I’m an avid collector of tattoos, although I choose my artists and designs carefully even I am worried that I am covering myself far too quickly. In the space of a year I have acquired numerous tattoos and blown my student loan. But should this matter? Are we desperately trying to be covered, to be a tattooed person that we lose sight of many of the reasons behind tattoos? Not every tattoo should have a meaning but getting tattooed for the sake of it is in many eyes foolish.
A girl I used to go to school with has recently had two complete arm sleeves done in a matter of months. Has she thought enough about the designs, the placement or is she driven by a need to become tattooed in a fashionable and trendy way?
She has chosen one local studio and artists, which is a shame when there are so many incredibly talented and diverse tattooers around. You just have to join Instagram to be bombarded with amazing tattoos. This is where I find my artists and inspiration, I have a growing list of ideas and tattooists that I plan on getting at some point. Sadly it’s the money side of things that prevents many of us from being tattooed too often.
But are we getting tattooed too young? Should we be getting chest pieces at 18? Should we be covering ourselves in fashionable imagery? Should we be getting our hands tattooed way before anything else?
There is also the worry that we will run out of space, of skin; that other artists will come along who we cannot add to our collections. Or that our tastes will change as we age, we will want to document other experiences and add other artwork but simply will not have the gaps to do so. Yes there is lasering, but it’s a painful and expensive process. Should you have to sacrifice tattoos that you once loved just to get new ones?