Georgia State University ScholarWorks @ Georgia State University African-American Studies Theses Department of African-American Studies 8-9-2016 THICK SKIN: THE HISTORY OF THE BLACK TATTOO COMMUNITY IN ATLANTA Danielle Rosenthal Follow this and additional works at: https://scholarworks.gsu.edu/aas_theses Recommended Citation Rosenthal, Danielle, "THICK SKIN: THE HISTORY OF THE BLACK TATTOO COMMUNITY IN ATLANTA." Thesis, Georgia State University, 2016. https://scholarworks.gsu.edu/aas_theses/38 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Department of African-American Studies at ScholarWorks @ Georgia State University. It has been accepted for inclusion in African-American Studies Theses by an authorized administrator of ScholarWorks @ Georgia State University. For more information, please contact [email protected]. THICK SKIN: THE HISTORY OF THE BLACK TATTOO COMMUNITY IN ATLANTA by DANIELLE ROSENTHAL Under the Direction of Akinyele Umoja, PhD ABSTRACT As a rapidly growing, multibillion dollar industry, tattooing is quickly becoming a mainstream art form and commodity. Although the ancient art form, originates from civilizations all over the world, the modern history in the United States has largely limited Black individuals from receiving the recommended training (apprenticeship) until about the last twenty-five years. The purpose of this study is to explore the history of the Black Tattoo Community in Atlanta. The following questions will guide the study: What is the history behind the Black Tattoo Community in the Atlanta area? What are the experiences of Black artists apprenticing and learning to tattoo? What are the differences, if any, when tattooing people of color? What impact has television, the internet, and social media had on the tattoo industry, and in particular on Black tattoo artists? This study utilizes an oral historical interview method to answer these questions. INDEX WORDS: Tattoo, Black Artists, Tattoo Culture, Atlanta, Tattoo History, Black Tattoo Community THICK SKIN: THE HISTORY OF THE BLACK TATTOO COMMUNITY IN ATLANTA by DANIELLE ROSENTHAL A Thesis Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Masters of Arts in the College of Arts and Sciences Georgia State University 2016 Copyright by Danielle Rosenthal 2016 THICK SKIN: THE HISTORY OF THE BLACK TATTOO COMMUNITY IN ATLANTA by DANIELLE ROSENTHAL Committee Chair: Akinyele Umoja Committee: Lia Bascomb Maurice Hobson Electronic Version Approved: Office of Graduate Studies College of Arts and Sciences Georgia State University August 2016 iv DEDICATION I dedicate this work to the Tattoo Community, amongst whom I have finally found my home. v ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS First and foremost, I would like to acknowledge my grandmother, Thelma Mulick. Although she left this life during my first semester, she has invaluably provided me with a peaceful home to live in throughout my career as a graduate student. I would also like to acknowledge all of the professors in the African-American Studies Department at Georgia State University. In particular, my committee chair, Dr. Akinyele Umoja and those professors on my committee, Dr. Maurice Hobson and Dr. Lia Bascomb for pushing, guiding, and encouraging me through my work. Additionally, I want to acknowledge Dr. Sarita Davis and Dr. Jonathan Gayles for mentoring me and providing me with teaching assistant and research assistant opportunities during this process. I acknowledge the tattoo artists who were gracious enough to participate in my research and their clients who allowed me to sit in while they were being tattooed. Finally, I acknowledge my family, friends, fellow students, and clients for providing me with love, support and encouragement. vi TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ................................................................................................... v LIST OF TABLES ............................................................................................................... viii 1 INTRODUCTION......................................................................................................... 1 1.1 Purpose of Study And Research Questions ............................................................ 1 1.2 Key Terms Defined ................................................................................................... 2 1.3 Significance of Study................................................................................................. 3 1.4 Methodology .............................................................................................................. 4 1.5 The Researcher.......................................................................................................... 7 1.6 Chapter Synopsis ...................................................................................................... 8 2 A HISTORICAL OVERVIEW OF TATTOOING ................................................. 12 2.1 A Brief World History of Body Modification and Tattooing .............................. 12 2.2 HISTORY OF TATTOOING IN THE UNITED STATES ................................ 17 2.3 The Tattoo Community, Culture of Tattooing, and Apprenticeships................ 22 2.4 The Normalization and Popularization of a Deviant Art Form ......................... 24 2.5 Documentary: Coloring Outside the Lines and Related Black Tattoo Artists ... 27 2.6 Gaps .......................................................................................................................... 30 3 THE HISTORY OF BLACK TATTOO ARTISTS IN ATLANTA ....................... 35 3.1 The Black Mecca ..................................................................................................... 35 3.2 West End Tattoo and the Rise of Atlanta as a Mecca for Black Tattoo Artists 36 3.3 The Present .............................................................................................................. 41 3.4 Summary .................................................................................................................. 43 4 APPRENTICING AND LEARNING TO TATTOO AS A BLACK ARTIST ..... 46 4.1 Apprenticeships ....................................................................................................... 46 4.2 Tattooing as a Black Artist..................................................................................... 50 4.3 The Interesection of Race and Gender.................................................................. 52 vii 4.4 Mentoring Other Artists......................................................................................... 55 4.5 Summary .................................................................................................................. 56 5 TATTOOING PEOPLE OF COLOR ....................................................................... 59 5.1 Understanding the Science ..................................................................................... 61 5.2 Color ......................................................................................................................... 63 5.3 CONTRAST AND COMPOSITION .................................................................... 65 5.4 Summary .................................................................................................................. 67 6 TATTOOING, THE MEDIA AND BLACK POPULAR CULTURE ................... 69 6.1 Tattoos on Television .............................................................................................. 69 6.2 Hip-Hop Culture ..................................................................................................... 73 6.3 Scratchers ................................................................................................................ 75 6.4 Tattooing, the Internet and Social Media ............................................................. 79 6.5 Summary .................................................................................................................. 80 7 CONCLUSION ........................................................................................................... 83 7.1 Answering Research Questions ............................................................................. 83 7.2 Limitations ............................................................................................................... 85 7.3 Areas for Further Research ................................................................................... 86 7.4 Implications ............................................................................................................. 88 BIBLIOGRAPHY ................................................................................................................. 89 APPENDECES ...................................................................................................................... 93 Appendix A: Informed Consent Form ............................................................................ 93 Appendix B: Questionnaire.............................................................................................. 94 Appendix C: Interview Guide .......................................................................................... 96 viii LIST OF TABLES Table 1 Participants................................................................................................................... 5 1 1 INTRODUCTION Grossing over 2.3 billion dollars annually, the tattoo industry is growing at a rapid rate in the United States and providing artists