Thinking of getting a Japanese-style tattoo? Want to avoid a permanent mistake? Japanese Tattoos is an insider's look at the world of Japanese irezumi (tattoos). Japanese Tattoos explains the imagery featured in Japanese tattoos so that readers can avoid getting ink they don't understand or, worse, that they'll regret. This photo-heavy book will also trace the history of Japanese tattooing, putting the iconography and kanji symbols in their proper context so readers will be better informed as to what they mean and have a deeper understanding of irezumi. Tattoos featured will range from traditional tebori (hand-poked) and kanji tattoos to anime-inspired and modern works--as well as everything in between. For the first time, Japanese tattooing will be put together in a visually attractive, informative, and authoritative way. Along with the 350+ photos of tattoos, Japanese Tattoos will also feature interviews with Japanese tattoo artists on a variety of topics. What's more, there will be interviews with clients, who are typically overlooked in similar books, allowing them to discuss what their Japanese tattoos mean to them. Those who read this informative tattoo guide will be more knowledgeable about Japanese tattoos should they want to get inked or if they are simply interested in Japanese art and culture.

Reproduces ukiyo-e prints from the incomparable collection of Japanese art at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. Many tattoo connoisseurs consider the Japanese tradition to be the finest in the world for its detail, complexity, and compositional skill. Its style and subject matter are drawn from the visual treasure trove of Japanese popular culture, in particular the colour woodblock prints of the early nineteenth century known as ukiyo-e. This book tells the fascinating story of how ukiyo-e first inspired tattoo artists as the pictorial tradition of tattooing in Japan was just beginning. It explores the Japanese tattoo's evolving meanings, from symbol of devotion to punishment and even to crime, and reveals the tales behind specific motifs. With lush, colourful images of flowers blooming on the arm of a thief, sea monsters coiling across the back of a hero, and legendary warriors battling on the chests of actors, the tattoos in these Japanese prints can offer the same vivid inspiration today as they did two hundred years ago.

Examining representations of the tattoo and tattooing in literature, television, and film from two periods of tattoo renaissance (1851-1914, and 1955 to present), this study makes an original contribution to understandings of crime and detective genre and the ways in which tattoos act as a mimetic device that marks and remarks these narratives in complex ways.

The human desire to adorn the body is universal and timeless. While specific forms of body decoration and the motivations for them vary by region, culture, and era, all human societies have engaged in practices designed to augment and enhance people’s natural appearance. Tattooing, the process of inserting pigment into the skin to create permanent designs and patterns, is one of the most widespread forms of body art and was practiced by ancient cultures throughout the world, with tattoos appearing on human mummies by 3200 BCE. Ancient Ink, the first book dedicated to the archaeological study of tattooing, presents new, globe-spanning research examining tattooed human remains, tattoo tools, and ancient art. Connecting ancient body art traditions to modern culture through Indigenous communities and the work of contemporary tattoo artists, the volume’s contributors reveal the antiquity, durability, and significance of body decoration, illuminating how different societies have used their skin to construct their identities.

This richly illustrated book reveals the meaning and the secrets behind the most significant motifs from traditional Japanese tattooing--such as mythological and supernatural creatures, animals, Buddhist deities, flowers and historical characters--and turns this art form into a path toward personal knowledge and individual expression.