The Art Of Tattoo
Your Mission:
-Come up with a symbolic tattoo design
-Think about the placement of the design, what part of the body is it going to be on, does it effect the design?
-You need to have a main ‘picture’ or subject. It should represent something about you/meaningful to you
-You should have Supporting details- lines, design, etc. so picture is not ‘floating’ and flows well
-You should have Value create Shading in colored pencil- fades out toward the edges
-It should be a Crisp, clear design
-Be Original, do not copy a tattoo off of the internet
-It should be about 6"x6" if you plan to enter it into the competition.
-The Wining design, I will get Tattooed.
-Come up with a symbolic tattoo design
-Think about the placement of the design, what part of the body is it going to be on, does it effect the design?
-You need to have a main ‘picture’ or subject. It should represent something about you/meaningful to you
-You should have Supporting details- lines, design, etc. so picture is not ‘floating’ and flows well
-You should have Value create Shading in colored pencil- fades out toward the edges
-It should be a Crisp, clear design
-Be Original, do not copy a tattoo off of the internet
-It should be about 6"x6" if you plan to enter it into the competition.
-The Wining design, I will get Tattooed.
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Colour Symbolism
(Colours in the Western World) Red: excitement, energy, passion, love, desire, speed, strength, power, heat, aggression, danger, fire, blood, war, violence, all things intense and passionate Pink: symbolizes love and romance, caring, tenderness, acceptance and calm Beige / Ivory: symbolize unification / Ivory symbolizes quiet and pleasantness / Beige symbolizes calm and simplicity Yellow: joy, happiness, betrayal, optimism, idealism, imagination, hope, sunshine, summer, gold, philosophy, dishonesty, cowardice, jealousy, covetousness, deceit, illness, hazard and friendship Blue: peace, tranquility, cold, calm, stability, harmony, unity, trust, truth, confidence, conservatism, security, cleanliness, order, loyalty, sky, water, technology, depression, appetite suppressant Turquoise: calm / Teal symbolizes sophistication / Aquamarine symbolizes water / lighter turquoise has a feminine appeal Purple: royalty, nobility, spirituality, ceremony, mysterious, transformation, wisdom, enlightenment, cruelty, arrogance, mourning Lavender: femininity, grace and elegance Orange: energy, balance, enthusiasm, warmth, vibrant, expansive, flamboyant, demanding of attention Green: nature, environment, healthy, good luck, renewal, youth, spring, generosity, fertility, jealousy, inexperience, envy, misfortune, vigor Brown: earth, stability, hearth, home, outdoors, reliability, comfort, endurance, simplicity, and comfort Grey: security, reliability, intelligence, staid, modesty, dignity, maturity, solid, conservative, practical, old age, sadness, boring / Silver symbolizes calm White: reverence, purity, birth, simplicity, cleanliness, peace, humility, precision, innocence, youth, winter, snow, good, sterility, marriage (Western cultures), death (Eastern cultures), cold, clinical Black: power, sexuality, sophistication, formality, elegance, wealth, mystery, fear, evil, unhappiness, depth, style, evil, sadness, remorse, anger, anonymity, underground, good technical color, mourning, death (Western cultures) (Colours in the Eastern World) Pink: marriage Green: eternity, family, harmony, health, peace, posterity Red: happiness Grey: helpful Blue / Purple: wealth White: children, helpful people, marriage, mourning, peace, purity, travel Gold: strength, wealth Black: evil or sadness Other Examples of Symbolism
Apple: can mean love, knowledge, wisdom, joy, death, and/or luxury Anchor: hope, steadfastness, salvation, stability, and/or tranquility Arrow: a highly phallic image, evoking notions of piercing, penetrating masculinity, becoming the predominant symbol of the universal Father and of fathers in general Bell: joy and freedom Bones: the indestructible life, yet also may represent mortality and the transitory Bridge: communication and union Book: knowledge and wisdom Candle: light in the darkness of life especially individual life, illumination; it is the symbol of holy illumination of the spirit of truth Castle: enclosure, of the walled and defended city; often, the castle holds some treasure Circle: represents the notions of totality, wholeness, original perfection, the Self, the infinite, eternity, timelessness, all cyclic movement Door: transition and metamorphosis Earth: commonly seen as feminine, the great Mother, nourishment, fertility, infinite creativity, and/or longevity Egg: new life, life-energy Eyes: