Erin Paasch

6/2/2016

How is the human body adorned and/or depicted in art across the Pacific? How do these adornments and depictions define or enhance status,authority, and gender roles?

"Your necklace may break, the fau tree may burst, but my tattooing is indestructible. It is an everlasting gem that you will take into your grave."

TATTOOS ON THE HUMAN BODY

In Samoa, tattoos (tatau, as they were called by the Samoans) were a ritualistic part of life that almost all people went through, and this set of traditions has persisted and persisted for over two thousand years. This skill was passed down through family lines, though specifically through the males in the family.

"The pain was extreme and the risk of death by infection was a great concern. But to shy away from tattooing was to risk being labeled a coward" (PBS, 2003).

Males received tattoos called the Pe'a that extended from the middle of the torso to the top of the knee, and these tattoos would take many, many sessions. This process took years, and the tattoos grew and changed as the boy became a man. This tattooing process was a large part of becoming a man: if you could not withstand the pain of extensive tattooing, you could not be considered a man in the Samoan culture.

MOTIFS IN SAMOAN TATTOO

Typical Samoan tattoos included elements like geometric patterns and simplistic representations of people and animals.

In terms of pattern, certain shapes and lines held different meanings wen placed on specific parts of the body; telling a story based on the individual's life and experiences.

http://www.apolynesiantattoo.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/Ancient-Polynesian-Tattoo-Styles.jpg

This video gives a great overview of the Pacific culture practices in tattooing. Since the tattoo process has changed dramatically over time, it is important to understand the gravity of this practice and how it was such an integral part of the Samoan cultural identity.
Watch below:

CONNECTIONS- using the human body as a subject and canvas in many forms of art (painting, sculpture, performance)

Contemporary Artists
- Ana Mendieta
- "earth-body sculpture"

PARALLEL CULTURAL PRACTICES IN TATTOO: AFRICA

African tattoos, historically, have been ways to signify one's tribal identification and allegiance. This is different than the Samoan tattoo, which is used to show one's growth and progression through life and through specific milestones.

Both these cultures primarily focus on tattoo of the male body, and each has a leader that holds information and secrets of the particulars of each group's tattoo practices and idiosyncrasies.

The Artistry of Modern Tattoo
Website: https://www.buzzfeed.com/maitlandquitmeyer/inkspiration?utm_term=.meX6OmW85#.eg5Dn8qbK

Japanese Tattoo
Website: http://tattoo-journal.com/35-beautiful-japanese-tattoos/

A Look at the Use of Cultural Elements and Objects in Other Situations

BIBLIOGRAPHY

TEXTBOOK: Stokstad, Marilyn, and Michael Watt Cothren. Art History. 5th ed. Boston: Pearson, 2014. Print.

Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eWU7w0x9f3k

"History of Tattoo." Skin Stories: The Art and Culture of Polynesian Tattoo. PBS, 2003. Web. 19 May 2016. <http://www.pbs.org/skinstories/history/index.html>.

MUSEUM SOURCE: Lineberry, Cate. "Tattoos." Smithsonian History. Smithsonian, 1 Jan. 2007. Web. 19 May 2016. <http://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/tattoos-144038580/?no-ist>.

JOURNAL: Goldstein, N. and Sewell, M. (1979), III. Tattoos in Different Cultures. The Journal of Dermatologic Surgery and Oncology, 5: 857–864. doi: 10.1111/j.1524-4725.1979.tb00769.x

12 Comments

Josie ladle

6/3/2016 08:38:31 am

I really like how you made the connection between tattooing & other kinds of body art! I never would've thought to expand body art beyond tattooing in this case, but it works so well with your connections! Ana Mendieta's art is definitely really interesting... is it just me, or does the last one look a little bit like Ophelia???

Lyla Rossi

6/3/2016 08:49:58 am

I also love this because it's so related to the summer reading book we read this year, called Garden of Evening Mists by Tan Twan Eng. Of course, most of the seniors know what I'm talking about, but the story includes a Japanese man named Aritomo, who is well-practiced in the art of full-body Japanese tattoo, or horimono. However, the connotation of tattoo in Japan is a little different from what Erin mentioned. In Japan, tattoo art was a sign of misconduct, usually associated with people involved in organized crime. Tattoo was a mark of trouble and sin. Nevertheless, Japanese tattoo was an important aspect of the culture because they expressed deeper truths for people and memories, but still stands as a form of "deception," as it masks the bottom.

