Choosing Body Art & Tattoos

A Respectful Approach to Selecting a Tattoo Design and Tattoo Artist

Mar 10, 2008

Given the history and cultural significance of tattoos in parts of the world such as Polynesia, it's important to make positive, informed choices about your tattoo.

Why do you want to have a tattoo? Understanding your motivation, the design that you choose and the relationship you form with your tattoo artist can make the difference between the painful purchase of a fashion accessory and what can be a powerful experience. Here are some questions you may wish to consider before you book your body art.

What are you trying to achieve with your tattoo?

You have taken a decision to permanently change your body (as tattoo removal is expensive and not always satisfactory) for reasons you need to be clear on. Fashions change but a tattoo once etched into your skin does not. If you are paying tribute to a person or idea, are you likely to feel the same in 50 years? If you are seeking to brand yourself, are you identifying with something you were “born to”, or something that may fade in importance as you enter a later phase of life?

Have you researched the historical and cultural origins of the design you are considering?

Regardless of your motivation, in getting a tattoo you are tapping into generations of history. According to Nicholas Thomas, although tattooing probably developed in several cultures, the word tattoo (taken from the Tahitian “tatau”), first appeared in English in 1771 in accounts of Captain Cook’s first voyage to the South Pacific. Permanent body art has always been linked with cross-cultural interactions and for some indigenous people, with colonialism.

A design that may simply seem abstract and attractive to you may be very significant to others. In 18th-century Samoa, the traditional male tattoo was a complex and not easily “sampled” design that was applied in a particular setting to people of higher rank. In Tahiti, where the practice was suppressed by the missionaries, the rebirth of tattooing accompanied a cultural revival. Despite the huge success of Samoan tattoo artists internationally, the debate about whether even modified traditional tattoos should be applied to non-Samoans remains active among some members of the community.

When you are considering a tattoo that adopts Maori or Samoan or other indigenous motifs, it is important to think about cross-cultural exchange. According to Cyril Siorat, there is a debate in many of the arts about modernists “appropriating” or otherwise modifying tribal traditions. Body art is not unique in this regard, but you should be aware of the sensitivities that may be involved.

How will you choose your tattoo artist and what relationship will you have with this person?

Questions of health and safety aside, the process of receiving a tattoo is different from buying a pair of jeans. You are showing faith in the work of an artist. You may be participating with that person in designing the tattoo. And you will be undergoing a powerful experience together in which you cope with pain. Traditionally the method of rewarding the artist (for example, with woven fine mats in traditional Samoa) has been significant. These days the exchange of money is obviously the standard, but thought still needs to be given to the interaction between the person being tattooed and the tattoo artist.

Two sources on Polynesian and Maori tattoo are listed below. There are many others and numerous publications that speak to different cultural traditions. Thinking through the larger questions, and perhaps doing a bit of research, can add a great deal to your tattoo experience.

The copyright of the article Choosing Body Art & Tattoos in Tattoos/Body Art is owned by Brenda Ann Burke. Permission to republish Choosing Body Art & Tattoos in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.