the culture

What does tattooing mean and where did it come from?

origins

Ancient traditions, the earliest inks — soot, ash, plant carbon; origins of styles.

Articles under Origins will be listed here as they publish.

identity and meaning

Tattoos as identity and memory, memorial tattoos, language and symbolism.

Articles under Identity and meaning will be listed here as they publish.

communities

Tattooing across communities, cultural ownership and appropriation, subcultures and movements.

Articles under Communities will be listed here as they publish.

collectors

Collector profiles, individual pieces and what they carry.

The Collector Series — Tattooed & Professional — is the open call: real tattooed people, their work, and their artists credited. Submissions are open.

Collector profiles will be listed here as they publish.

then and now

How acceptance changed, tattoo media, fashion and art and tattooing.

Articles under Then and now will be listed here as they publish.

articles in this chapter

questions this chapter answers

• What were the first tattoo inks made of?
• How did sailors' tattoos become a style?
• Why is traditional black carbon-based?
• How many professionals have tattoos?
• Do tattoos hurt your chances of getting hired?
• Do people cover their tattoos for work?
• Are women more likely than men to have tattoos?
• Who was the first woman to win Ink Master?
• Do visible tattoos still affect how women are judged at work?

Every article in this chapter carries one canonical tag: the-culture. Published pieces appear at /blogs/the-second-layer.