New technology might let you to implant LED tattoos which would turn your skin into a screen.
posted by twoleftfeet on Nov 21, 2009 - 13 comments

NSFW - A gallery of the world's Ugliest Tattoos. [via FAIL Blog]
posted by not_on_display on Nov 14, 2009 - 97 comments

Two tattoo artists who go far beyond butterflies and tribal arm bands. Ryan Mason crafts lush pieces ranging from the sacrilegious to the hilarious to the literary. Amanda Wachoub has expanded fine art to the tattoo realm with her delicate watercolor-like works and conceptual bloodlines. [more inside]
posted by Juliet Banana on Aug 21, 2009 - 35 comments

We've seen tattooed librarians, but so-called literary tattoos are a growing trend. See the lively LiveJournal group, or the folks over at Contrariwise. Recently, "A couple of independent editors have decided to take the trend and invert it -- to put the literary tattoos back in a book." It appears the call for submissions is still on-going.
posted by litterateur on Aug 6, 2009 - 26 comments

Skin & Bones is a new exhibit about sailor tattoos and their symbolism and history, developed at the Independence Seaport Museum in Philadelphia. NYTimes story with neat art slideshow.
posted by Miko on Jun 9, 2009 - 6 comments

The Mutual Tattooed Penis Admiration Society: Really fascinating archival footage from the 1980s of Sailor Sid, Jack Yount, and others. This is old-school tattooing and piercing, anchored in gay and S&M subcultures, just before it went mainstream. NSFW, and there are far more NSFW things a click away on these links. [more inside]
posted by Forktine on Sep 4, 2008 - 44 comments

Staining the nails, skin and hair with henna is the favorite way of enhancing beauty amongst women in the Middle East. It is used as a hair treatment as well as a dye to make decorative designs on the skin. The art is known as mehndi. Henna markings remain on the skin for about twenty or thirty days. [more inside]
posted by netbros on Aug 13, 2008 - 36 comments

Can you copyright a tattoo? Yes, you can. But there's more to it. The idea raises a lot of questions and concerns—for the artists, the inked-skin owners, and certain parties seeking to represent or showcase the work. Shortly after Marisa Kakoulas wrote The Tattoo Copyright Controversy guest article, featured at BMEZINE.com, she encountered a small legal battle of her own. [more inside]
posted by iamkimiam on Jul 28, 2008 - 32 comments

All the girls love Zombie Boy. [more inside]
posted by Dave Faris on Jul 4, 2008 - 99 comments

Some of us are into body art. Some are into customizing our laptops. This crazy bastich laser-etches his own skin. Yowza.
posted by adamms222 on Jul 3, 2008 - 40 comments

Knuckle tattoos
posted by phoque on Apr 8, 2008 - 67 comments

Carl Zimmer's Science Tattoo Emporium - "Underneath their sober lab coats and flannel shirts, scientists hide images of their scientific passions. Here they are revealed to all." From the science journalist and writer responsible for The Loom and numerous other published works.
posted by Blazecock Pileon on Apr 8, 2008 - 33 comments

World's worst tattoo? World's worst tattoo.
posted by jonson on Apr 8, 2008 - 120 comments

The ultimate in nerdy tattoos? "Jim Mielke's wireless blood-fueled display is a true merging of technology and body art. At the recent Greener Gadgets Design Competition, the engineer demonstrated a subcutaneously implanted touch-screen that operates as a cell phone display, with the potential for 3G video calls that are visible just underneath the skin."
posted by tugena13 on Feb 27, 2008 - 63 comments

Any idiot can tattoo a busty woman on his flesh. It takes committment to give your tattoo silicon implants.
posted by jonson on Dec 26, 2007 - 83 comments

"Last night false charges were filed against me and I just got out of prison, upon which I discovered that I had been locked out of administrative sections of all the servers as well as being totally locked out of BME." (Google cache, copy available here) Shannon Larratt, founder of the Body Modification E-Zine has seemingly been the victim of a hostile takeover. [more inside]
posted by yellowbinder on Oct 5, 2007 - 64 comments

Free Achewood tattoos. (In Oregon, till the end of September)
posted by 31d1 on Sep 27, 2007 - 32 comments

