Why tattoos are no longer a symbol for masculinity
Photo taken from weheartit.com
“My body is my journal, and my tattoos are my story.”
― Johnny Depp
By Nizza Munoz
With masculinity evolving over the years, tattoos these days are more than just a symbol of what it means to be a male in society.
Popular body modifications such as tattoos are now skin-deep representations of an individual’s cultural and personal beliefs.
The act of getting a tattoo is when indelible ink is inserted into the layer of the skin to change the pigment.
Tattoos are said to have dated back to the fourth and fifth millennium BC, where Otzi The Iceman was found in the Alps with 57 carbon tattoos consisting of regular dots and lines on his lower spine, behind his left knee and right ankle.
By the 1950s, tattoos had an established place in Western culture, but were generally viewed with contempt by higher society individuals. During the latter decade of the 20th century tattooing became a popular social practice worldwide. The trendy body modification now feature in magazines, television and is talked about widely.
Tattoos themselves are rich in tradition, for example in New Zealand Maori tattoos were brought from Eastern Polynesia. The name given to the art form by Maori’s (particularly facial tattoos) is ‘moko’ and the process of making them is called ‘ta moko.’ By the 1860s, women began to wear the ‘moko’ just below their chins.
According to the National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) one in seven Australians are sporting a tattoo. The national study surveyed 8,656 Australians between the ages of 16 to 64 years and showed that Aussie men are more likely to possess a tattoo than Aussie women. Females in their 20s are generally would have tattoos than men in the same age group.
The main reasons why people decide to get tattoos on their body include cultural reasons, expressing individuality, to indicate membership of a particular group or way of life, make a statement, establish a permanent reminder of an event, make the body more pleasing to the eye and even annoy their parents when they were younger.
Avid Marilyn Monroe and Elvis Presley collector Lauren Poole has recently had two tattoos done as tributes to her pop culture idols.
“I have Marilyn Monroe's signature on the inside of my right wrist to commemorate the star's 85th birthday in 2011 and Elvis Presley's "Taking Care of Business" logo on my left leg to commemorate my visit to Graceland, also in 2011,” Lauren says.
Her ardor and acceptance for tattoos began when she was around 11-years-old. Her mother, cousin and uncle have all had ink work done, which has only added to Laurens approval of the body modifications.
“I think tattoos are a wonderful art form,” Lauren says.
Lauren considers tattoos a significant and valuable way of having people identify who you are and what you believe in.
“It takes commitment to have tattoos, but its always heartwarming to look down and be reminded of what it represents to you and, in turn, hearing what other people's tattoos mean to then,” she says.
One of the most famous tattooed women was Betty Broadbent Betty was one of the first women ever to have a full body tattoo and the first to be tattooed by the “new” electric tattoo machine.
Lauren believes that whether or not society views tattoos on women as masculine depends on what type of tattoos females decide to acquire on their bodies.
“If a woman has sleeves done, that definitely looks masculine to me. I think small and tasteful tats look much more feminine,” she says.
“Take Lady Gaga for example. Her tats are of fair size, but sporadic and she still looks feminine. In general terms though no I don’t think tats look masculine,” Lauren adds.
Devoted Tattoo enthusiast Matthew Kodsy is almost an advocate for the art form, with 12 tattoos scattered all across his body and more to add to his collection later on in his life.
“Getting inked is the ultimate freedom of expression,” Matthew says.
“I’ve wanted to get tattoos ever since I could remember, my mum was the one that made me wait until I was a bit older before I got my first,” he says.
Even at the young age of 19, Matthew has had a tough life, which he believes is represented in the body modification he has achieved.
“My tattoos are a way I express my individuality and everything that has happened in my life so far,” he says.
Bearing the permanent ink ‘Live Free’ across his knuckles, Matthew believes that the stigma that all tattoos are masculine is completely outdated in today’s society.
“I have so many female mates that have all sorts of tattoos, to even suggest it’s a guy thing is ridiculous,” he says.
The art of tattoos has become so popular, magazines and television shows have been created, dedicated to them. Skin and Ink is a popular American tattoo magazine that has had a high level of success over the years. American reality TV shows such as LA Ink follows the events that unfold at the High Voltage Tattoo parlour. American female tattoo artist Kat Von D is one of the most famous across the globe and is the star of LA Ink and owner of High Voltage Tattoo.
Matthew believes that TV personalities like Kat Von D are a great indication of how society’s opinion of tattoos is evolving.
“There are obviously people out there that still judge tattoos as a bit of a lower class hobby but with the amount of men and women that have them now it’s easy to see where everything is headed,” he says.
With the fluid nature of masculinity, the tattoo art form has also come to signify much more than someone’s gender or sexuality. Rich in tradition and cultural value, what tattoos represented to different individuals throughout history is still being practiced today. Like everything these days though, it has modernized its approach on how they are being achieved and produced.