clairvoyance, omniscience, and/or a gateway into the soul Feather: absolute lightness, flight, the element of wind and air Fire: consumes, warms, and illuminates, but can also bring pain and death Flower: universal symbols of young life, beauty, lust and the realm of the erotic Garden: an earthly paradise, soul, innocence and happiness Gate: entryway into an unknown place, or a place of great significance, it is a threshold, and may connect the living and the dead Halo: emphasizes wisdom and life force emanating from the head, and it usually tied with the notion of the supernatural Hand: in general it is strength, power and protection; however, it can just as easily mean generosity, hospitality and stability Heart: the locus of physical and spiritual being, compassion and understanding, life-giving and complex, love House: a sacred place and it is an image of the universe; it parallels the sheltering aspect of the great Mother, and it is the center of civilization Ivy: eternity and life, immortality Key: powers of opening and closing, and denotes liberation, knowledge, mystery, and initiation Ladder (Stairs): the connection between heaven and earth Lightning: traditional symbol of sudden illumination and the destruction of ignorance Mask: hiding emotion and personality Mirror: reflection of the soul; absolute truth Moon: the rhythm of time, the cycles of the moon symbolize immortality and eternity Mountain: divine inspiration and it is the focus of pilgrimages of transcendence and spiritual elevation Necklace: dignity and office, but is also a binding symbol; it is the threading together, or connection Night: ignorance, the unconscious, and latent potential, sleep, dreams, sexual pleasure, and death Ocean: the beginning of life on Earth, and symbolizes formlessness, the unfathomable, and chaos, it can also be seen as a symbol of stability Pearl: perfection and incorruptibility, long life and fertility Pillar: the bridge between heaven and earth, the vertical axis which both unites and divides these two realms, it also represents stability, and a broken pillar represents death and mortality Queen: the great feminine principle Rain: may either serve as life-giving or life-destroying, it is revitalizing, fertilizing, and heavenly, and often marks acts of purification Rainbow: heavenly glory, of celestial wonder, the rainbow often symbolizes transfiguration, and behaves as a bridge between earth and Paradise River: life itself, a rite of passage that has just been completed Rock: the ultimate embodiment of permanence, stability, and reliability Star: the presence of divinity Sun: the absolute cosmic power, the universal Father Thorn: sin, sorrow and hardship Train: social life, destiny Tree: the feminine, nourishing, sheltering image of the great Mother, evocative of eternity Umbrella: the canopy of the heavens, shelter, and protection Unicorn: healing powers, purity and strength Valley: fertility and life Veil: the pre-enlightened state, hidden knowledge, secrecy, illusion, and ignorance Water: life, birth, fertility and refreshment Web: an intricate network of space and time, the great cosmic plan Wheel: movement Whirlpool (Spiral): the source of life Yin-Yang: universal complimentary opposites, dualities Zero: the absence of all, without quantity or quality, the perfect form, the ultimate mystery |
Animal Symbolism
Ant: diligence, industry, community, remarkable strength, hardworking, success, patience Badger: aggression, healing, architect Bat: rebirth, longevity, joy, good luck, dreaming, union Bear: gentle strength, dreaming, introspection, power, protection, healing Beaver: builder, accomplishing goals, family, industriousness Bee: divine messenger, love, service, gathering, community, Goddess, rebirth Bird: enlightenment, perspective, swiftness, vision, prophetic knowledge Boar: bravery, honor, fertility Butterfly: rebirth, the soul, transformation, the three phases of life, joy Buffalo (Bison): abundance, strength, determination Cat: feminine energy, mystical power, used to keep the wearer safe in travel, wholeness, independence, psychic, and hunter Coyote: trickster, adaptation, intelligence Crane: transforming action, dance, meditation Cricket: good luck charm, singing, Spring, fertility Crow (Raven): sacred/natural law, gateway to supernatural, shape shifting, illusion, council / magic, messenger, divine trickster Deer: graceful gentleness, sensitivity, compassion, kindness, magic, alertness Dingo: guardian, psychic, adaptability Dog: companionship, health, service, loyalty, protection, future prosperity, love, guardian Dolphin: manna, joy, childlike play, helpfulness, breath of life, harmony, intelligence, self-connection, protection, sexuality Dragonfly: