TATTOO AN EXHIBITION at the Natural History Museum of Los Angeles November 19 – April 15 2018

Located in Los Angeles near USC and some pretty awesome public transport.

From the Website:

What is a tattoo?

Maybe it’s a sign of identity, a rite of passage, a visible memory, or a piece of art to be collected and worn on the most intimate of canvases, the human skin. Tattooing is humanity’s shared legacy – spanning across the world and time.

Where Ink Meets Skin

Whether their needles are made of cactus spines, citrus thorns, or metal, tattooists across cultures and time have used a common method: puncture the skin and deposit pigment.

Why Do We Tattoo?

Tattoos can also be a sign of belonging to a community, a mark made without a person’s consent, a spiritual practice, or an art form—and that’s only the tip of the iceberg.

A World Heritage

Explore the omnipresent nature and diversity of tattoo across the world. Including works from Ainu in Japan, Māori tradition of tā moko in New Zealand, contemporary works from China, and so much more.

Art on the Move

Originally associated with sailors and sideshow performers, innovations in electric tattooing and transportation made tattooing accessible across Europe, Japan, and North America, sparking a renaissance in Western tattoo.

Los Angeles: Local Goes Global

L.A. is central to the story of contemporary tattoo. From the U.S. Navy’s Pacific Fleet at the Long Beach Pike to the birth of black-and-grey realism, local styles soon reached tattoo shops all over the world and altered our expectations of tattoo.

Tattoo Today

If you look at all of the inked skin around you, the artistry is astonishing. After 5,000 years, tattoo flourishes in riotous variety, and has moved off the skin to influence other art forms, fashion, product design, and beyond.

Tattoo Parlor

Lets GO check it out.  If you have any questions comments observations or suggestions concerns or have something to add to the story hit me up on the twitter @hotdogla.

Send your tattoo story and tag #tattooNHMLA for a chance to be featured on their website, inside the exhibition, or in their marketing campaign. NHMLA ask ” Every tattoo has a story. What’s yours?”