THEME + TOPIC

Tattoos are a persistent and integral part of human culture. The earliest tattoos were often cultural and collective in nature, performed as a rite of passage or as status and protection symbols. Over time, this characteristic has changed to make tattoos a more individual and personal experience.

Every time I see a tattooed individual I wonder what their motivations and motives are, why they got the tattoo and what it means to them. In this day and age, images are highly subjective. A banana to one person might not have the same significance for another. Because the topic of this assignment is point of view, I thought this would be a great opportunity to explore this subject I’ve always been interested in and curious about.

ZINE: PERSPECTIVE

Here’s a link to a flippable online version of the zine: http://www.flipsnack.com/LiyingSaw/zine-final.html?b=1&p=1

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Tattoos from the point of view of someone who travels often are souvenirs

C travels a lot. After graduating, she embarked on a two-month, solo journey across Tibet and Nepal. She said that she would have wanted to travel more, but ran out of money. Now she’s back in Singapore, working and saving up for her next big journey. She identifies with the quote “a ship is safe in harbor, but that’s not what ships are for” because she feels like that’s the motivation behind her travelling. She travels to find herself.

C enjoys backpacking and has scaled the Himalayas. This tattoo was done by a tattoo artist in Nepal, and was based off a photo she took of the mountains while hiking. She designs her own tattoos based on what she feels is significant. Because all her tattoos were done overseas, they remind her of her travels.

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Tattoos from the point of view of a feminist are an expression of ownership of her body.

This tattoo is based off an illustration from The Little Prince. It reminds M to look beyond the surface because there’s always more than meets the eye.

Growing up, she felt stifled, obliged to look and act in a way that was expected of females. As a teenager, M was always interested in tattoos and tattoo culture despite her conservative parents (like many others in Singapore). She shares many beliefs with the feminist movement, and treats her tattoos as a way to be in control of her body – instead of letting society dictate how she should and shouldn’t look, what she should and shouldn’t do.

She comes from a traditional Chinese family. As a child, she was always told that only bad people had tattoos and that she should never get any. When she got her first tattoos at the nape of her neck and behind her ear, she hid it from her parents for months until they found out. She said that she was initially afraid that they would throw her out, but after some initial resistance they eventually came to terms with her tattoos. Nowdays, she texts her mom before getting a new tattoo and everything’s fine.

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A tattoo from the point of view of someone who’s been through difficult times is a reminder.

As a teenager, D fell in with the wrong crowd. He got a tattoo that he regretted, and decided to cover up. He got the Hannya inked because he identified with it’s story of jealousy and hatred, but also wanted it to serve as a warning to not let these qualities take over his life. He likes traditional, colourful oriental tattoos because (in his own words) he believes they look better against dark coloured clothes.

The Hannya on tradition is a woman who has been transformed by her jealousy or hatered, so the masks are also crafted to depict the grotesque transformation, usually around the mouth with fanged teeth, exaggerated features and even horns. The catch is around the eyes, where glimpses of the heartbreak and humanity are captured in the subtle way the brow is curved or the skin creased.

One of the most popular tales of the Hannya demon is the story of a young woman who fell in love with a monk. The accounts vary on whether or not the monk rebuffed the woman immediately, or grew to know her over time in a platonic relationship, and was unable to return her feelings either because of his personal vow or simply not feeling the same for her. When she confessed her emotions to him and was rebuffed, the woman began to turn into a demon. The monk ran to a nearby shrine and hid in a giant bell. When the newly formed demon went looking for the object of her affections, she found him in the bell. Enraged, she blew fire and melted the bell around the monk, killing him and sentencing herself to the role of a demon.

(Sydney Bristol)

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Tattoos from the point of view of a collector are a celebration of her body.

J constantly struggles with her body image. She used to look into the mirror and see only her flaws, until decided to get tattoos to decorate her body. It’s her way of self-love, because she believes that tattoos are works of art. J likes everything mythical and magical and Tim Burton-esque, and having these indelible images on her skin help her on the road to self-acceptance and appreciation.

J is heavily tattooed: her arm, back, and both thighs are covered. When I asked if she experiences any reactions – positive or negative  – in her everyday life, she said that it’s not so bad because many of her friends are tattooed, and those who aren’t accept her for who she is. Sometimes she catches looks from strangers, but for the most part she doesn’t feel like she gets a lot of negative reactions or treatment because of her ink.

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Tattoos from the point of view of a religious person are part of his cultural identity.

A tells me that the animal on his sak yant tattoo is a qilin, a mythical creature believed to be a good omen. The size, imagery and placement of his tattoo was all decided by the master practitioner according to what worked best for him. There are different kinds of sak yant meant to give the bearer different effects ranging from good luck to power and authority, but A’s qilin is meant to protect him from harm, illnesses, and the bad intentions of others. The script surrounding the qilin helps keep it in check, in a sense binding it to A and preventing it from taking over and controlling his life. He also said that after getting the tattoo done, he was told to follow certain special rules to ensure it’s effectiveness.

I personally found this really interesting, because I’ve always seen people with sak yant tattoos around but never really knew the beliefs behind each image. I also like how sak yant tattoos have such a distinct look and rich cultural history, and despite it’s longstanding traditional history is still such a prevalent and popular form of tattooing today. A also said that because he’s had his tattoo for so long and also grown up around many people who had them and people who believed in this practice, he associates it with his religion and identity.

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A tattoo from the point of view of a Hayao Miyazaki fan is a way to write her autobiography

N is, evidently, a huge fan of Hayao Miyazaki. Spirited Away is her favourite Miyazaki work. When asked why she chose No-Face out of all the other characters in Spirited Away, she said that she identified with his journey and development in the film. No-Face is a spirit who shows up mysteriously and takes a liking to Chihiro, the little girl protagonist. He mistakenly believes that the way to win her attention is through gold, but his greed turns him into a monster. Chihiro later confronts and helps him realise his wrong, and he turns over a new leaf.

What most intrigued me was how N chose to use a fictional character to describe – and in a way summarise – her story and personal journey. It’s interesting because the meaning behind this character is only evident to those who’ve watched the film, and I like it because it’s unconventional and open to interpretation. I also like how N’s tattoos and J’s tattoos show both ends of the spectrum: images with a lot of hidden meaning, as compared to images that are purely decorative. I think that both of these ideas have their merits, and it also shows how tattoos are subjective to the wearer and unique to each person.

REFLECTION

I feel like this project broadened my understanding of tattoos and how people view and utilize them. I also got to know the people I interviewed better, because I never really specifically asked them about their tattoos in such an exploratory and in-depth manner. I liked the variety of images and styles – from traditional, religious, modern and even pop cultural – because I feel like it testifies to the flexibility of tattoos as an art form.  Cheesy as it sounds, when I was speaking to these people I could feel their connection to their tattoos. Maybe it was because I couldn’t find someone who regretted getting their ink – but I guess this is a good thing, because it would suck to be stuck with a tattoo you hated.

I think that my main gripe with this assignment was with the execution. I feel like my illustrative skills couldn’t do the images justice, and I didn’t like how the images fit into the booklet. I think I need to watch more tutorials and definitely pay more attention to the presentation side of things. I also would’ve liked to interview people from different age groups and different ethnicities to see tattoos with a more diverse perspective. The people I interviewed all fit into the same racial and age profile – Chinese youth in their early 20s.