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Japanese Tattoos are a decorative and symbolically rich form of body modification that has been practiced in Japan for the last 10,000 years. Today they represent a huge portion of the world tattoo industry and are known for their use of bright color, religious imagery and use of Japanese characters in distinct and unique ways. Though for much of this region’s history, tattoos were considered deviant and counter to the ideals of Japanese society. Japanese tattoos were outlawed by many Japanese shoguns (rulers) and used only in the marking and punishment of criminals. That all changed in 1821 when Utagawa Kuniyoshi presented his artistic rendering of ancient heroes from the Suidoken, an ancient Chinese fable, on wood block prints. Many of the samurais depicted were covered in full body tats, and the modern Japanese tattoo was born. Unlike other tats, they are not simply about portraying a specific object, but they also endow the wearer with the qualities of the tattoo subject. This is seen most prominently in the extremely popular Japanese Dragon tattoos. These dragons are seen as figures of strength and benevolence, unlike their Western counterparts, and it’s not unusual to see these dragon tattoos grouped with small pearls---those symbols of the closed lotus flower that adorned many Buddhist temples throughout the country. Another extremely popular Japanese tattoo is the samurai. Samurais were the warrior class of Ancient Japan who lived by a strict code that believed in death before dishonor. Many of these ancient Samurais had tattoos all across their backs and many modern customers get tattoos in this same style. Obviously Japanese tattoos of this kind, that cover the entire back and arms, require a large commitment of time and energy, as well as money, yet many see this long process as a trial worthy of the samurai past. Perhaps the most popular Japanese tattoo design is that of Japanese characters, or Kanji Tattoos. Japanese written language, like Chinese, has a very distinctive visual style that incorporates elements of design and tai chi chuan into the look of each and every character. These tattoos have become a very popular way to depict a word such as ‘love’ or ‘strength’ in the cool aesthetic of written Japanese characters. Japanese tattoos are some of the coolest tattoos you can get. Since the style is so decorative and colorful, make sure to see if your tattoo artist has experience in the Japanese tattoo style so that your tat is a successful one. |
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