American Tattoo Culture For Decades
By the 20th century, ink painting had become an integral part of mainstream American culture. Trends come and go with each passing decade, laying the groundwork for today’s colorful tattoos. Today, let’s take a look at how American tattooing slowly evolved in the 20th century.
The 1930s
As we all know, the United States in the 1930s was in a period of economic depression. Nearly a quarter of the U.S. workforce was unemployed at the time. As a result, thousands of people get tattoos in the hope of getting a job in a circus and, by doing so, ensuring they have food to eat and a place to sleep. However, the circus was so overwhelmed that many new tattooers were turned away because the circus was no longer accepting new performers.
Adding to this, the emerging must-have tattoo is the Social Security number. “The U.S. government launched a massive awareness campaign around these new numbers, emphasizing to the public the importance of people never forgetting them, so in turn, many people started getting them tattooed,” Cloak and Dagger said. Tattoos are still negative in society at this time, except for the necessary ssn number.
The 1940s
Tattoos in the 1940s began to tend to be artistic. More and more people want artistic and unique tattoos done by tattoo artists. Various tattoo artists are also getting bolder and brighter in their use of color. No longer stick to the traditional black ink, but biased towards color.
The 1950s
After the victory of World War II, the enthusiasm of the American people for tattoos was high. Millions of American citizens used tattoos to show off the fruits of victory. Patriotism reached its peak at this time, and tattoos became a symbol of masculinity. It was also in the 1950s that Chicago-based advertising agency Leo Burnett was tasked with making Marlboro cigarettes more attractive to men. Thus, a print ad featuring a man with a tattoo smoking a Marlboro was born. It also symbolizes American masculinity from the side.
The 1960s
Due to the hepatitis outbreak, the tattoo industry entered a recession. “New York banned all tattoos in 1961, and the entire state of Massachusetts followed suit in 1962,” writes Anna Felicity Friedman, author of The Atlas of the World of Tattooing.
The 1970s
After the hepatitis scare passed, tattoos really started to make their way into mainstream society and became accepted in more and more cultures. Rabidly hippie, the Beatles culture embraced tattoos. Peace signs are starting to become mainstream designs. In addition, more and more women are also becoming tattoo artists, and self-confidence is spreading throughout the United States.
The 1980s
At this time, rock music began to rise, and the scope of tattoos was further expanded. Its design has also become bolder, and the color blocks have become larger and displayed in more prominent places. This further symbolizes people’s self-confidence.
The 1990s
By the ’90s, celebrities wearing tattoos were everywhere. Tattoos have become normalized and increasingly popular among pop icons like the Spice Girls (and their fans) and pop-punk bands like Blink 182. By the 1990s, women did become a part of tattoo culture. According to statistics, about half of women have tattoos.
