Written by Zachary O’dell

Photos of Preslee Crowl, Kendall Darnell, and Zachary O’dell by Mindy Welland

Tattoos are described as a marking, symbolic figure, design, or phase fixed to the skin—applied art decorating the body with permanent ink. Rising tattoo popularity in our society is seen through fashion, self-expression, and culture. A tattoo is not just ink, it’s an extension or expression symbolizing protection, strength, mental health, beauty, indescribable emotion, interest, or a piece of who someone is.

The decoration of tattoos didn’t form out of thin air, and it wasn’t created in our century or even by our generation. The earliest discovery of this decoration first originated in 5000 BCE. The Greeks first learned this skill from the Persians, using it as an identification source for slaves and criminals. In turn, came the Roman's adaptation of this practice.

Hundreds of years ago countless cultures and tribes – Polynesians, Maori, Picts, Berber, Sak Yant – contain symbolic connections with this practice. Ancient Egyptian societies had tattoos symbolizing religious affiliation, African cultures utilized this form of body art to decorate their bodies, and Native American tribes embraced this art as an expression of spirituality.

The rise of tattoos became part of fashion by the 1970s. Individuals formed a punk style and associated tattoos with the trend of dark-torn clothing, plaid, and vast metal accessories. Many people consider tattoos as self-destructive, offensive, and unsafe; viewing this decoration as someone ruining their body or fearing that they’ll regret it when they’re older. Through time, society has come to accept tattoos as beautiful body art. In the 1980s, 1990s, and into the twenty-first century, mainstream culture has progressed beyond this negative fixation with tattoos. Many have begun to adore this practice and embrace the art of creating designs on the skin. Social rebellion brought forth the views on tattoos seen in society today—forefronting the popularity and general understanding that tattoos are more than just ink.

Our generation is no different than past generations; tattoos will constantly be an art of decoration, a way of expressing one’s internal feelings, aesthetics, personality, and beliefs to the external world. Each decade has brought change in tattoo culture—whether through tattoo trends, cultural shifts, progress in art forms, or the continuous self-acceptance advancing in our world. Teachers, surgeons, lawyers, models, and all-class citizens are featured in this decoration. Social media highlights the beauty of this marking and companies are no longer basing hiring decisions on whether an individual has a tattoo. The uprise in the normalization of tattoos and the acceptance within our society is expanding rapidly. It’s either you get on board with this trend, or you get out; the world of fashion stops for no one.