Tattoos as a fight for feminism: “Tattoos appeal to contemporary women both as emblems of empowerment in an era of feminist gains and as badges of self-determination at a time when controversies about abortion rights, date rape, and sexual harassment have made them think hard about who controls their bodies—and why.”

     
    Although tattoos appear to be a modern fashion trend they have been around since the ancient civilisations. There is evidence from the Egyptian civilisation and Sumerian that show the use of tattoos for religious and cultural purposes but also to mark slaves and criminals, even Europe’s oldest mummy “Otzi the Iceman” was found with tattoos. Tattoos became popular in Britain from the late 1700s as mainly a masculine trend and usually within the armed forces. It even became a lucky charm for sailors, it is considered lucky to have an odd number of tattoos as you would have 3 per sailing journey one before you left to mark your voyage, one when you arrived and one to mark your return home so the odd number usually meant you made it home and at a time when sailing journeys were dangerous and could mean death skin was a canvas of the exotic journeys that soldiers, sailors and criminals went on.

There has always been a negative image of tattoos as early as the ancient Romans because it was used then as a marking tool for the outcasts of society and defeated enemies, so it gained an image of barbarism. It was also considered strongly masculine as the armies of the ancient world had always adorned themselves with strong images of battle, victory and weaponry, but ink for entertainment was an entirely different being. As we moved into the more modern world the idea of tattooing changed its impact from images of barbarism to a rebellious action and a beginning of control over one’s image.

                However, the negative image, marginalisation and condescending attitude towards tattoos persisted in the American tradition. Whereas Victorian Britain held the beginning of a tattooing tradition which has endured through the ages and now has created a lucrative business for many artists. In Victorian Britain, there was an increased fascination with “otherness” and the exotic which for many included tattoos. In the 19^th Century increasing amounts of royalty and aristocracy, particularly military, were getting tattoos as symbols of their careers or bravery and this included Edward VII, Albert Victor and it was even rumoured that Queen Victoria had a secret tattoo. This trend meant that more of the aristocracy would follow suit and it became a strong industry and although still considered questionable many upper-class women started to get tattoos. The elite and moneyed circles however considered them highly within the Victorian period as shown by the several articles in high-class publications like Country Life that showcases the tattoo as artwork. 

 Women in Victorian Britain tended to feel trapped by society at all levels and for the middle and upper classes subversion was unacceptable but having a tattoo, allowed control over the body and some individual personality for women. The most famous other than the rumours of the Queen, was Lady Randolph Churchill, the mother of Winston Churchill had a tattoo around her left wrist of a serpent. This was normal as the female tattoos tended to wrap around the wrists and ankles and be animals or natural. They could also in this position be covered by bracelets and yet be shown discreetly to those who could see. They became also a status symbol as until the later part of the 19^th century they were outrageously expensive but in the advent of the electric tattoo machine in 1894 they were still expensive but a lot closer to the prices we see today.

                Women began to find the idea of tattoos intriguing and began to have their own dalliances with the needle. It became hugely popular within the upper-class circles which lead to afternoon tea for the ladies in society including a visiting tattooist. There were almost tattooing parties that were had to bring the ladies in society together and this again trickled down through the levels of society, however, only recently has tattooing been made more acceptable to the working-class woman. It seems that the secret tattoo as decoration never reached the working-class in Victorian Britain and that is likely because of its frivolity and expense. Not to mention that the working class had issues with the upper-class excess and this was counted within the realms of that and it was argued within the media that a fifth of the landed gentry had tattoos and magazines like the police gazette showed imaged of the ladies being tattooed at their leisure.

                There are many arguments as to why women started to adorn their bodies with artwork the main trend being that tattooing one’s body was considered by women as a form of control. At a time when upper-class women had very little control over their fate and their body having a tattoo offered them an element of individualism and freedom. This is explored by Margot Mifflin in her work Bodies of Subversion, she argues that tattoos of Victorian Britain for women appealed as both images of empowerment, self-exploration and feminism in times of controversy and patriarchy. The pseudo acceptance of the upper-class’ of the tattoo lead to the constantly aspiring middle-class to emulate their “betters” and for the middle-class woman this became a close brush with exotic otherness and an individual freedom.

                By 1894 tattoos were around £1 for a small piece which converts today to around £130 which although is still more expensive than today seem more similar and when you think for a Victorian Chemist for instance that was the equivalent of a weeks wage its still considered a lot but for the aspiring and the independent woman it was something they would like save to get. If you were in a profession that gave you power or authority a woman found it liberating to get a tattoo not only to show that they had control over their body but that they were strong and the nefarious connotations behind them within the working-class they added a bit of mystery and intrigue to their reputation so for a little extra power middle-class women were likely to try and get one.

