Styles of Tattooing and Their Identities
- jordancasciato
- 31 minutes ago
- 4 min read
At Speakeasy Tattoo I have been studying the many styles of Tattoos. The Los Angeles area thrives with diverse styles of tattooing and it is important to me to explore them all.
When it comes to art and the art of tattooing, any artist will create something unique to their personality and skill. At Speakeasy Tattoo near Los Angeles California, we pride ourselves on creating unique pieces that’ll last your history. Throughout tattoo history, many styles emerged to create a collection of art and expression based on its time and historical circumstances.
One of the first tattoo styles in American history is American Traditional. The style of American Traditional tattoos usually depict anchors, hearts, skulls, roses, ships, and several other sailor type designs. The history of American Traditional tattoos begins with sailors as far back as the 1700’s. These sailors would travel to different coasts and receive tattoos from their voyages. “Captain James Cook, a British explorer in the late 1700s, is infamous not only for his renowned historical navigation skills, but for the men who sailed with him. These men have been said to be some of the first to get tattoos in memento of their globe traveling voyages, particularly to the thriving and vibrant tattoo cultures of China, Japan, and the Pacific Islands,” (JST). Those with tattoos were seen as people outside the norm and society still had assumptions about them. In 1941, when the attack on Pearl Harbor happened, people reevaluated what was important to them. War had a way of resetting how people value their lives and appearances. “Men deployed to Hawaii were not so concerned with the perception of others so much as they were with the daunting prospect of impending battle, and thus tattoos began to rise in popularity,” (JST). An artist by the name of Norman Keith Collins, also known as Sailor Jerry, lived and worked in Hawaii tattooing United States servicemen. He created his own style rooted in what he learned from Japanese tattoo masters and his travels to South East Asia. This style became known as American Traditional. The foundation of bold linework and a simple color palette of brown, red, and green, led to new artists creating new styles based on these strong images.
A style that takes heavy inspiration from American Traditional is the Neo Traditional tattoo. A Neo Traditional tattoo takes heavy inspiration from American Traditional tattoo designs and applies them in a modern way. Instead of one line weight for the outline of the piece, Neo Traditional uses varied lineweights to outline a design. Neo traditional tattoos also include a wider ranged color palette compared to its American Traditional predecessor. “One of the most beautiful parts of choosing to get a neo-traditional tattoo is that the design options are virtually limitless as long as the tattoo has the stylistic traits of neo-traditionalism,” (Chapter One Tattoo).
New School tattoos became popular in the 1970s and 80s and shared similarities with neo traditional’s expanded color palette and different line weights. This style has pushed far beyond where American traditional started and is characterized heavily on vibrant colors and a cartoonish style. Inspired by graffiti and comic book art, new school tattoos stretch proportions of anatomy with large heads and tiny bodies. “With technological advances in pigments for inks, tattooists are able to use striking colors, from fluorescents to neons. Considering where New School pulls its iconography from, these tints help to solidify the cartoonish aspects of the style. There’s also just that: New School tattooing is mostly influenced by a variety of pop culture. Gamer ink, comic book fans, anime and manga characters...they all find a home here,” (Vela).
On the opposite side of the tattoo spectrum you'll find realism tattoos. These tattoos look nothing like new school tattoos. Realism is usually seen in tattoo portraits of family members or celebrities or photo realistic animals. All anatomical proportions of the body are exact and precise. There are usually no heavy outlines and all details are focused on creating the texture accurate to the subject. “The first recorded instance of a realism tattoo in the West is from 1846, when British sailor Johnnie Coy was tattooed by Japanese artist Hori Chyo while in Yokohama. Coy's tattoo, which depicted an eagle clutching a snake in its talons, was so realistic that it garnered attention from other sailors and soon became a popular design,” (Mondragon.)
If not all, most tattoos find their roots in American Traditional tattooing. “Many of the rules set forth by Trad artists long ago help with the clarity and healthy aging of tattoos. Bold black lines help keep color from spreading, large shapes and designs help with the ability to easily form highly legible tattoos,” (Vela). There are many other styles of tattooing to explore. In fact there are always new styles being invented, new influences being created and new collections growing to curate the most original pieces.
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