Tattooing is a mobile art. The work literally travels from place to place, oftentimes never to be seen again by the artist. Tattoos like those pictured in Vintage Tattoo Flash were historically acquired as mementos: colorful landmarks of a particular time and place in the life of their wearer.

Traditionally, a tattoo told of adventure on the high seas, the allure of foreign lands, lush green jungles, or the memory of a swaying hula girl beneath the tropical moon. These "souvenir" tattoos were seen on travelers such as the early Christian pilgrims, soldiers, sailors, migrant tradesmen, carnival people, and ordinary folks that found themselves on the move.

In days gone by, the tattoo shop was seen as a safe port in the stormy, restless lives of its clients—a welcoming refuge where a language of dreams was spoken in the buzz of the tattoo machine and the dance of magical needles across skin. A tattooist was confidant and spiritual anchor to the legions of the seven seas, and had a glimpse of human nature not seen by practitioners of other trades. The old-school tattoo man was a merchant of fantasies; a shaman to his client's personal rites of passage. Often, however, the tattooist himself was the one on the move, roaming from port to port before moving on —“gypsying” as one well-known traveling carnival tattooist called it.

In those days before tattoo shops were as common as hair salons, it behooved a tattooist to follow the seasons. Sometimes the itinerant tattooist would sit in with another permanently based practitioner during busy periods, before moving on to catch the next payday stampede. This practice remains alive and well in today’s tattoo world. In these times of budget airfares, the Internet, and satellite communications, the world has grown much smaller. Through the efforts of publications dedicated to exploring new frontiers in tattooing, the demand for quality work and the creative potential of the art have likewise grown with unprecedented speed. But, as it was in the days of Marco Polo, tattooing continues to be an art form that gets around.

The once mysterious world of the tattoo has now arrived at a wonderful juncture in its haphazard evolution—one that, once upon a not-so-distant time, many never could have imagined. The Information Age's overwhelming media glut surrounding the art in the last few decades has spawned a worldwide mainstream tattoo culture. With the rapid proliferation of international tattoo conventions, "reality" based television, and an avalanche of printed matter, the world has gone tattoo crazy! From Buenos Aires to Bangkok, tattoo styles have blended and homogenized in a modern high-tech upheaval, the likes of which few art forms have ever experienced—and which fewer have survived intact.

This book is a rare museum-quality selection of historical artwork from my personal collection—one of the world’s most extensive archives—taking post-modern tattoo enthusiasts on a privileged visual journey deep into the roots of one of our most ancient and popular art forms. Feast your eyes!

Text by Jonathan Shaw

For more information:
Jonathan Shaw Vintage Flash Tattoo: 100 Years of Traditional Tattoos from the Collection of Jonathan Shaw, published by powerHouse Books.