Inner lip tattoos
posted by GuyZero on May 31, 2007 - 39 comments

Do you want to look hard but can't stand the needle? Detachable Tattoo Sleeves are the answer. Unfortunately, small is out of stock at the moment.
posted by tellurian on Apr 18, 2007 - 50 comments

Two years ago, a mistake was made: The tattoo read "Chi-Tonw" instead of "Chi-Town." Now, in an act of solidarity, more people are getting tattos spelled Chi-Tonw on purpose. This fellow had it spelled that way on his neck. Chicago Tribune news and blog coverage, and audio on NPR.
posted by Mo Nickels on Apr 11, 2007 - 46 comments

When Sports Fans Go Mad. Just in time for your NCAA Final Four weekend: a celebration of sports fans' best and worst pranks, taunts, and hijinks. This ain't no Brady Bunch episode. Some require the skills of a tattoo artist. Some are confusing. Some are about public humiliation. This one, however, really takes the cake.
posted by papoon on Mar 31, 2007 - 14 comments

Tattoos of Celebrities. "You really have to wonder how this person is gonna feel a few years down the road." [flash]
posted by Dave Faris on Feb 25, 2007 - 117 comments

It seems that Utah's #1 enemy has been captured. He looks ridiculous baby.
posted by snsranch on Nov 5, 2006 - 125 comments

Mass infection from bellybuttonpiercing was left untreated. This Mom, seemingly neglectful, ignored her teen's self-piercing gone wrong, and now faces up to 5 years in prison. I let my teen daughter get a small tattoo and nose piercing. I have a tattoo, but no piercings. All done by trusted professionals in sterile environments. Another teen's tongue piercing causes ‘suicide disease.’ Maybe a little upfront information is a good idea before proceeding. What are your piercing / tattoo experiences?
posted by The Deej on Oct 18, 2006 - 74 comments

Tribute (K-fed)
modern artwork by Colby Bird
posted by carsonb on Oct 8, 2006 - 21 comments

You think your tattoo is nerdy? From Dinosaur Comics to Exploding Dog, these webcomic fans show their love in a permanent fashion. Hmm. I'm sure I have room for Choo-Choo Bear somewhere.
posted by frykitty on Apr 25, 2006 - 34 comments

Six-String Masterpieces. Dean Guitars invites tattoo artists and musicians to decorate 50 Deans in a tribute to Dimebag Darrell. The results range from popstar kitsch to cronenbergian delight. Via Needled.
posted by frykitty on Apr 14, 2006 - 15 comments

Welcome to Religious Tattoos: A Web site devoted to Judeo-Christian body art .
posted by hortense on Mar 21, 2006 - 27 comments

Money on the Wall: PostMichael McKeeism meticulously perfects the art-form that Warhol dreamed of, The Who toyed with, and and others are desperate to avoid. Transactionism is an observation of art, the artist/patron relationship, and our own values, such as they are.
posted by hermitosis on Mar 19, 2006 - 7 comments

Wat Bang Phra Tattoo festival
posted by the cuban on Mar 13, 2006 - 11 comments

Bad tattoos. More bad tattoos. Bad tattoos - don't let this happen to you! And, uh, this. And previously: Hanzi Smatter. Some pics, though no direct links, are NSFW.
posted by milquetoast on Jan 28, 2006 - 59 comments

The Canadian government has come up with a novel approach to stemming the tide of disease in prisons. They're paying for clean needles. For those who wonder what it all means. Great photos of this subculture and the tattoo as a mark of rebellion.
posted by IronLizard on Nov 25, 2005 - 20 comments

On Friday, September 2nd, artist Mary Coble will subject herself to a marathon tattoo session that could make a career Marine wince. Beginning at 6 p.m. and likely continuing until dawn the next day, a tattoo artist will etch 400 names of victims of the nation's gay, bisexual and transgender hate crimes into the artist's back, legs and arms. And we're all invited to watch. More (WashPo [reg.rqd])
posted by crunchland on Sep 1, 2005 - 18 comments

A Koi on Keith Alexander - Keith Alexander of modern american bodyarts(NSFW) gets a huge back tattoo, and documents it all before and after each biweekly session. Some of it is a bit campy.... but still wow.
posted by sourbrew on Aug 16, 2005 - 25 comments

