What are tattoos? – Some History on Body Art
What are tattoos you ask? A tattoo is a form of body art which can be traced back deep through the lineage of humanity. It is created by putting pigment into the skin and then allowing the skin to then heal over the pigment resulting in a permanent discoloration of the skin.
The pigment can be inserted with needles, sharp animal or plant quills or even cut in with knives or other sharp tools. Modern tattooing is created with stainless steel needles attached to electromagnetic coils which create a back and forth motion which then pushes the needled in and out of the skin. This machine is commonly referred to as a tattoo gun.
The needles are dipped into ink and then rapidly pushed in and out of the skin thousands of times a minute. One configuration of needles is used for creating lines of the artwork and another configuration is used to apply the shading.
Some traditional Japanese tattooists still use a tool which holds the needles and a hammer which they then tap the needle tool with.
The reasons people get tattoos are too numerous to possibly count, but generally speaking they may be religious in nature, they may mark a rite of passage, they might represent a philosophy or historical event, they might express admiration for an idea, a person, an organization, a tribe or group the person belongs to or even mark the dates of a deceased loved one.
Some tattoos are very well thought out and every bit a valid piece of art as a painting in a museum. Some tattooists are world renowned and their work is incredibly expensive and highly sought after. Some tattoos are just mistakes reminiscent of scribbles and bad adolescent art more suitable for a brown paper textbook cover.
What are tattoos? A tattoo is an art form you wear. As with all art, artists and owners of art, there is good and bad and the line between the two is often wrought with opinion.
What are tattoo needles made of? – Different Materials are Used for Delivering Tattoo Ink
When asking what are tattoo needles made of, one must first define what kind of tattoo it is, what time in history it is being created, what style of application is being used and sometimes the environment it is being created within.
Modern tattoo needles are made from stainless steel which are shaped and sized depending upon the type of work they will be performing. Some needles are used singularly for fine line detail work while others are used in groups for various types of wider lines and shading. Some groups are soldered together in a flat row and others are formed in a round configuration.
The needles in a tattoo gun are like the brushes of a painter. Although there are some standards, there are plenty of choices for each artist to pick and choose or even custom design and manufacture his or her own.
Another form of tattoo needle is the traditional Japanese style. Instead of being used with a tattoo gun, these needles are attached to a metal or wood handle and then worked into the skin by hand. Sometimes pushed and pulled or sometimes lightly tapped with a kind of small hammer. This type of tattoo is much slower to apply and takes much longer to learn how to apply than modern electric tattoo guns. Still, this form is alive and well in not only Japan, but to some small degree, in the US and abroad as well.
Other more rudimentary forms of tattoo needles are found in jails and other non traditional, homemade settings. These could include sewing needles, guitar or other instrument strings, staples, paperclips, fine nails, razorblades and many other forms of small pieces of metal.
So ultimately, what are tattoo needles made of? Historically, pretty much whatever people can get a hold of.
