Tribal Tattoo Designs

For centuries, tattoos symbolized the membership in groups, families, but for a few years, tattoos have become more popular. It is possible that many people have them not only for decorative purpose, so we must understand why more than thirty million people worldwide have submitted this type of self mutilation. The choice of a tattoo today can tell something about the soul of its owner; some believe that a tattoo is the graffiti for the soul...

We'll find many surprising stories about the tattoos significance and role: many sailors believe that a tattoo is a talisman against the possibility of drowning at sea. The American Indian believed tattoos protected them in battle and some Burmese people think even today that a tattoo over the heart can stop bullets.

The tribal tattoos history is a real kaleidoscope; each place of Earth where the tattoos are popular has a particular and many times surprising history, significance, tradition, and realization technique. But almost everywhere, the tattoos appeared a few hundred years ago.

The place where the word tattoo originated, were the tribal tattoo reached perfection for thousand of years is Tahiti. Here the tattoos applications are most painful, but it reached a high level of artistic endeavor. The habitants of Samoa still believe that the elaborate geometrical design of the traditional body suit is the way to show respect for the God-qualities, for others it is the rite of passage to manhood.

The ancient Maori warriors started their tattoos tradition painting their faces with charcoal before each battle. Then they began to make the design permanent, calling it "moko". It was said that a man without "moko" was a "papatea" (plain face) and was considered an outcast.

Celtic tattoos are one of the most attractive design choices. The design comes from ancient art from Ireland, Scotland and England. They are as old as the Celtic history is.
Some fifth century painted pictures are representing warriors having tattoos all over their body; the tattoos are indicating the rank or caste. Later they were also symbols of religious devotion, simply for decoration or appeal for fertility.

Celtic tattoos are not duplicating real things, they are made of sinuous lines interweaving to complete a cycle. Almost all the Celtic tattoo designs are complicated, there is neither end nor beginning to it. There are many intricate patterns too...

Celtic animal designs are unending, but some have the cords terminate in feet, heads, or tails. Many designs are presenting zoomorphic elements or spirals.

Tattoos are also largely considered the mark of the Yazuka - the Japanese Mafia. A full body tattoo can take many years to be made and costs about $50000; the tattoo complicated colored design seems to have mythic power and only some specialized masters can accomplish such a miraculous work of art.

In China the tattoos are made with designs of 2500 years old, and are representing a variety of fantastic beasts: fish, deer, dragoon. There are made for personal protection and like emblems of noble birth. Siberian tribesmen still ink symbols down their spine to cure the back pain.

In Russia, the tattoos tradition isn't so old: they were the prisoners' secret language. In Stalin's gulags, tattoos were a form of protest; today they are only a fancy accessory.

Borneo is an exotic and hard to reach place where tattoos ward off harm and disease. In the "heart of darkness" tattoos as protection gains some credibility.

Hawaii is home for some famous tattooist, like Norman Keith. He is well known "for giving the modern tattoo revolution a major boost." He began moving American tattooing towards more Japanese style, unified, custom design. He also changed the status of tattooists, bringing them out of the underground to the growing light of the artistic respectability.

In St. Lawrence Island the Asiatic Eskimo tribesmen can live past 100 and have, certainly, the last most authentic tattoos on this planet.
We can find spectacular tribal tattoos even in Queen Charlotte Islands, where the images are family history told in pictures. Animals' designs on the hands are announcing the family name.

In Mackenzie Delta small crosses on the cheeks or shoulders are keeping a tally of the taken whales. Netsilik women were tattooed in order to gain admittance to the afterworld.

In the northern Kalinga (Philippines) the tribesmen are the most ornamented people of the region; their body art is resurrected one more time.

Now let see the tribal tattoo tradition in US. Since the 18th century, merchant sailors acquired tribal skin art returning from voyages in the South Seas. Because members of the British aristocracy traditionally took to the sea, and returned with tattoos (discreetly hidden) some western tattooist set up shop near the docks. The tattoos become exotica for the upper classes. Later, the port city tattooist began inking criminals, fiefs and prostitutes and tattoo became mark of lowlifes. This is the reason way for hundred of years the tattoo remained underground. The tattooist was considered as an outlaw and the tattoo was imprisoned by persecutions and prohibitions born of myriad fears.

