
No plans to fix it. I'm just at a different point in my life, marriage, family, looking at moving to a country where tattoos are still quite taboo.
I don't hate the tattoos (well most of them) and I feel like they are more like stamps of various times in my life (the sleeve was built over time), but I can't deny that my professional and personal life would be a bit easier without them.
I don't have a full sleeve because I'm more of a several tattoos together sleeve guy.
I ramped up pretty fast tho. From zero tattoos on my arm to 5, with 4 more on the way.
Over what span of time was this? I got my first one about 6 months ago and itching for more now.
I got it all this year.
My first was on the left leg when I was 22 I think. Second on the right leg when I was 26? Can't remember exactly.
This year I got 5 on my right arm and one on my left
Looks awesome! My wife and I are real into fine, dark line work with no colors (for now). I like the look of that one for sure.
I think having no tattoos at this point makes me unique.
no tattoo club checking in. : )
Yeah. I just don't get it.