Approaching the fascinating world of tattoo art from the perspective of design, The Tattoo Sourcebook offers basic instruction on designing a tattoo and hundreds of images to help choose one.

This one-of-a-kind illustrated reference to the origins and meanings of nearly 1,000 tattoo symbols from around the world is at once an unmatched guide for choosing a personal image and a fascinating look at the tattoo as a work of art.

Meet twenty-six leading contemporary tattoo artists. Interviews and over 425 exciting color photos of their artwork, from tattoos to paintings, make this an invaluable tattoo resource. This is a viable contribution to tattoo history worldwide, containing insightful interviews with living tattoo legends, and some of the best established and up-and-coming tatto artists.

The artistic versatility of tattoo artists has frequently been overshadowed by the negativity that surrounds tattooing in general. Many tattoos are made by would-be artists who copy overused designs. A perfectly tattooed body requires the skills of a professional and talented artist, who creates a unique and personal design. These designs are often inspired by one or more of the various tattoo styles of Japanese, Maori or other tribal origin. The Sketchbook offers the reader a selection of 80 of these unique designs by well-known and less famous, but very promising, tattoo artists from around the world. Each artist was requested to create a sketch unrestrained by commercial demands and which reflects their own personal motivations. The book is divided into two sections: the first comprises an explanation of how this collection was brought together, along with a brief illustrated overview of the history and various styles of tattooing. The second section is devoted to the artists, each sketch being accompanied by a biography and favourite quote. The concept of this book was developed by Marco Bratt, a tattoo artist from The Netherlands, and his partner, Germanborn lifestyle photographer Nancy Heimburger, who also wrote the introductory chapter.

The Big Book of Tattoo

Original tattoo designs from Polynesian cultures at Easter Island, Hawaii, the Marquesas, New Zealand, Samoa, Tahiti and Tonga are presented in over 250 historic drawings and color illustrations. Accounts of native ceremonies by the earliest mariners who first reported this practice to the West are provided. The design elements are interpreted in relation to their historic context, and may serve as dramatic inspiration for today's popular tattoo styles.

The evolution of tattoo art in America is spread before you in 265 impressive original tattoo flash sheets and insightful text written by a tattoo artist who has designed on his own since 1960. Military, religious, figural, animal, and nature themes are d

This unique book by tattoo artist Takahiro Kitamura (Horitaka, a pupil of Horiyoshi III) discusses the art of the Japanese tattoo in the context of Ukiyo-e, concentrating on the parallel histories of the woodblock print and the tattoo. Through high quality illustrations it shows that the Japanese tattoo is highly reliant on and linked to the woodblock print and that it deserves a position among the other art forms. A range of typical ukiyo-e motifs in the Japanese tattoo are discussed and illustrated by the original Japanese prints, and sketches, drawings and tattoos by tattoo master Horiyoshi III. The book ends with a special essay by Don Ed Hardy.

Tattoos have become increasingly popular in recent years, especially among young people. While tattooing is used as a symbol of personal identity and social communication, few have examined it through a sociological lens. In Tattooed: The Sociogenesis of a Body Art, tattoo enthusiasts share their stories about their bodies and tattooing experiences. Michael Atkinson shows how enthusiasts negotiate and celebrate their 'difference' as it relates to the social stigma attached to body art — how the act of tattooing is as much a response to the stigma as it is personal expression, and how a generation has appropriated tattooing as its own symbol of inclusiveness. Atkinson further demonstrates how the displaying of tattooed bodies to others – techniques of disclosure, justification, and representation – has become a part of the shared experience. Cultural sensibilities about tattooing are contextualized against broader trends in body habits, and Atkinson brings to fore research on a wide variety of body projects such as cosmetic surgery, dieting, piercing, branding, and cutting in order to conceptually analyze the enduring social significance of body art. He further employs historical and contemporary theories of the body while also illustrating the general benefit of examining body modification practices through integrated sociological theories.

Tattoos have been steadily gaining popularity since World War II, and in the 1990s even the practice of body piercing became a mainstream fad. The selections in this volume explore the history of tattoos and body piercing, the reasons people practice body modification, and the controversial nature of these trends.