Tattooing: An Art and a Science
- Livia Michael
- Apr 26
- 2 min read
Greetings, internet! It’s Livia Michael! As an apprentice at Speakeasy Tattoo in Los Angeles, there is so much information I’m absorbing about the practice of tattooing - specifically that tattooing is not only an art, but a science as well. A tattooist having a thorough understanding of the anatomy of the skin is crucial in order for a tattoo to look great, last, and retain its quality. The artist must expertly place the needle into the correct layer of the skin. However, the way in which tattoo ink is deposited into the skin is different than one might expect.
Many believe that tattoos are created by way of an injection depositing ink succinctly into the skin. However, tattoo needles puncture the skin and the ink pools on top of the skin, when the needle is removed, a kind of vacuum is created, which sucks the ink down into the hole that was created by the needle. Some experts liken this phenomenon to someone walking in mud. For example, a person’s shoe creates a hole/footprint and then water from outside rushes into the hole, creating a muddy print, full of water. The shoe is the tattoo needle, and the water is the ink, which gets sucked down and trapped into the print/hole that was created by the shoe.
The depth of the needle penetration into the skin is also crucial to the art and science of tattooing. There are three main layers of skin - the epidermis (consisting of the five sub-layers called the stratum corneum, stratum lucidum, stratum granulosum, stratum spinosum, and stratum basale), the dermis, and the hypodermis. A tattoo needle must pierce through to the second layer of skin, called the dermis (approximately 1/16th of an inch). Tattoos must reach this second layer of skin because this layer contains cells that create connective tissue, or fibroblasts. Fibroblasts contribute to the longevity of a tattoo because they trap the tattoo ink within these cells permanently. If the needle only reaches the first layer of skin, or the epidermis, the ink will not last. This is because the outer layer of skin regenerates and comes off, which will therefore remove the tattoo as well. Additionally, if the needle penetrates too deep, and reaches the hypodermis and subcutaneous tissue, or fat layer, the ink will spread out and blur the design that was intended, also known as a ‘blowout.’
A fresh tattoo will have ink in every epidermal layer, as well as the dermis. However, once the tattoo is completely healed, the ink is only present in the dermis. Over many years, tattoo ink has been shown to shift deeper into the dermis layer and lymph nodes, which can contribute to the piece fading. Even well-executed tattoos will fade over time, as this is just the way of human anatomy. However, one can extend the longevity of a well-executed tattoo by keeping the area moisturized, protected from the sun, and periodic touch ups from their tattoo artist.
Until next week…
-Livia Michael
Sources:
