Body Art and Contemporary Tattoos

Body Art and Contemporary Tattoos

This article looks at some of the work of a contemporary tattoo artist who calls himself Tassos Artattoo. He is indeed an artist, creating tattoos which have depth and light.

Body art is not new; people have been adorning their body with natural dyes such as woad and indigo at least since the Stone Age. People all over the world have a fascination for this decorative kind of art. Think of the traditional Mehndi designs from the Asian sub-continent, the tattoos of Pacific islanders, Maori moko, the tattoos of tribal rituals and the adorning of the body in Africa. In Europe today, tattooing and body piercing are becoming increasingly popular.

Contemporary Tattoos

Tattooing has now evolved into an art form, and is no longer confined to the “Mum” tattoos with hearts and flowers, or the “Liza loves Jim” ones. They are eons away from the indelible ink tattoos which prisoners with time on their hands made – perhaps love on the knuckles on one hand and hate on the other. The new kinds of tattoo are very personal and take hours and several sessions to complete; finally the client walks out of the tattoo artist’s studio with a unique piece of art which may or may not be displayed to the general public.

Tassos Artattoo – one of the Modern Tattooists

Today tattooists are artists and I have found this to be the case of Tassos Artattoo, a Greek tattoo artist who lives and works in Athens, Greece. He has been making tattoos professionally since 2006, and some of his own designs are simply stunning. He is a talented artist although he is very modest about it. He uses shades, preferably black and grey to create depth and light in his designs. He consults with the client before embarking on the tattooing process and tries to understand exactly what he/she wants. He commented “A tattoo artist should be polite, a good listener and modest,” Believing this is probably why he has gained an international following.

  He says that tattoos are a form of art which are for everyone, and as they last a lifetime they are serious pieces of art, which form a bond between Arts  and the individual. They are also highly personal and can express the feelings, attitudes and emotions of the individual.

Tassos and his Inspiration

Tassos Artattoo has always been interested in art and worked for three years as a graphic designer before he became a tattoo artist. He admits to liking the work of such diverse artist as Salvador Dali, Edvard Munch, Peter Blake and M.C. Escher, and some of his designs are certainly surreal. Others, such as his cat tattoo are very realistic. He works from sketches, drawings, designs and so on as well as models (such as skulls), paying meticulous attention to detail. He says that he gets his inspiration for designs from music, and also from books, and he likes to listen to music while he makes a tattoo.

Tasssos Artattoo is typical of the new breed of tattooists and if you believed that tattooing is not an art form, you should check out his work. Perhaps one day you will be able to see him demonstrating his form of art at an international tattooists’ convention.