Tattooed Teachers - E Lecture

Tattooed Art Educators

In The Philadelphia Art Classroom

Freedom of Expression

As an Art Education student, I am required to spend some time in the field as both an observer and an instructor/teacher’s helper in the Art classroom. I quickly found out from the various Art Education personnel I met, that just like in the rest of the working world, my tattoos were not welcome. None of the women I met and spoke with had a personal issue with my visible tattoos, they just simply felt that they could be a distraction to the Art students I would encounter. It is for that reason that they recommended I cover up the tattoos on both of my fore arms and inner arms. Unlike my job in the past as a TPSO (Transportation Protection Specialist Officer) at the Kansas City International airport, the restriction of the showing of my tattoos was simply something they felt should be done as a courtesy, and not part of a written work policy. Upon my own reviewing of the University of the Arts Faculty Handbook and Governance Manual, April 2007, I found there is no mention anywhere of tattoos or a regulation of dress code. In a July 2007 survey by Vault, only 16% of various companies surveyed nationwide had a written policy regarding tattoos in the workplace. (Hemingson & Lockhart, 2007) However, there currently is a battle going on in the United Kingdom in regards to the allowance of tattoos in the workplace. (Legg, 2006 & Morrison, 2007)

The reemergence of opposition to my skin art bothered me personally. If no one was personally opposed to my tattoos, and no written policy existed against showing them in the workplace, then why should I hide them? I felt that this then would be a good topic to focus on for my research question. I began this endeavor knowing full well that due to the subject nature of one of my tattoos, it’s a nude woman posing artistically, that in the end I would probably still be forbidden from showing my tattoos in the Art Education classroom. The thing that excited me, and caused me to continue, was the fact that it forced the Educational School System to clearly define whether or not tattoos were allowed in their workplace. While my tattoo may not be acceptable to some, I know there are plenty of other people out there who have tattoos that nobody would consider unacceptable. The idea that I might be able to make their life easier by standing up for tattoos in general was enough to enable me to carry the torch for the fight for the right to bare tattoos in the Art Education workplace. Martin Luther King may not have survived to enjoy all the benefits his fight for civil rights helped to create, but his name has not been forgotten. I’m not trying to compare myself to Dr. King, I am just illustrating the point that fighting for the cause and being remembered, can be just as important as reaping its rewards.

A Brief History of Tattoos and Tattooing

Now that you know why I'm interested in tattoos, let me tell you a little about where they came from and who has them. Tattoos have been around probably since the beginning of civilization. The earliest discovered body of a human has tattoos on it. It was in October 1991, that the body of a five thousand year old man was found frozen on a mountain between Austria and Italy. He appeared to be hunting when he got caught in a snowstorm. Recent evidence shows he was murdered, and his body was left were he fell. The skin of the man was frozen and preserved. The tattoos it bears are a cross on the inside of the left knee, six straight lines fifteen centimeters long above the kidneys, and numerous parallel lines on the ankles. Professor Konrad Spindler of Innsbruck University feels that due to the placement of the tattoos, they were most likely applied for therapeutic reasons. (Gilbert, 2000)

Instruments that were probably used for tattooing during the Upper Paleolithic (10,000 B.C.E. to 38,000 B.C.E.) have been discovered at several archeological sites in Europe. Typically, they are discs made of clay and red ochre. (Gilbert, 2000)

Tattooed mummies have been found in many other parts of the world. One of the best preserved is Amunet, a priestess of the goddess Hathor at Thebes during Dynasty XI (2160 – 1994 B.C.E.). She has parallel lines tattooed on her arms and thighs, and an elliptical pattern below her navel. (Gilbert, 2000)

Tattoos have appeared on people in ancient Egypt, Polynesia, Borneo, Samoa, Marquesas, New Zealand, China, Japan, North America, South America, England, France, Italy, and the U.S.A. They have been Arabs, Jews, Christians, Buddhists, and Atheists. (Gilbert, 2000) If you study any place where people were living, more than likely at some time in their history a person was tattooed there for one reason or another.

The Polynesian word “tatao”, which means “to tap”, can be the originator of the modern word “tattoo”, though researchers suggest a Tahitian word “tatu” which means to mark something to be the distant ancestor of the modern word “tattoo”. (Hemingson & Lockhart, 2007)

The first electronic tattoo machine was invented by an American tattoo artist named Samuel O’Reilly in 1890, which gave birth to the new era of tattooing in which people started to have different kinds of tattoos on various parts of their body. (Gilbert, 2000) Originally, tattoos were thought to be something that only criminals, drunkards, and sailors had. In today’s day and age most people have a tattoo. Therefore, you are just as likely to find them on educators, doctors, and lawyers.

The National Geographic News stated in April 2000 that 15% of Americans were tattooed (approximately 40 million people). Those numbers just keep going up. A Harris Poll, done in 2003 estimated that 16% of Americans now have one or more tattoos. Thirty-six percent of those ages 18 to 25, and 40% of those ages 26 to 40, have at least one tattoo, according to a fall 2006 survey by the Pew Research Center. A 2006 study done by the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology found that 24% of Americans between 18 and 50 are tattooed. Their survey also showed that about 36% of Americans age 18 to 29 have at least one tattoo. (Hemingson & Lockhart, 2007) Whether it’s one person in five or one person in four, the fact is tattoos have only gained in popularity, and show no signs of slowing down. According to the U.S. News & World Report, there are an estimated 20,000+ parlors operating in the United States. They stated that on the average, a new tattoo establishment is being added in the country every day. (Hemingson & Lockhart, 2007)

How can you help?

I decide to ask people an important question. Should visible tattoos be allowed for Art Educators in the Philadelphia Art Classroom? In simple words, should Art Teachers in Philadelphia be allowed to have tattoos that their students can see while they're teaching them? What do you think? You know why I'm asking this question, and you now know some basic information about tattoos. So, why don't you help answer the question? I designed a survey that you can take so I can see how others in the field of Art Education feel. The links are below. Simply click on each one and take the survey. Thanks!

Survey - Part One

Survey - Part Two


Do you still want to know more about tattoos?

The book, Tattoo History: a source book, (Gilbert, 2007), was very useful in providing information on the origins of tattoos and tattooing. It mentions all the different areas in the world tattooing is done and why. It also provided lots of visually stunning images to compare the differences and similarities in tattoo styles from region to region, even though none of them actually appear here.

The online site, The Vanishing Tattoo, (Hemingson & Lockhart, 2007), also provided me with lots of useful information on the origins of tattoos and tattooing. It too also provided me with lots of colorful photos and detailed drawings, which made it easy to compare the various tattoo styles used around the world. It also had plenty of images of contemporary tattoos. As an online resource, it is constantly updated and continues to provide a wealth of information in regards to tattoos and the Art of tattooing.

That's all folks!

I hope you enjoyed learning about tattoos. The next time you see one you'll know there's a whole lot of history behind that pretty picture. If you're thinking about getting a tattoo, there's a good book that details the entire process called, Ink: The Not-Just-Skin-Deep Guide to Getting a Tattoo. Remember, in most states you have to be at least 18 to get a tattoo, and it costs a whole lot more to get one removed than it does to get one. If you're still unsure, consider getting a temporary tattoo. They cost a lot less and are not permanent. You might even consider a Henna tattoo, but that's another whole lecture!