Tattooed pigs.
posted by DeepFriedTwinkies on Aug 6, 2005 - 23 comments

Hanzi Smatter ???? Dedicated to the misuse of Chinese characters (Hanzi or Kanji) in Western culture... The problem is NOT that people are getting characters tattooed on them; it's that people who don't understand the characters are getting characters tattooed on them by other people who don't understand the characters. It is the equivalent of the “blind leading the blind”.
posted by Ljubljana on Dec 7, 2004 - 24 comments

Becoming a word. Just over a year ago, Shelley Jackson launched the Skin project, which aimed to tattoo a story one word at a time onto other people. Shelley herself has the title, and here's an essay from a the. I hope the story isn't set on Anglesey.
posted by nylon on Sep 28, 2004 - 8 comments

Tattoo my head with anything anti-Bush! An interesting interview with someone that put their skin on eBay for an anti-Bush tattoo, but instead of the $10,000-30,000 price tags, her no-reserve auction started at one cent and only ended at $103.50. The final product kinda works no matter who wins, but still, a hundred bucks probably didn't cover the ink, let alone the commitment. Remember the Howard Dean tattoo? How far would you go for your candidate?
posted by mathowie on Sep 28, 2004 - 19 comments

Nice Flash presentation of images on his site from photographer Hans Neleman's books "Night Chicas", "Moko-Maori Tattoo", "Body Transformed", and "Silence". NSFW, fer shure. (Note that you can switch from slideshow mode to manual with controls on the right.) More Neleman at Kodak's Legends Online (work-safe), and more from "Night Chicas" here (almost work-safe, but if the policy is strict - don't go.)
posted by taz on Aug 26, 2004 - 6 comments

Russian Prison Tatoos.
posted by Ljubljana on Oct 2, 2003 - 18 comments

Thug 4 Life, "For this project I intend to transform myself into Tupac Shakur..." Expenses include tatoos, a case of Hennesy, a weight bench and plenty of marijuana. No mention of tanning booth costs.
posted by cedar on Sep 6, 2003 - 19 comments

...Baby Ink will not work on anyone under 6 months of age, as their sensitive skin does not react well to the ink. "Although we are the ORIGINAL body art chain to cater to toddlers and children, our experienced, talented staff is glad to work on people of all ages. So whether you're 8 months or 88 years old, if you're ready for a tattoo or a body piercing-the clear choice is Baby Ink!" I don't quite know what to think of this. [via die puny humans]
posted by stavrosthewonderchicken on Jul 6, 2003 - 51 comments

It started with a small dragon, tattooed above the right breast.
posted by iconomy on May 6, 2003 - 43 comments

How many of the world's top 100 sexiest women have tattoos?
posted by mediareport on Jan 30, 2003 - 44 comments

When pigs fly - This journal by the artist Andy Feehan details his work with tattooed hairless animals. Regardless of your immediate reaction to the art, Feehan's compassion and love for the animals is sure to win you over. Normally, I disprove of weblog cross-posts, but I couldn't resist sharing after finding this via memepool.
posted by dirtylittlemonkey on Oct 10, 2002 - 8 comments

Portrait tattoos have a long history in tattoo art. Some believe that wearing an image calls the spirit of that image. With this in mind, it is both amusing and baffling to see the cast of characters that people choose to immortalize.
OK, chances are you never would, but if you simply had to make a decision about having someone's portrait tattooed on your body, whose spirit would you choose to call up?
posted by madamjujujive on Oct 5, 2002 - 30 comments

Want free admission to a baseball game? Get a tattoo. The Daytona Cubs, a minor league affiliate (high A-ball) of the Chicago Cubs, are running a promotion where "Any fan 18 or older who gets a Daytona Cubs tattoo from Willie's Tropical Tattoo in Ormond Beach, Fla., will receive a lifetime general admission ticket." "I'm not squeamish about where someone wants to put it," said Charlie Subock of Tropical Tattoo. "It might be disrespectful to get it on your butt. But if you didn't like the Cubs, that may be the place to put it."
posted by moz on Nov 30, 2001 - 9 comments