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Explore the rich history of body art, from ancient tattooing and body painting to modern forms of self-expression like scarification and body sculpting.
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SKIN ART • The term “Body Art” is actually a broad term used to describe any method of expression that alters the appearance of the human body. • This includes things like piercing, mutilation, body building, plastic surgery and other forms of “body sculpture”.
SKIN ART • “Skin Art” is a facet of Body Art that refers to alteration of the skin in ways like tattoo, body painting and scarification.
Otzi, The Tyrolean iceman, a 5300-year-old mummyhttp://anthropology.net/2009/07/21/otzi-icemans-tattoos-were-born-in-fire/ • Tattoo and body painting is one of the oldest art forms known to man.
2000 year old mummy from Asia • Tattooing appears on ancient mummies from all corners of the earth and as old as the oldest remains ever discovered.
Tattoo History Continued… • Believed that the first known tattoo dates back to 4,000 B.C. (body of man, skin bears cross behind one knee and a series of lines above the kidneys) • Egyptian and Nubian mummies (practiced around 2000 B.C.) • Ancient Greeks used Tattooing for communication among spies • Ancient Romans used tattoos to mark criminals and slaves. (2500 year old Pazyryk mummies)
Tattoo History Continued… • 1700 Japan - escalated the tattoo to an aesthetic art form. - At that time, only royalty were allowed to wear ornate clothing, so as a result of this the middle class adorned themselves with elaborate full body tattoos. • Ancient Japanese also marked criminals • 1st offense marked w/ line across forehead • 2nd was marked by adding an arch • 3rd marked by another line • Together the marks formed the Japanese character for “dog.”
Modern tattoo (as we know it today) comes from the Pacific Islands.
British sailors would return from places like New Zealand, Polynesia, Hawaii and Australia with native tattoo’s. The concept eventually moved from the military to the civilian population.
The Maori of New Zealand were the most well known for their elaborate all over tattoo’s…(especially for the facial tattoo’s known as Moko).
The word “tattoo” is actually a mis-pronunciation of the Polynesian wordTatau, which means “to pierce”.
What purpose did tattoo serve? • In most primitive culture body markings served many purposes. 1 - Protection (both spiritual and physical). Act as guides or identification in the afterlife. 2 - Show status and/or group affiliation. Both positive and negative. 3 - Medicinal and healing purposes. As with Otzi peoples 4 - Mark achievements.
Traditional Maori tattoo uses blue dye inserted under the skin.
Tattoo however was not limited to the face (or only to men) but was used across the entire body.
The people of Samoa tattooed the legs and buttocks heavily, due to the large surface area that could be covered. The traditional woman's tattoo is called a Malu, and is more open and airy than the male counterpart.
The male version, the pe’a, is thicker, with less open space and more ink.The pe’a eventually covers the entire leg from lower back to foot.
Traditional island tattoo is chiseled into the skin by using sharp instrument called a “comb”.
multiple prong CombsCombs are dipped in ink and hammered with a stick so that they vibrate like a tuning fork. This forces the ink beneath the surface of the skin.
Tattooing in the western world was brought to a halt in A.D. 787.Pope Hadrian banned the art form, …citing Leviticus 19:28 and 21:5 as well as Deuteronomy 14:1.
This was because Crusaders were tattooing themselves with Christian symbols. Why?So that if they were killed in the Holy Land they would receive Christian burials (pilgrims were also tattooing themselves to show they had visited certain Christian religious sites).The church feared the eastern (and therefore Pagan) associations.
Negative Associations of Tattoos • Until recently, tattoos were associated with criminals or the naval community, and it has taken many years for these negative associations to fade. • In Japan, tattoos are associated with the Yakuza, and this causes apprehension in Japanese citizens, to the point where gyms and swimming pools actually ban people with large or offensive tattoos from using the facilities.
Negative Associations of Tattoos • Tattoos are used within prison communities to indicate allegiance to a certain gang or affiliation to an organization. • A tear drop tattoo can symbolize murder, and cobwebs on the elbow or elsewhere can demonstrate crimes committed. • Racial or political views are expressed pictorially, making it easier for inmates to demonstrate some sense of gang allegiance, or strive for a semblance of individuality in an otherwise regimented environment. • Further negativity has come from the practice of forcibly tattooing people. Jewish people resident in concentration camps were forced to be branded with identification numbers during the Holocaust.
Tattoos in the US • In the past, tattoos had little acceptance of the American public, but it was difficult to express too much negativity when military personnel would return home from serving overseas with the names of loved ones emblazoned on their arm. • To most Americans during this time period, the word “tattoo” was synonymous for those outside the mainstream of America. It was a mind set of undesirables from gang members like the Hells Angels, Bandidos, to the movie Easy Rider.
Tattoos in the US • It was not until the 1980’s that tattoos began to gain positive exposure, with the help of Long Island based band “The Stray Cats”, featured on the cover of the Rolling Stone magazine. • As tattoos ceased to be solely connected to counter-culture, they started to appear on average Americans across the United States. Tattoo shops sprung up all across America. • In most parts of the United States tattoos are common and considered to be a basic form of self-expression.
Modern Tattooing • Today, tattoos are created by injecting ink into the skin. Injection is done by a needle attached to a hand-held tool. The tool moves the needle up and down at a rate of several hundred vibrations per minute and penetrates the skin by about one millimeter. • What you see when you look at a tattoo is the ink that's left in the skin after the tattooing. The ink is not in the epidermis, which is the layer of skin that we see and the skin that gets replaced constantly, but instead intermingles with cells in the dermis and shows through the epidermis. • The cells of the dermis are remarkably stable, so the tattoo's ink will last, with minor fading and dispersion, for your entire life!
BODY ART Skin Art Part 2
Almost all cultures at one time have practiced body painting.
The ancient Celts were the most famous people to paint themselves.The Celts would use Woad, a blue dye to paint mystical symbols on their bodies when engaging in warfare.
Woadwas also rumored to have a hallucinogenic component, (similar to ancient pigment used in cave paintings).Hence the “crazy” Celtic warrior legend.
Native North Americans also had a highly developed sense of aesthetics, and used face and body painting extensively.The Native Americans not only used body painting in war, but as a status symbol as well.
Temporary tattoos • with the use of henna
Body art is now easily accessible and is often targeted toward those under 18. Regulation helps to prevent injuries, infections, and transmission of diseases like Hepatitis.
