Customizing the Body (PDF file) - Print My Tattoo

88 The Tattooist
like Burger King ... little Tattoo Huts. If it comes to that I'll
get out of it and do something else. I don't know if 111 ever
work for myself again. It is too easy to work for somebody else
if you can stand giving up a large portion of the money you
make. Working for somebody else is fine. Let them have the
headaches of being in business. You just sit there and do your
shift and whatever else you have to do and that's it. Being a
small business today is a pain in the ass.
THE TATTOOIST'S OCCUPATIONAL REWARDS
Tattooists, as we have seen, are drawn to the occupational activity
by the independence, creativity, and income it offers. Depending
upon the tattooist's orientation to tattooing, the occupational
rewards of reliable income and creative opportunity are weighted
differentially. Street tattooists define themselves as involved in a
predominantly commercial enterprise that has the advantage of
affording some degree of creativity (see Scutt and Gotch, 1974:
60). Fine art tattooists who specialize in custom designs emphasize
the creative opportunities of the work but are also pleased
that tattooing provides the financial security lacking in many artistic
endeavors. One tattoo artist put it this way:
So tattooing suddenly appeared in my life and I realized that
there was that opportunity to do that thing I always wanted to
do so badly my entire life. That was to communicate on some
indescribable level with each indiVidual person that carne
through the door. At the same time I was making art and
communicating, I was making a living.... Right from the first
I deCided I really wanted to tattoo as an alternative art form. It
really gave me a chance to explore a fresh new place. I still
believe this-tattooing is the only visual art form available that
is totally without pretension.
This artist touches on a feature of the tattooing occupation that
was most commonly cited as the major ongoing reward by experienced
tattooists. InteraCting with clients, ascertaining their
needs, developing trust. fulfilling their desires, and vicariously