TATTOO SLEEVES: (JP/Lovelli Ariesti)

Tattoo art is not a new art form. It has been around since the pre-historic era but has developed into something quite different today.

When the frozen body of a prehistoric man whose skin bore 57 tattoos made headlines around the world 17 years ago, experts predicted some of the symbols tattooed on his skin were for medical use.

He had six straight 15-centimeter lines above his kidneys and parallel lines on his ankles, probably for medical reasons.

Now, some 5,000 years after his time, tattoos have taken on new meanings.

"Tattoos liberate me through what I call 'independence of the heart'. It makes it easier for me to express myself," said 34-year-old homemaker Marina Amanda.

She said she learned about tattoos when a school friend in Singapore asked her to accompany him to get one done.

Marina got her first tattoo, of a butterfly, on her chest when she was 13 years old and was well aware of the heavy load she would bear for her choice.

"Even now, there's still a certain stigma attached to both men and women with tattoos. In general, people think individuals with tattoos are ugly and are vandals," she said

Marina now has a total of 13 tattoos on her skin, including on her fingers, wrists, ankles and lower back, and is planning to have her arms and back tattooed as well.

Even though she decided to cover up the butterfly tattoo with another one, Marina said she enjoyed the process. "It's not so much the pain as it is the beauty of this art form," she said.

The images are tattooed through a painful process, where ink is inserted beneath the skin's surface with the help of a needle, making a permanent mark on the skin.

Another tattoo lover, 27-year-old Agus Wirawan, has the same attitude to tattoos.

"Pain is beautiful. I read that expression in a tattoo parlor not so long ago," he said.

Agus got his first tattoo, rings of flowers around his upper arms, when he was 17 years old.

"Getting a tattoo nowadays costs you somewhere between Rp 25,000 (US$2.67) and Rp 28,000 per millimeter. I was lucky because I didn't have to pay for most of my tattoos. They were done by friends," he said.

Before turning on the tattoo machine, a tattoo artist usually draws a sketch of the image on paper.

"I like to think of tattoo artists as people who like drawing. The only difference with other artists is that they do their work on people," said Agus.

Before making any decision on the right image for their skin, both Marina and Agus did their researched.

"I usually need one or two months before I make up my mind on what tattoo to get," said Marina, while Agus said he preferred to search the internet for an image that resembled certain meaningful events in his life.

J. Sin, an English teacher, said making the decision for a permanent tattoo was an important and personal decision.

"The worst thing anyone could do is go to a tattoo parlor, look at the pictures on the walls and pick one. I believe there's a correct way to get a tattoo.

"A tattoo needs to have a deep-seated meaning to you and your life. All of my tattoos have stories behind them. They tell my life story," he said.

J. Sin got his first tattoo in his Canadian hometown when he was 18 years old.

"You need to be at least 18 years old to get a tattoo in Canada. The tattoo artists will not serve you if you're not eligible, unless your parents are there as well," he said.

He said most of his tattoos were about ex-girlfriends or betrayal of friends.

"The most sentimental is probably the one I have on my neck. It's just a name, Lavinia," said J. Sin.

Lavinia is a woman who keeps appearing in J. Sin's dreams whenever he feels disturbed.

"When I looked it up in the dictionary, I saw it meant 'purity'. So maybe it means I am impure and she is the person to complete me," he explained passionately.

It's a different story for Marina, who said her favorite tattoos were the Koi dragon and Koi fish on both of her upper arms. "The two represent my zodiac, Pisces," she said.

Although tattoos are becoming more and more common as a means of expression in Indonesia, there are no regulations for the industry.

Tattoo artists implement their own regulations based on standards applied by other tattoo artists all over the world.

Marina, who used to run a parlor of her own, said the client needed to be in good physical condition when having their body tattooed, which is a basic international standard.

"You have to be really fit, not under the influence of any medication and free of certain blood borne diseases, like Hepatitis C," she said. (lva)

Popular

Government to permanently relocate 10,000 people after Ruang eruptions

Kokubo's injury time penalty save secures title for Japan

Residents fear for safety as Mount Ruang volcano erupts