The Mercury recently received a spirited letter from a correspondent regarding the masthead’s Hunter Ink series of stories and photographs cataloguing the tattoo art of Maitland and Hunter readers.
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In this missive the author said he believed the Mercury was encouraging “impressionable young people to go out and deface themselves for life”.
He described himself as “no prude” but one who “realised the implications and social restrictions associated with tattoos”.
This stereotype appears to have shifted. Some estimate more than 15 per cent of the Australian population now have at least one tattoo.
The tattooed show great diversity in age, gender and socio-economic status, as do the tattoos’ meanings and genres.
This is cause for concern for some, such as our esteemed correspondent.
“I see pretty young girls graffitied by tattoos on their arms and legs which, from even a short distance, resemble spilled ink or dirt. What a sad sight now, and an even sadder sight in their later years,” he wrote.
“Young men with tattoos on their necks in particular is [sic] another inescapable mark that prevents them from appearing even slightly respectable in a suit, hence limiting their employment opportunities.”
Whether people view tattooed skin as self-inflicted graffiti or wearable art, interest in the practice has escalated during recent times.
This interest has been reflected by reader participation in the Hunter Ink series. In less than 12 days, scores of people have shared their images and stories, and pictures in the Mercury’s photo galleries have been viewed around 220,000 times.
In every case, there’s a story behind the tattoo. And here at the Mercury we are all about telling your stories.
Thank you for sharing them.