Now the tattoos are made using modern and secure devices, capable of 125 pricks per second. The designs are presented worldwide using the most spectacular advertising tools.

Whether it is on an arm or ankle, a butterfly or tribal symbol, a piece of body art no longer holds the lure of rebellion it once did...

Famous Females And Their Tattoos

It is no longer taboo for women to have tattoos. Plenty of females now walk around with feminine little tattoos covering all sorts of places on their bodies, and no one looks at them strangely. But it wasn't always like this. At one time tattoos were quite taboo, especially for females. That doesn't mean there weren't some great females who lead the way for us.

Betty Broadbent was one of the first woman to be acknowledged for her tattoos. She was a part of the Ringling Bros, Barnum and Bailey Circus. She was one of the first woman to publicly show off her tattoos. In fact, she was one of the first to ever have a body suit completed with the new method of the electrical tattoo gun.

Cindy Ray made waves in the 60's with her tattoos. As a single mom working in a factory, she quickly accepted a job in which she got tattooed to promote books, products and more. Unfortunately, her business deal saw her partner taking the majority of the funds. In the end she returned to Australia and opened her own parlour.

Janis Joplin was another famous tattooed female. An icon of the 70's her death saw thousands of fans tattooing her famous heart onto themselves. She didn't have many tattoos compared to the previous woman but she still left her impact on the female tattoo movement.

Currently there are two woman that hold the title for most tattooed. One is a Canadian, another is an American girl. The Canadian title holder is a stripper and dancer named Krystyne Kolorful who has approximately 95% of her body covered in tattoos. Her face is the only place that remains untattooed.
The other title holder is Julia Gnuse, who got her tattoos as a way of protecting herself from the sun.
Julia's only uninked places are her feet and her ears. She began getting tattoos at a recommendation from her doctor to help protect her skin from her rare skin condition that leaves blisters and scars covering her body from sun exposure, or even too much contact with clothing. At 53 years old she is a beauty to behold and paves the way for any other females wanting to utilize tattoos to make them feel more beautiful and comfortable in their own skin.

No matter why you decide to get a tattoo, knowing that there are other beautiful women out there with ink can be comforting. Many woman have gone before us to remove the taboo associated with tattoos, and there will surely be many more to come.

The Coolest Sleeve Tattoo Designs For 2009

Tattoos have hit the prime time in a big way. They are all over the TV on shows like Inked and the more popular Miami Ink. You can find tons of videos, pictures and just about anything to do with tattoos on the internet. Tattoo Conventions are bursting at the seams as more and more people appreciate this gritty art form from the street. Thus had lead to an increasing number of people getting bigger and bigger tattoo designs and get more and more tattoo work done on their body. Thus today it is becoming pretty common for guys and even gals to have sleeve tattoos. Thus leads to the natural discussion of what Sleeve Tattoo Designs are best and where can you get your design done.

Of course any time a person talks, writes or reads about tattoos it has to be taken through their own personal filter. It is an art form after all and what one might think is the perfect tattoo might not be right for another person. This article examines some of the most common and cool sleeve tattoo designs. However, it is not exhaustive and it is meant merely to give ideas and suggestions. The best tattoos are the ones that a person creates with their own unique ideas and visions and then working closely with a tattoo artist makes these ideas come to life.

Japanese Sleeve Tattoo Designs

The Japanese have been involved with tattoo ink permanently on to a person's body for centuries now. They have a very old, rich and traditional culture and their tattoos are now less meaningful. They have produced some of the most incredible body suit tattoos which often include sleeve tattoos. Thus they have a long tradition of sleeve tattoo designs. Many of these designs have been accepted in the west and in fact some of the most popular tattoo artists and designs today are from traditional Japanese tattoos. Probably the most common of these is the koi fish tattoo. These make a great sleeve design with a large goldish/orange fish swimming upstream and splashing the water. These designs symbolism strength, power and individualism. The Hanya masks used in traditional Japanese Noh performances are also a very popular design. The mask is typically very evil and scary looking and is meant as a symbol of protection and to ward off bad spirits. For the women in the group and the men also another very popular Japanese design is the Cherry blossom tattoo which can also be done very easily as a sleeve design.