Lyla Rossi

6/3/2016 08:51:18 am

**body and the bottom or lowest level of the human spirit

Ben Widener

6/9/2016 09:37:58 am

I love your concise analysis of the Samoan Tatooing process and the pictures and video that explain the deep cultural meaning of the Samoan tatoo. It was also very cool how you looked at modern tatooing and compaired the two processes. It almost makes me want to get a tatoo!

Helena Trevor

6/9/2016 11:19:10 pm

Your project reminds me of Ellie's a little bit, because you explore a subject that has such a different meaning in contemporary art ans society than it did a long time ago and the evolution has changed the significance of the tattoo. I think it is interesting that tattoos in African societies and those of the sort represented a tribal allegiance or familial loyalty whereas today, tattoos are commonly seen as a form of rebellion, not connection and unity. Additionally, today we think that less is more - one tattoo to me would be more meaningful that getting them all over your body, but clearly that is perceived differently in older societies too. Very interesting topic!!

Alex Norman

6/9/2016 11:54:35 pm

This was such a neat topic! I'd have to say I'm in the same boat with Lyla. Ever since reading The Garden of Evening Mists over the summer for lit. class, I've been a lot more curious about tattoo art. One thing that really intrigued me about that book was the concept of "borrowed scenery" which is essentially the incorporation of the background landscape into the compositional structure/details of the garden. This is kind of a cool concept to considering when thinking about the Samoan tattooing practice where their life experiences or "backgrounds" are represented on their bodies with patterns and symbols.

Ishani Pendse

6/10/2016 01:10:08 am

I like how your post drew parallels among multiple cultures and a common practice that they all share. I also agree with Lyla the tattoo process is so fascinating. Austin just got a tattoo a few days ago and a few of the sensations he said he was feeling were very similar to the those detailed in Garden of Evening Mists. It is interesting to see how even now the tattoo process is so similar over hundreds of years and so many cultures.

Campbell Wharton

6/10/2016 03:01:04 am

The nature of tattoos over time is super interesting to me, especially since it's such a strange concept when you really think about it, just placing ink to say in your skin and stain it colors? So strange. Thanks so much for showing the history of them, it gave a lot of context I didn't have otherwise. It's also cool you made a post about tattoos since tattoos are such a big culture/economy in richmond. I do kind of wish we still had tattooing for great achievements and success in battle, that was a pretty cool concept. Thanks for this presentation and information!

Evelyn

6/10/2016 08:21:43 am

This is a very unique topic and I really enjoyed learning about it from your perspective. Especially the point you made drawing tattooing art parallels between the Pacific tattooing and the previous exhibit at the VMFA. I learned a lot about exhibit and I feel like your project really extends that information into a new culture Providing me ideas and broadening horizons. You did a great job bringing in information and it was really enjoyable.

Alix Elizabeth

6/10/2016 08:54:33 am

Our summer reading before AP Lit this year was The Garden of Evening Mists, which discussed extensively the history and stigma associated with tattoo art in Japanese art. I've never learned about Pacific art before so your survey here was really excellent! Also I saw the exhibit at the VMFA a while ago, and this reminded me a lot of that. Great job.

Ellie Kim

6/10/2016 09:43:56 am

I think that the decision to use the body as a canvas was such an interesting and amazing development. I had actually never really thought about that transition, however, so I'm so glad I got to read this! I also think it's so interesting how Samoan tattoos were done for ritualistic purposes, and then you can connect that to today in that people often still get tattoos that have significant, sometimes religious/spiritual meaning to themselves. It's a great theme that I think can even be applied to other art forms, such as religious art in the Italian Renaissance, and religious art today.

Sophia Mccrimmon

6/14/2016 02:44:34 pm

I love that you brought up the concept of cultural appropriation. It's something we've touched on a lot in this class and I think it's important to keep in mind as we look at a lot of this non-Western art. I definitely agree that there's something sketchy about using religious or spiritual images from other cultures purely for their aesthetic appeal, but with tattoo art we see something that has become so secularized and broadly popular that it is almost completely severed from its historical roots. Is this a positive kind of artistic globalization, or the loss of crucial cultural distinctiveness in our world? Something to consider!

Erin Paasch

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