The tattoo I’m thinking of getting would consist in simple shapes and straight lines, all black. I’m trying to figure out how large or small it would need to be in order for me to be confident it will continue to look acceptably sharp for… you know. A long time I guess.
And for that, basically what I need to know is something like, smallest line widths that can be counted on to continue looking well done for the longest possible time.
(The tattoo would basically be a series of simple icons, glyphs as it were, intended to work their way downwards on I think my arm, representing important events in my life. The plan is to add an icon or two to it every few years, so it forms a kind of chronicle. Can you tattoo a corpse btw? Will anyone do that? Because I think it would be awesome to ask my family to feel free to add a final glyph after I die.)
You should go to the tattoo artist with your design in hand, and ask questions. My Daddy had the Marine Corps eagle emblem on his forearm, he died at 86 and it still looked really sharp.
Exactly. I don’t think there is a definitive answer. It depends more on the artist, the materials used, how you take care of it and your particular skin, among other things.
Talk with some tattoo artists about this. Fine line is its own genre (sub-genre?) that can be done different ways by different artists with differing results. I’ve seen incredible fine-line work done manually (without an electric “gun”) but I don’t think of that as entry level tattooing.
Seems that you’d just fill out the paperwork beforehand, like donating your body to be chopped up for science. Not saying you can do it, just that lack of consent shouldn’t be the barrier.
I’ve had work done by several artists over the years. Active consent is a big deal to them. The client could be extremely drunk or high and still technically get a tattoo. The barrier is ability to give informed consent, at least among those artists I’ve talked with.
Not so, I know a case where it was done - it was in the person’s will, and he’d made his wishes known. The artist who did most of his work came to the mortuary and did it.
In terms of small lines, choose your artist carefully. Look at their work - do they do a lot of line work? It’s a skill and very easy to wobble or blow out a line.
Avoiding the after death part --------- talk to your artist or maybe more than one artist. If you get very different opinions on the design you may want to do further research.
IMHO how a tattoo looks over time is more than design; it is how well you care for the canvas – in other words your own body. Abuse that canvas and the best planned and executed design can look like hell 10-30 years later. Keep it in some tone and it can still be really crisp when that postmortem issue comes up. I had two friends get basically the same tat 40 years back; one of the standard biker designs. On one it still looks as sharp as ever and the other is total crap. But them again Bill himself looks like total crap so who can expect different? Just something to keep in mind.
To address your OP: have an initial interview with an artist, and show him what you’re thinking of getting. Look at examples of his art and ask him (or her) blunt questions about their ability to execute the tattoo as you want it. Mine was an original design based on mid-twentieth century Chinese firecracker package art. The design I came up with had a lot of straight lines and precise geometry, which turned out to be a difficult, time consuming piece to create. When I came in for the tattoo, I had a line drawing that he could mimeograph and transfer to my skin, and a color example to guide him. I did those myself. My artist was great, and I like the result, but if I had it to do over again I would create something with less rigid geometry. The reason is that an elongated rectangle extending from the shoulder of the upper arm down the arm changes shape as my arm moves, distorting the geometry of the piece. It’s not really a big deal in that almost no one sees the tattoo (only 2 people besides me and the artist have seen it), but if I had thought about how flexible the body is with respect to skin art, I would have designed something a little different. I love it, though. There’s no tattoo on earth like it.
I used to be able to say this about all my body art. Then two summers ago my brother’s son texted, asking me to send a picture of my “chopstick tattoo” (the pictograph for how to use chopsticks is tattooed on my leg). I assumed he wanted to show a friend.
Two hours later he texted me a picture of his leg, which now bore an identical tattoo. His mom (now my brother’s ex) was furious wth me, assuming I’d somehow influenced his decision.
This thread pushed me to arrange my next piece, which I’ve been planning for a while (thanks, Frylock). I chatted with two artists (not sure who I’ll use) and both said they’d never do “mortuary ink” due in part to consent, but also factoring in creepiness.
My 43 year old tattoo of an anchor with USN inside a banner has turned mostly into a black blob. It is on my left forearm. A few years ago a tattoo artist told me that modern inks won’t spread like mine. I asked him if he and any pictures of 40 year old tattoos to prove it. He told me to kiss his ass and walked off. I thought it was a legitimate question.
I had two friends get basically the same tat 40 years back; one of the standard biker designs. On one it still looks as sharp as ever and the other is total crap. But them again Bill himself looks like total crap so who can expect different? Just something to keep in mind.