Flames And Skulls Designs

 


Flames and skull have always been a very popular theme within tattooing. For those who love hot rods and racing or living life to the fullest flame and skulls can work very well into a tattoo design. Flames are very colorful and of course look great when integrated into a sleeve tattoo design. Starting down at the wrist and then burning up the arm.


Dragon Tattoo Designs

 

Dragon tattoos are also very popular and look great as a full sleeve or even a half or quarter sleeve tattoo design. They can start down low on the forearm and weave their way up the arm and onto the top of the chest or shoulder area. The only decisions you have to make here is do you want a more Western and medieval times looking dragon or a Chinese dragon design but either way you cannot go wrong with a dragon design for a sleeve tattoo.

Japanese Body Suit Tattoos - What is it Like to Live in a Full Body Suit?

In the 1700 DC, the noble were allowed to wear fine clothing and adorn themselves, whereas the laborers were restricted from wearing those fine clothes and adorning themselves. So, the middle class choose tattoos as an alternate method of adorning themselves. This is when the idea of "body suits" came into existence. This concept of body suit was mainly derived form the samurai warriors campaign coats. These coats displayed the heroic designs such as pride and great bravery, at the back. Even a dragon or a guardian was displayed on the coats.

These Full Body tattoo were mainly designed in Japan, which covers nearly the full body. This Japanese Body tattoo Suit initially began from the back but now its extended to cover the shoulders, arms, thighs and gradually covers the entire body. With the growth of the popularity of the fictional heroes, body suit tattoos have also grown with it.

One kind of Japanese body tattoo was one; that covers the entire upper body leaving only a vertical strip exposed from chest the abdomen. This gives the illusion of a body suit or unbuttoned vest. By achieving the body suit, one gets a feeling of self satisfaction and gives them the opportunity to move on with their personal achievement.

The Japanese Body Suit tattooing, explains not only the art involved but also the political and the social forces that is involved in the Japanese culture. This art is the top pick of the college level arts that best holds the culture and history of Japanese art. There are many Tattoo events and tattoo shops in big cities which make body tattooing a popular among the people of Japan.

These Tattoo design can be completed in one sitting, similar to the traditional tattoo designs of America or tribal tattoo designs. Tattoo specialists, still do traditional irezumi, which means the insertion of ink that leaves a permanent tattoo or mark on the skin. Japanese body suit is very expensive and time consuming. Japanese government wanted to project the image of modern Japan to the west thus outlawed tattoos which impressed the foreigners to seek the skilled tattoo artists.

Body Suit Tattoos - An Inked History

Abstract tattoo designs began to flourish in the eighteenth century even though they range as far back in design as 10,000 BC in Japan. These nearly full coverage tattoos known as the "body suits" first originated around 1700 DC as a reaction to the strict laws concerning obvious displays of great wealth.

At that time only the most noble were allowed to display and wear fine clothing. The middle class which mostly consisted of general labourers, were forbidden to adorn themselves and wear fine clothes.

As the middle class were denied permission to show any adornment, they used an alternative method and chose tattoos. It is believed the "body suits" were derived from samurai warrior's sleeveless campaign coats.
These coats usually displayed heroic designs on the back such as symbols of great bravery and pride.
Sometimes even perhaps a guardian or a dragon. Tattoo designs began on the back and continued to extend to the arms, shoulders, thighs and eventually the entire body.

If one tattoos over the entire front of their upper bodies, with the exception of a vertical strip from the chest to the abdomen, this gives the effect or illusion of an unbuttoned vest or "body suit".

The growth of the "body suit" also coincided with the growing popularity of the fictional tattooed heroes. Near the end of the eighteenth and the start of the nineteenth centuries illustrated by the works of fiction was imported from China created both the inspiration and desire for tattoos.

It wasn't until the woodblock prints of the heroes that were illustrated by Utagawa Kuniyoshi were published in the early to mid nineteenth century that it gained huge popularity. These images were highly influential to the world of tattoo designs and still remain in use today.