Indigenous peoples have a long history of tattooing before European colonization, which deserves and will receive its own article in a later issue of Art on Skin Magazine.
Post-Revolution: Tattoos became part of a seaman’s “protection papers”, which established US citizenship and gave protection from British ships. Seamen would often get tattooed as a distinguishing mark so they could be specifically identified in these papers.
1800’s – Tattoos remained popular among naval/seamen but were considered mostly taboo in general society. Seaman also started to get tattoos for self-expression rather than self-preservation by the mid-1800’s.
1870 – Martin Hildebrandt opened what is widely considered the first tattoo studio on Oak Street in New York City
Circa 1882 – Nora Hildebrandt (daughter of Martin Hildebrandt) debuts as one of the first tattooed ladies at Bunnell’s Museum in New York. Her advertised story (now considered entirely farcical) involved being kidnapped by Sitting Bull, who ordered her father to tattoo most of her body under pain of death. She is considered the first professional tattooed woman in America.
1891 – Samuel O’Reilly patents the first electric tattoo machine. This revolutionizes the tattoo industry!
Late 1800’s – Ink-covered “Tattooed Ladies” become a popular attraction at the circus. These ladies were almost completely covered and were a popular attraction.
Early 1900’s – Maud Wagner is widely credited as America’s first female tattoo artist. She and her husband Gus became a famous tattooed and tattooing duo in the circus circuit.
1936 – By the mid-1930’s, 1 in 10 Americans had a tattoo. (see LIFE Magazine’s original 1936 spread on tattoos later in this issue!)
Late 1950’s – Lyle Tuttle, Cliff Raven, Don Nolan, Zeke Owens, and Spider Webb influence the tattoo scene in a big “tattoo wave”.
1970’s – a second wave of tattooing, led by Bob Roberts, Jamie Summers, Jack Rudy and Don Ed Hardy, occurred in America.
1988 – scholar Arnold Rubin publishes “Marks of Civilization”, which looks at the history of tattooing in different cultures around the world. As part of his book, he coined the term “Tattoo Renaissance”.
Early 1990’s – A shift in tattoo culture leads to more personalized and individually designed tattoos, a departure from flash designs.
2000’s – Tattooing enters pop culture with shows like Miami Ink, LA Ink, Inked, and eventually Ink Master.
Late 2000’s – Contemporary and Visual Art Institutions feature exhibits on tattooing.
2011 – Mattel releases the first ever tattooed Barbie.
2024 – Art on Skin Magazine gets created out of the comradery between the women of the 2024 Inked Magazine Cover Girl Competition.
