The unearthing of authentic celluloid acetate stencils, a project undertaken by Long Island tattoo shopowner and memorabilia collector Cliff White, continues. In this compilation, thousands more artifacts emerge from "deeper inside the trunk" and expose a sprawling collection from the late '50s and early '60s. These facsimiles, represented in their original color and tone, include timeless designs such as anchors and panthers; famous cartoon characters; wizards, unicorns, and leprechauns; cultural and historical symbols, from Marine Corps logos to Asian designs; and hundreds of other styles too numerous to mention here. Marks of original artists shine through in the leaves of this volume, revealing the etchings of rough craftsmen of a half century ago and evoking stories of weathered sailors and hardscrabble New Yorkers that veteran and young tattooists will appreciate. Fans of scrimshaw, folk art, and engraving will also consider this book a massive source of inspiration and awe.
American tattoo master Sailor Jerry Collins of Hawaii is best known for his remarkable tattoo designs, blending the fluidity of Asian motifs into classic American tattoo imagery. Here is a sizeable portion of Sailor Jerrys stencils, spanning from the 1940s to the 1970s, and including pin-ups, roses, bluebirds, hearts and banners and Jerrys infamous military/political cartoons. The value of the stencils is included, with descriptions of stencils and their usage, and a glossary of tattoo terminology.
This is a staggering volume of thousands of examples of the celluloid acetate stencil, an essential tool in the history of tattooing. Mythical creatures, angels and devils, anchors and other nautical symbols, and more abound in stencil form, the classic tracing method that has only increased exponentially in popularity since the rough days of crude materials and callused hands. Before Thermofax(TM) and numbing cream, tattooists had to hone their tracing skills perfectly--and clients had to hope for the best. Over time artists would ask sailors and dock workers to let them trace remarkable tattoos they got at other ports, effectively inventing design replication. Today tattoo artists use tattoo stencils to transfer designs onto wood, quilts, and even cabinets. A worthy companion to Flash from the Bowery: Classic American Tattoos, 1900-1950, this volume continues to ignite the curiosity of American history and tattoo buffs.
Innovative artist Spider Webb has brought the traditional art of tattooing into the modern age, elevating the primitive or folk art iconography into modern art with startling interpretations. 400 color and black and white tattoo flash, in two volumes, feature dragons and other mythological beasts, skulls, eagles, beautiful women, hearts, daggers, serpents, and tigers of the natural and supernatural worlds. Many tattoos may be seen as social and political commentary as well. Here is an opportunity to review a prolific artist's work that people from around the globe have been happy to bear as permanent expressions of their inner lives. This book will be treasured by all who enjoy tattoo art.
Vintage Tattoo Flash is a one-of-a-kind visual explorationof the history and evolution of tattooing in America. Aluscious, offset-printed, hardcover tome-a beautiful andserious addition to the understanding of one of the world'soldest and most popular art forms. Electric tattooing as we know it today was invented inNew York City at the turn of the 19th century. In the firstdays of American tattooing, tattoos were primarily wornby sailors and soldiers, outlaws and outsiders. The visuallanguage of what came to be known as "traditional tattooing"was developed in those early days on the Boweryand catered to the interests of the clientele. Commonimagery that soon became canon included sailing ships,women, hearts, roses, daggers, eagles, dragons, wolves,panthers, skulls, crosses, and popular cartoon charactersof the era. The first tattooists also figured out that usingbold outlines, complimented by solid color and smoothshading, was the proper technique for creating art on abody that would stand the test of time. In the over 100years since then, techniques and styles have evolved, andthe customer base has expanded, but the core subjectmatter and philosophy developed at the dawn of electrictattooing has persisted as perennial favorites through themodern era. While most tattoos are inherently ephemeral, transportedon skin until the death of the collector, a visual recordexists in the form of tattoo flash: the hand-painted sheetsof designs posted in tattoo shops for customers to selectfrom. Painted and repainted, stolen, traded, bought andsold, these sheets are passed between artists through onechannel or another, often having multiple useful lives in avariety of shops scattered across time and geography. Theutility of these original pieces of painted art has made itso that original examples can still be found in use or up forgrabs if you know where to look. Vintage Tattoo Flash draws from the personal collectionof Jonathan Shaw-renowned outlaw tattooist andauthor-and represents a selection of over 300 pieces offlash from one of the largest private collections in existence.Vintage Tattoo Flash spans the first roughly 75years of American tattooing from the 1900s Bowery, to50s Texas, through the Pike in the 60s and the developmentof the first black and grey, single-needle tattooingin LA in the 70s. The book lovingly reproduces entirelyunpublished sheets of original flash from the likes of BobShaw, Zeke Owen, Tex Rowe, Ted Inman, Ace Harlyn, EdSmith, Paul Rogers, the Moskowitz brothers, and many,many others relatively known and unknown.
More of what people loved about the first volume! InVintage Tattoo Flash: Volume 2, Jonathan Shaw unearths more gems from his extensive and world-renowned collection of traditional American tattoo art. Comprised entirely of previously unseen and unpublished work,Volume 2picks up where the first volume left off-contributing a new and important body of work to the historical record of this outsider art form. Electric tattooing as we know it today was invented in New York City at the turn of the 20th century. In the first days of American tattooing, tattoos were primarily worn by sailors and soldiers, outlaws and outsiders. The visual language of what came to be known as "traditional tattooing" was developed in those early days on the Bowery and catered to the interests of the clientele. Common imagery that soon became canon included sailing ships, women, hearts, roses, daggers, eagles, dragons, wolves, panthers, skulls, crosses, and popular cartoon characters of the era. The first tattooists also figured out that using bold outlines, complimented by solid color and smooth shading, was the proper technique for creating art on a body that would stand the test of time. In the over 100 years since then, techniques and styles have evolved, and the customer base has expanded, but the core subject matter and philosophy developed at the dawn of electric tattooing has persisted as perennial favorites through the modern era. While most tattoos are inherently ephemeral, transported on skin until the death of the collector, a visual record exists in the form of tattoo flash: the hand-painted sheets of designs posted in tattoo shops for customers to select from.Vintage Tattoo Flash: Volume 2represents a selection of over 100 pieces of flash from one of the largest private collections in existence and spans the first roughly 75 years of American tattooing from the 1900s Bowery, to 50s Texas, through the Pike in the 60s and the development of the first black and grey, single-needle tattooing in LA in the 70s. The book lovingly reproduces entirely unpublished sheets of original flash from the likes of Bob Shaw, Zeke Owen, Tex Rowe, Ted Inman, Ace Harlyn, Ed Smith, Paul Rogers, the Moskowitz brothers, and many, many others relatively known and unknown.
Between these pages are images of the original acetate rubbings from Charlie Wagner's turn of the 20th century tattoo shop, The Black Eye Barbershop, in the Bowery at Chatham Square in New York. This is the only known art that has survived from this shop, where Samuel J. O'Reilley's modern-day electric tattoo machine was born and patented. The imagery of this classic flash preserves the origins of American tattoos, when tattoo art was transferred to the client from these templates via an acetate stencil. Everything was done by hand until O'Reilley's electrified tattoo machine changed history. This rich heritage of folk art has more than 900 individual pieces of flash that provide commentary on the shop's clientele and reveal some of the social, economic, and political ideas of the time. Including nautical themes, Asian imagery, flowers, boxers, circus characters, and plenty of girls, this is an exciting collection of early American flash and a necessary book for the tattoo artist, aficionado, and student.
