Native American tattoos
The appearance of the tattooed aborigines in Europe aroused great interest. Soon none of the respectable event, fair or circus could happen without the appearance of such “barbarian”. In the end of the nineteenth century the popularity of such aborigines ceased and instead of them tattooed Americans or Europeans took part in these shows.
In the end of the same century tattoo became extremely popular in the United States of America. In the year of 1891 the American Samuel o’Reilly invented the electric tattoo machine. However, it didn’t have great influence on native American tattoo value of that time. Native American tattoos remained the privilege of the sailors, miners and people of several other professions. The pictures were not very different and picturesque. For all the first half of the twentieth century native American tattoos were mainly represented by the standard set of images.
O’Reilly’s invention instantly became very popular with Americans. Across the country many tattoo shops were open and there was even the production of special instrument and pigments. In the arsenal of the tattoo artists there appeared electric machines, that actually haven’t changed for the last century or so.
In the twentieth century native American tattoos appeared several times on the peak of the fashion. The new era in the tattoo art began in 50s and 60s. The images of the cultures of the East, Polynesia and American Indians in combinations with the ambitions of the experimenting tattoo artist built the native American style. From that time tattoo occupies a good place there among other kinds of body art.
In 60s in America among the attendants of the tattoo shop could be seen rock’n’roll people. The youth, seeing their idols’ tattooed body, eagerly followed their example. The industry worked in full. American native tattoos became very popular, there appeared a lot of specialized magazines and books and even schools were opened.
From the end of 70s different conventions in native American tattoos began to form – the festivals of tattoos. The first convention took place in New York in 1976 and from this time they appear several times a year in different cities of the United States of America. A lot of people – beginners and professionals, come to these events from different countries, masters and students demonstrate their pieces of art, share the secrets and ideas. Local citizens also eagerly come to see native American tattoo designs on human bodies, different contests are shows are held.
During the last 15 years the fashion for the native American tattoos overwealmed everyone. Today this tattoo for American people became the thing of mass culture: doctors and advocates, politics and businessmen, university professors and housewives cover themselves with native American tattoos. Men, evidently, consider tattoo to be the symbol of everything masculine, while women see something mysterious and sexual in such tattoos. Some people want to stick to the common tendency, while the others, opposite, see in this the opportunity to show off. The interest is becoming more strong with the popularity of the native American tattoos among popular American people – Frank Sinatra, Johnny Depp, Julia Roberts, John Bon Jovi – all of them eagerly demonstrate their tattoos on the screens of televisions and on the pages of fashionable magazines. It is necessary to say that native American tattoo designs are popular not only in the United States of America, but also all over the world.