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Tattoos have
lost their "edge." They've become trendy. I see people
all the time with japanese symbol and barbed wire tattoos. If
you are going to get a tattoo it shouldn't just be something
trendy that you think looks "cool" at the time. Peoples
ideas about what looks cool changes as their lives progress.
Sometimes I wonder if all the "gangst thugs" i see
on the street, or at the mall are really going to want that
razor below their eye when they're sixty, or even thirty. Tattoos
should mean something to you personaly because you are going
to have to live with them the rest of your life. My father was
in the merchant marine. He was a sailor (no kidding) and he
has what you would call tattoo sleeves. He probably has more
than two dozen, but he has a story for each one of them. They
are like a time line of his life down his arms. Some how a seriously
doubt someone who just got a barbed wire tattoo (or their brother,
mother, sister, father, grandparents and unborn children that
just got one too) have any stories to tell you about theirs.
--Soupp
Although tattoos are far more mainstream
than before, they haven't lost the ability to help individuals
define who they are, artistically. A beautiful piece of art,
is still a beautiful piece of art, no matter the canvas.
--Linda C.
Tattoos
aren't a bad thing per se, or about showing off. If you get
them for the right reason, that is just fine. I got mine as
a milemarker, and thus means a lot to me. I would not dream
of parting with it. It is however also in individual design,
therefore special.
--Deborah
Everyone
has their own opinion on tattoo's, but does it really matter
what you or I think? I have a few and will get more, but it
is not so people will think of me any different or so I can
separate myself from others. I just like it and I view it like
I do art, it's all good. The important thing is that if you
should decide that you want artwork on your body, that you choose
something with meaning to you. I personally have one piece of
ink designed by Paul Booth. I love it, but it doesn't mean anything
other than I like his artwork. I'm not into the devil or anything
like that. I've actually started to contemplate some work on
my forearms, but because of business committments, I'm not sure.
I prefer to be able to keep my work covered while in a short
sleeve shirt. So no, tattoo's have not lost their signifigance.
More people are getting them now days just like piercings, but
if that's what you like, do it. Character will always be the
most important feature of a person.
--Scott
I
believe that tattoos can be one of the most passionate forms
of art of today. of course, many others agree, so there are
a great deal who have them. does that really mean they have
become commonplace? No, it simply means that there are people
in the world that like to show their attitude without saying
a word since each and every tattoo has a story or a meaning
behind it. A tattoo can be a deep window to the soul and it
can also be a masterpiece of well thought out inkwork. Some
people that do not have any may feel that tattoos are disgusting
or bad, but the truth is, they are the definition of who we
are and what we stand for. Nothing so great could become commonplace.
--Elizabeth
Tattoos
don't NEED edge. Tattoos are a form of art that are put on the
body as a window to the soul. When you get a tat, it is because
you want it for yourself. Sure, they're fun to show off, but
that isn't the main reason to get one. When you get inked, it
should be a form of self expression. some people just don't
get the real meaning behind tats. Tats have been around for
ages, and i think they'll be around for a very long time if
not forever. the body is a canvas, it all depends on how you
paint it.
--Prncsamy11
My
husband just got his first tattoo and I love it. It seems everyone
has one and it's pretty commonplace but that's not the point
for us. The point is it reaffirms your inner feelings. He got
a symbol of yin/yang and that is what is important in our lives
- the balance of life. What does it matter how many are out
there? Everyone has just enhanced their bodies with art. I will
be getting my first soon. I just had my belly button pieced
and love it. Everyone has done this too, but to me it's my own
little thing that makes me happy. Oh, did I mention my husband
and I are in our early fifties!
--Calycat1
I
have seen and done many tattoos and body modifications. All
the people I have came in contact with have just been looking
for a sense of personalization. In a world filled with over
five billion people, a need for identity of self is necessary.
In the United States we are identified by our Social Security
numbers. We as a society need some other form of self identity.
Whether or not tattoos or other types of body modification are
the answer to their prayers, it seems that these types of self
personalization are becoming more accepted. It gives the recipient
a feeling of independence from the mainstream society. All people
really want is to express themselves in a way that is visually
seen by "John Q. Public."
--Uzerfriendly69
Tattoos
have certainly lost their edge; even my grandmother now grudgingly
accepts that not only sailors and prostitutes have them. And
she's right- I have two. My little sister has one, and she made
our mother sit with her while she got it. But maybe there's
nothing wrong with being in concordance with one's parents,
even if it means that things like tattoos aren't all that shocking
any more. It doesn't matter anyway. I'm getting mine removed
cheaply and pefectly. All gone. Tattoos have lost their edge
because nothing lasts for my generation- one simply doesn't
have to live with one's mistakes...
--
Kate
I
think it is all in the person who gets a tattoo. I have my last
name going down my one leg and a symbol meaning good fortune
down my other which I am about to have tribal going around.
These didn't take me long to find but believe it or not they
have a huge meaning to me and that is all that matters. If people
don't like it or think they are pointless or just a fad, that's
great because I didn't get mine to please other people.
--GhettoB769
I
think that more people are getting tattoos these days. I think
that tattoos are becoming more acceptable and many people are
waiting until their are older to get inked. I know a group of
40 year old women who get tattooed on their 40th. I think it's
GREAT. I personally waited until I was 26, even though I knew
when I was 18 that I wanted one. I'm glad I waited and now I
have 2. I'm planning on stopping here (but that's what they
all say!)
--Kristin
I
think tattoos and piercings have lost some of their edge, but
I don't necessarily see that as a bad thing. Years ago, a friend
of mine was one of the first in our town to get her nose pierced
and when she went looking for a job, no one would hire her.
