The Art and Science of Tattoos

I LOVE tattoos and readily admit to having small rather naff one hidden away somewhere discreet. I’ve so far resisted the urge to get more, although I’m guessing I’ll give into that need at some point – if I ever decide what to get next and where. Yet one of the things I’ve always felt about tattoos is that they are seldom truly about the artwork. Yes its nice to have something that you find aesthetically pleasing but tattoos are often so much more about marking a time in your life, signalling your ownership of your body and referencing a physical and or emotional link.

This is why I loved coming across this set of geek tattoos. I guess you could argue that some of them are pretty, but that’s not really what’s going on here, which is what fascinates me about the idea of the tattoo. More often than not you are likely to find the look of someone else’s tattoo somewhat cringe-worthy, but its their reasoning behind it that is interesting part! Instead of those catalogues of tattoo artistry you can get in gallery book shops, I’d love to see a tattoo tome embellished with details of the decisions behind the designs. And what about books on body curation for people who haven’t stopped at a butterfly on their bum?!