good fortune, magic, vision, dreams, luck, and ancient knowledge, illusion Dragon: wisdom due to long lives and potent magic, royalty, Emperor, eternity, courage, strength, rain, Spring Duck: abundance, play, feelings Eagle: messenger, spirit, vision Elk: masculine power, territory, brotherhood Falcon: striking, velocity, all seeing Fish: miracles, providence, sea/water magic, good luck and prosperity, foresight, fortune, salmon in particular, are associated with knowledge Fox: camouflage, adaptability, integration, tricksters, shape shifters, and possessors of great magic, family, survival, voice Frog: healing, cleansing, messages, health, honesty, fluidity, purification, song, fertility Goose: soul, leadership, guardian Grasshopper: nobility, prosperity Hawk: messenger, presence, precision Heron: guardian, focus, mirror Horse: power, stamina, speed, transportation and communication, freedom, sharing, mystery (a black horse with a white marking on its forehead is lucky) Hummingbird: joy, pure love, celebration of life, beauty Jaguar: shaman, integrity, self-awareness Kangaroo: conservation of energy, timing, fertility Koala: introspection, appreciation, transforming toxins Ladybug: delight, trust, awakening, introspection, protector Lizard: dreaming, illumination, protection Mole: inner knowledge, exploring the depths, lower world Monkey: movement, inquisitiveness, social equilibrium Moose: wisdom of the stones, masculinity, voice Mountain Lion (Cougar): balance, courage, independence Mouse: touch, trust, sensitivity Osprey: seeking, four directions, purpose Otter: medicine (woman), balanced feminine energy, play, go with the flow Owl: deception, wisdom, clairvoyance, magic, intuition, hunter Peacock: wholeness, dignity, beauty, recognition, self-assurance, pride Penguin: respect, loyalty, subconscious Pig: rebirth and rejuvenation Possum: spirit journeys, upper world, knowledge Rabbit: fear, fertility, moon magic, speed, swiftness, longevity, courage, strength, humility, abundance, love Raccoon: dexterity, disguise, trickster, magic Reindeer (Caribou): equality, balance, frugality Robin: growth, renewal Rooster: courageous, warlike disposition, warmth and life of the Universe Salmon: rebirth, plenty, wisdom Scorpion: the “fire within” that often needs careful tending Seal: inner voice, soul, provision, threshold Sheep: sacrifice Skunk: warning, reputation, respect Snake: cunning, evil, supernatural power, creation, life force energy, renewal Spider: destiny, fate, weaving Squirrel: foresight, inner fire, shaman Swan: flow, grace spirituality Turtle: mother earth, protection, introspection, stillness Weasel: boldness, rapidity, perception Whale: history, communication, ancient knowledge Wolf: teacher, a guide to the Sacred, pathfinder, family, moon Woodpecker: warrior, drumming, waves Sailor Symbols
HOLD, on the knuckles of one hand and FAST, on the other. This is said to help the seaman to better hold the riggings. A PIG, on the top of one foot and a ROOSTER, on the other. This is said to protect the seaman from drowning, because both of these barnyard animals cannot swim so they would get the seaman quickly to shore. An ANCHOR showed the seaman had sailed the Atlantic Ocean. A FULL-RIGGED SHIP showed the seaman had sailed around Cape Horn. A DRAGON showed the seaman had served on a China station. A SHELLBACK TURTLE denotes a seaman who has crossed the equator. A GOLDEN DRAGON denotes a seaman who has crossed the International Date Line. PORT & STARBOARD ship lights were tattooed on the left (port) and right (starboard) side of the body. ROPE, tattooed around the wrist meant the seaman was a deckhand. |
Styles of Tattoos
Tribal (Polynesian and Maori are the traditional styles of this genre)
Old School / Sailor
Chicano (Fine Line, usually Black & White)
Asian
Biomechanical
In the past, tattoos were stigmatized due to concentration camps and criminals.....
However, today there are some really cool things you can do, just be original........
and if you are going to get a tattoo, Be Safe!
Go to a REPUTABLE studio with proper training and certification
Tattoo artist should be wearing gloves, and open everything in front of you
It should be a Sterile work area
Use common sense!
Complications can include HIV, Hepatitis, and infection if you are not careful!
Tattoo artist should be wearing gloves, and open everything in front of you
It should be a Sterile work area
Use common sense!
Complications can include HIV, Hepatitis, and infection if you are not careful!
You Don't want one of these.......
The Annual Contest
There will be two rounds of voting. The General Vote and the Final Four, the one with the most Votes wins.....
It could be you...
It could be you...