Outsons

Outsons

For thousands of years, human beings have marked their own skin, deliberately and permanently applying various types of pigment and ink. Tattooing is a practice in numerous cultures, for a variety reasons. Sometimes tattoos are proof of social status or are given as a rite of passage, to ward off evil, or to identify membership in a group.

All art practice has some underlying ideology, and this is especially true in tattoo art. Skin creations represent fundamental beliefs to the individual wearer or group. Tattooing is practiced by cultures from east to west, by both men and women, and by nearly all ages. The attraction is obvious: To decorate one's body with permanent art is a powerful statement, not easily erased or altered, so the act itself is almost as intriguing as the image itself might be.

2015