                Chemists specifically were more interested in the tattoo industry because of the profit that could be made from it. Chemists had their concoctions used in many blossoming industries and as makers of certain marking inks tattooing was no different, dedicated tattoo artists and ink makers were not seen until tattooists like Sutherland Macdonald created new machines and new inks specifically for the industry. Until then Chemists began making certain inks specifically for tattoos and although it tended that many of them were unsuitable of poisonous at this time, they were profiting from this industry too making tattoos a common interest for a female chemist. There is also an argument that this would make a lucrative side business for people, and with the following case study a true profession, there is no specific profession associated with tattooing other than the armed forces but it could be argued that it was likely those associated with a medical profession would also do tattoos, for example chemists, barbers, dentists. However, as a new profession and a less popular one it was unlikely to have been recorded until the “father of modern tattooing” Sutherland Macdonald who was ex-military.

                Sutherland Macdonald was the first tattooist in Britain to own his own salon and gained his expertise in the military eventually creating the first electric tattoo machine and he began a lifelong love affair for the British with tattoos. He now as modernity reignites the lover affair, has become a subject of interest for the general public and historians alike having tattooed many famous people and created the dainty tattoos of the women of late Victorian and early Edwardian times. In the exhibition in the museum of London we see the history of the modern tattoo industry showing the new level of interest by the general public and another link to modern society built in the Victorian period. You can see parallels to modernity through not only his style of work, the tattoo for decoration and the tools used but also the problems with tattooing. In an article in the late 19^th Century he stated that he had never had a customer return unhappy unless they had, had a name of a lady tattooed on them which need to be covered which is far closer to the common image of tattoos than the previous eras which were more strict with the design of tattoos as mainly military or religious.

                However, as afore mentioned, the working-classes were never quite so accepting of the tattoo, considering them directly related to the criminal world, slavery and masculinity and this would be because this is the only way they would encounter these images. Tattoos as decoration were for those with money but tattoos as punishment, gang connection or property markings were for the low classes. A low-class punishment for certain crimes had been a branding and tattooing emulated this, they were markings of bad deeds or immoral actions and therefore feared. This wasn’t helped by the American influence surrounding tattoos, with the use of tattoos in the Native American tradition the US socialites found tattoos more of an entertainment, they were never really sought after by the elite but something to leer at in freak shows.

                For example Olive Oatman, who was kidnapped by the Mohave and in order to integrate her into their world she was given a face tattoo but when she made it back to US society people flocked to see her native American ink and she became a pseudo celebrity because of it. Once she married and properly settled into US society, she began to cover the tattoo and not want to be a side show attraction, but also to removed her connection to the Mohave as they became more and more barbaric to the society she no longer wanted to be associated as it was not exotic anymore but discriminated against. As tattoos began to be more popular the US kept tattooed women on the margins of society and each was used as entertainment and something to mock or leer at so tattoos never really gained the acceptance in the US as they had in Britain because of the different inclusions in society and as this feeling moved over to Britain when the upper-classes were losing interest in tattoos the freak show solidified the tattoos movement from an exciting secret to a barbaric and nefarious addition to the body. “The women afforded a peepshow, along with a freak show, because at that time women just didn’t show that much skin publicly, the tattoos gave them a reason to strip down and show their bodies. Certainly, a number of people who came to see them were interested in the flesh as much as the art.” This seemed to be a continued thought for many reasons until far more recently.

As tattoos trickled down from the upper-class and began to be a mass market this changed the opinion of the upper class and although it didn’t stop them from patronising the tattoo industry it meant that they would become less popular as with most trends, once the lower classes began usurping trends and pastimes and items became cheaper the upper-classes no longer coveted them. As tattooing got cheaper and more prevalent in society the more tattooed you were the more of a spectacle they were and with the inclusion also of the marginal areas of society including circus shows and other entertainment revolving around tattoos as they became cheaper the upper-classes lost interest and for Britain the beginning of the Great War also meant that money became less frivolously spent and tattoos for women specifically became  thing of the past, until the resurgence of feminism in the 1970s.

                Therefore, although women and tattoos seems like a modern occurrence and fashion trend, as with most modernisations, this began in Victorian Britain with the female population wanting to be different, enhance their beauty and wanting to be in control of their bodies, tattoos were a popular trend amongst specifically women in Victorian Britain. With the interest in the modern world with tattoos it is impossible to hide away from the subject of tattooing and may allow an interesting new avenue to compare Victorian Britain and modern Britain and a further interesting talking point and an another argument against the stereotypical Victorian attitude.