Our Art is Just as Fine as Yours

Here is a sample of some of my writting;  I hope that if you do not agree with my side of the argument, that you can at least appreciate where I am coming from:

Their eighteenth birthday is one of those special birthdays that kids often look forward to because of all the new things they will be able to do. That birthday opens an entirely new world for many: they can smoke, they can buy porn, and they can legally get a tattoo or piercing without parental consent. They are adults, so they run out and do all of that. After graduation, they go off to college where they continue to have a great time and get educated before joining the real world. Suddenly after the college graduation though, it’s time to become a real adult and get a real job. They go to interview s but are told, “You’ll have to cover your tattoo.” Bam! So what about a tattoo makes it so awful that people don’t approve and even refuse someone employment because of them, while at the same time hanging up huge pieces of fine “artwork” in their homes or businesses?


When we go to a museum or an art gallery, there are so many different types of art. There are drawings, paintings, photographs, sculptures, carvings, and the list continues. When though, do we ever see a tattoo on display? Just because a tattoo isn’t found in a gallery, doesn’t mean it isn’t art. The chances that someone would ever choose to stand at a gallery for hours on end to show off their tattoo are pretty doubtful. Although this form of art has been seen throughout history and is even regarded as sacred or spiritual in some cultures, it is usually not acclaimed, never considered professional, and often taboo in sophisticated social circles; the same circles of people that frequent galleries and museums.

If schools are teaching their students that fine art can be defined as art with aesthetic qualities, then tattoos should easily fall within the category of fine art. For many individuals, their tattoos are a part of them. The permanent artwork has deep meanings and messages within it. Many times the pictures depict beliefs and sometimes even spiritual ideas. Tattoos are their skin.

Tattoo artists take their art seriously. They practice and research this art of theirs. When they complete a piece, they take pride in it. The artists often take pictures to use in portfolios as samples of their work. Often they will even have guidelines, rules, or even superstitions about their work and how they complete it. The skin is a tattooist’s canvas; a canvas that, once invested in, can be carried around wherever the owner travels.

So, why the stigma that comes from a tattoo? Although they used to represent many ugly and violent things, tattoos have become artwork – fine artwork! They have become so beautiful and meaningful today. Tattoos are more original than any print you will ever find in a gallery or museum because you can never copy them exactly. They are one of a kind. Tattoos should be regarded as highly as any other piece of fine art, and the owner should be able to display them just as proudly!