Body Art Community
I belong with the community of body art and self-expression. Piercings, tattoos, etc. Since I was little, I loved to draw on my hands and arms, pretending they were tattoos (then having to scrub it off when I got home and my parents saw). This community values self-expression and non-judgement. Everyone's body is their own to with as they please. If they want to keep it untouched, get some earrings, get a few tattoos, or go the whole nine yards, that is their decision. Unless it was a drunk decision, tattoos usually have a strong personal meaning behind them for the individual, so they are a great way to get to know the person and their inspirations or their past.
I don't have any tattoos, but when I lived in San Francisco during the mid to late 1970's I would visit Lyle Tuttle's tattoo shop frequently. I was just mesmerized by the artwork. This was during a time when very few people it seemed were getting tattoos. I met Lyle Tuttle in Florida about 10 years ago. Lovely man.
ReplyDeleteI started hanging out in tattoo shops when I was a kid when my parents got tattoos. I loved looking through the artist's books of work and watching them create a permanent work of art in a matter of hours. When I got my first tattoo I brought a friend who has many tattoos from a well known artist down south and she was able to talk to my artist the entire time about the similarities between their traditional styles.
DeleteThe body art and self-expression communities seem really cool! I think it's great that they put such a high value on being non-judgmental. That can be hard to find in many communities. I'm curious... do you have any tattoos? I have one tattoo, which I got last December. It was a big deal to me when I got it, because I was pretty nervous that people would judge me. But I really wanted it. I pretty much designed my tattoo with the help of a skilled tattoo artist. Like you said, my tattoo has a lot of meaning for me. Other people wouldn't know the meaning of it just from looking at, though, because a lot of it's symbolism comes from my personal associations with the images. I don't think I want anymore tattoos, but I am happy to have the one I do.
ReplyDeleteThanks for sharing about this community!
I meant to compliment you on your tattoo in class last week, but it ended up slipping my mind:( And yes I have two. My first is a lotus flower on my upper back. My second is an arrow with "Aim high" written above it for my grandpa who just passed away in May (he was an Air Force veteran and that is the motto). Most of the time when I compliment someone's tattoo or ask them about it there is a deeper meaning behind it.
DeleteI love tattoos and piercings, so I can definitely relate to this community a lot! I also I love getting tattooed! I know thats pretty weird to a lot of people, but I actually like the feeling of being tattooed. I also like the healing process, because I know the tattoo is there. I sometimes forget about my tattoos and piercing because they've healed. But during the healing process, I always remember they are there! I know that's kind of strange. Anyway, thats awesome that you are a part of the body art community!
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