While I know that still happens today, I think many people have
become a lot more open to body modifications, perhaps because
of how common they have become. How can this be bad? Besides,
there is nothing wrong with doing something that is 'trendy'
as long as you are doing it for the right reasons. If you are
just getting a tattoo because every one else has one, then yeah,
you've got a problem. If you get a tattoo because you really
want that tattoo and because it means something to you, then
who cares if everyone else is doing it? The bottom line is this:
it is your body and you are the one who is going to have to
live with it. I say do what you want and just be happy with
your decision.
--Mim
For
some reason tattoos have become so mainstream (look at all the
sorority girls and burly football players with body modifications)
that I don't really want anymore. I believe that it happened
the way it happened to me, I wanted something different and
I just got addicted to the feeling, kind of like I did with
piercings. I have 3 tattoos (shoulder blade, thigh, and lower
back) and 5 piercings (eyebrow, tongue, ears twice, and nipple).
It has become such a trend I'm half tempted to start doing scarification
to do something different again. Nevermind in about two or three
months that will become too popular at the rate it's all going.
Forget it I'm going to become a cheerleader.
--Sarah
I
don't really feel that they've become too commonplace, nor do
I feel that they've lost their edge. How can they, when they
continue to be one of the most creative forms of visual self-expression?
I -do- feel that the amount of people getting tattoos with no
personal meaning has grown a bit out of hand. Most people who
have ink that I have spoken with, have gotten their tattoos
with a special meaning in mind. But, increasingly, I am finding
people who just walked into a shop, and pointed at the wall
of designs, without anything in mind besides "Heh. That
would look pretty cool." When non-tattooed people insist
that tattooed people are going to regret their ink later, it
is these "trendily" tattooed people that will, but
it is, after all, their choice to make.
--Kim
Fortunately
I live in a city that has a decent percentage of good tatoo
art and artists. There is a large percent of tatoos that make
me cringe, on the other hand, tatoos are generally a good indication
of the people wearing them so it can often serve as either a
warning or a convenient topic for conversation. Have they lost
their edge? I want to say yes, but visible tatoos still do not
seem to be welcome in the work place in most Western countries
so perhaps the answer should be no. On the other hand, they
certainly have become more accessible to the general public
and you dont have to be either a sailor or a circus girl to
have one.
--Jessica
Who
cares about 'the edge'? If one is only getting a tattoo so they
can be shocking or cool, then they probably have some self-esteem
problems anyway. I know that it's kind of irritating that every
Buffy or jock-O has a butterfly or barbed wire, but the fact
is that they still sat under the needle and took the pain. Also,
anyone who has sat for large-scale or sleeve work knows that
you get personally creative, and that will never be taken away
because your next door neighbor got a chinese symbol. Tattoos
aren't about anyone but the wearer. If you really want one,
and you get a great artist to work with, you'll be happy, and
'the edge' of tattooing won't even have meaning.
--catrousil
I
believe that tattoos, within populations of the industrialized
nations, have become too commercial but not too common place.
Instead of getting tattoos that truly have personal meaning,
people are selecting tattoos from racks hanging on a wall or
laminated pages contained within a book. These tattoos describe
these people in a way that communicates who they are in relation
to commercial advertising. Granted, the original purpose of
tattoos was to advertise ones tolerance of pain and increase
ones appearance of ferocity or attractiveness but these aspects
of human nature precede commercial advertising. The message
of contemporary commercial advertising; the often unnecessary
products pedaled, is far removed from the original intent of
the tattooer and recipient. I would like to see more tattoos
that make a personal statement independent of anything the bearer
may have seen on television or in an ad campaign.
--Jason
Way
over the deep end! There isn't one friend that I know that doesn't
have one. I even have one my self, but I guess this could all
be explained since my dad in a tatooist! However, being in the
position I'm in, you see the uniquness of everybody. You could
almost say that someone can be discribed personally by the body
art they have chosen for themselves!
--Galen
Tattoos
should be a mode of self-expression available to anyone, not
some stereotyped tool of rebellion.
--Michelle
Tattooing
is very personal and private. There are thousands of reasons
to get a tattoo. I feel that the idea of body modification is
lost on most of the population of the western cultures. I cringe
when I hear the words "does that hurt" (this applies
to piercing as well), for the most part the pain is part of
body modification, the process of choosing a
PROFESSIONAL, making a wise and educated choice, learning how
to properly care for the tattoo, sitting in the chair and enduring
the slightly uncomfortable pain. A tattoo properly done will
bring you a life time of beauty and enjoyment. In a society
where all rights of passage have no real lasting meaning. I
have chosen to mark important passages in this life time on
my body, whether through ink or metal, I will never forget where
I'm coming from, what I've endured and lived through. But all
in all, no, I don't think that tattooing has become to common
place.For those who do choose to get work done they have their
reasons, even if it's, "I thought it looked cool".
One should never judge one's reasons for body modification.
--Tristan
Tattoos
are commonplace, and they have lost much of their "edge."
I was a cashier in a tattoo/body-peircing place for several
years, so maybe I'm overy cynical re: the commodification of
subculture, but it seems that for many people tattoos are just
one more status symbol to buy. However, as a tattooed lady myself,
I am relieved that as my own rebellion-for-rebellion's-sake
tendencies are waning, the weirdness-quotient of being tattoed
is waning as well. Now that I am in grad school in an arts administration
program, I recognise that tattoos are still far from ubiquitous.
My fellow arts management students do not have obvious tattos
as I do.
--hvizer
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