Customizing the Body (PDF file) - Print My Tattoo

29 Introduction
style. the occupation of tattooing. and its redefinition as a legitimate
form of artistic production. Coming from a higher socioeconomic
background than the traditional tattooee. the new client
commonly has more disposable income. emphasizes the decorative/aesthetic
function of the tattoo over its affiliative/selfdefinitional
function. and shares the tattoo artist's interest in the
production of a uniquely creative and innovative custom-designed
image. The fairly homogeneous "taste public" (Gans. 1974) traditionally
centered around tattooing has given way to an enlarged
and more diverse market that has. in turn. led to a correspondingly
more heterogeneous repertoire of available styles. This key
interaction between artists and a new client population which
both drives and supports stylistic change is described by tattooist
D. E. Hardy (1982: 47-48).
The designs (value symbols) developed and plied as stock in
trade over the last hundred years have become inadequate or
antiquated to many portions of the society served. The growth
of interest in this form of expression by a wider range of people
has called for expanded imagery and more specialized
stylists.... New people with ability and interest are changing
the content of the field. Innovative forms arise from a thin
creative segment of the crowd and disperse in diluted form to
alter popular tastes. This is the result of original ideas
commissioned by clients seeking something unique. filtered
through a talented artist. the personal taste of a tattooer
presenting new forms. or the adaptation of images from other
media.
This relationship between a changing market and innovation in
tattooing is a specific example of what has come to be a general
understanding within the sociology of art: art product consumers
are not passive receptors but act. both indiVidually and collectively.
to shape and constrain the style of art works (see Becker.
1982: 312-313; Watson. 1968; Henning. 1960; Rosenberg and
Fliegel. 1970; Faulkner. 1983). This principle is particularly apparent
in tattooing since few artistic relationships are as intimate
and interactive as that between the tattooist and his or her client
(Tucker. 1981: 44-47). Tattooing does not entail an impersonal