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TATTOOS
IN CHINA
"I started tattooing four years ago," Bin says through the translation of Dr. Yadi Tan, who has generously offered to navigate between the languages for me. "I learned by myself," says Bin. "I bought my first equipment mail order from England. There were two reasons I became interested in tattooing: because it is beautiful and also because I can make a living with my own hands. This is all very new here in Beijing and China. At this point I would like to develop my tattoos to have Chinese style and characteristics." There are many designs with Chinese themes: Ba Xian, the Eight Gods and Goddess, Guan Yu the Warrior God and Zhong Kui, who symbolizes righteous force over the demon force. I feel it is important to develop Chinese tattoo subjects." China represents a history of 5,000 years, the third largest landmass in the world and the largest population, of 1.3 billion people. Life in China changed during the 1980s, when President Deng Xiaping redefined Communist government policies. He initiated a new strategy of openness to promote growth and attract foreign investment. Until Deng's innovations, China was strictly controlled by classic Marxist economic theories. Jiang Zemin came to power after the political disaster of the 1989 Tiananmen Square massacre and continued to emphasize policies of openness, which pushed China into the 21st century. He stepped down recently, but today's president and general secretary of the Chinese Communist party, Hu Jing Tao, carries the same torch of reform. China is now one of the fastest growing economies in the world. The skies over cities like Beijing and Shanghai are cluttered with 28% of the world's building cranes and China now purchases 50% of the world's cement and 35% of the world's steel. Young tattoo entrepreneurs like Bin are riding a wave of expansion that seems limitless. Stylishly dressed women and men on the sidewalk in front of Bin's trendy shops tell China's new story. A few blocks around the corner down a quiet Hu-Tong alley is a slightly different reality. Mingled here are faces that illustrate China's complex human history of traditional lifestyles founded on race, family, the earth, respect for elders, dynastic rule and the Mandate from Heaven. A cultural framework based on Confucian ethics and morals of selflessness, obedience and community. Values that continue deeply to effect Chinese people, young and old. Unlike the West,
which emphasizes individualism, Chinese society embraces the community.
Traditionally, the Chinese judge themselves according to how they
think others perceive them and refer to this as "Face."
In any social situation you are expected to give Face to people,
particularly if they are older. Among Chinese there is a deep sense
of race. No matter where you live and what language you speak, if
you have Chinese blood, then you are Chinese. Today, the Chinese
feel particularly proud about their place in the world. A
BRIEF HISTORY LESSON
The city of Beijing has been the seat of power for 2,000 years, through the Liao, Jin,Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties. Historical figures, like Kublai Khan in 1278, ruled from Beijing. There is a weight of human history in China that is unparalleled. Bin and the other young people I would visit in the cities of Beijing, Jinan, Nanjing and Shanghai are now exploring the art form of tattooing and possess a strong respect for the history and tradition coded into them. The artistic styles in their tattoos are not only a part of this accumulation of cultural knowledge but also a growing openness to the West. Qingyuan Wang, or Kisen, is the founder and president of the Chinese Association of Tattoo Artists (CATA), which is headquartered in Beijing. The purpose of the organization is to create cohesion and communication among tattoo artists in China. The number of people interested in tattooing as both clients and artists is growing very rapidly and Kisen believes it is critical to share information. The first tattoo exhibition, held in 2002, attracted 11 tattoo studios and close to 600 people. The second exhibition in 2003, attracted 23 studios and several thousand visitors. There is a complicated history of tattooing in China, but the recent increase in interest, which coincides with the growth of the art on a global scale, requires a degree of clarity and organization. Authorities in the Chinese government are responding very positively to the community of tattoo artists and Kisen feels that the CATA will help everyone involved accurately define things. "Tattooing in China is now grouped into categories of beautification," Kisen explains. "There is tattooing associated with medical procedures like plastic surgery or tattooing associated with art and beautification. The Chinese written language has several different characters used to describe tattooing. Some describe 'writing on the skin,' some describe 'making patterns on the skin.' Some describe 'painting or decorating the body.' The government is trying to make rules to define tattooing in an effort to narrow things down. Contemporary tattooing is at such an early stage in China that appropriate language has not been formalized yet." Historically in China, the practice of tattooing has developed over different stages. In earlier times, the government used tattooing to identify offenders of the law with what was called "ink punishment." Offenders were exiled and given facial tattoos to identify them. Then tattooing moved off the face and onto the body during the second stage when tattoos were associated with heroic symbolism and the 14th-century story of the 108 hero generals of the Water Margin. During the third stage, a "black society" or a tattooed underground society, emerged. With Mao's Communist revolution of 1949, the practice of tattooing was interrupted as Chinese society was reinvented to reflect the values and ideals of Marxist ideology. Tattooing was viewed with extreme disfavor by the authorities. Today, there is a revitalization of tattooing as an art form underway. Kisen, CATA and young artists like Si Ye are redefining tattooing as a beautiful body art. "Tattooing has been a part of China's history and mythology for a long time," Kisen says. "One of China's most famous hero generals was tattooed on his back by his mother before he was wrongly executed by the emperor. During the Song Dynasty (1000 AD) General Yue Fei was a commander against the Jurchen invaders. A jealous member of the royal court wrongly accused him of treason and the emperor sentenced him to death. Before his execution, the general's mother tattooed the characters Essence, Loyal, Serve and Country onto his back. Years later, the betrayal was exposed and the general was deified. He is now one of China's national heroes. There is a beautiful temple honoring the general with wall paintings of him being tattooed. On the temple grounds there is a statue of the jealous courtier kneeling in shame for what he did. People visit the temple and then go outside and slap the statue on the head. People stand in line to slap the statue and pay respect." Ms. Lu Xinmin is the Vice-Secretary General of the China International Exchange and Promotive Association for Medical and Health Care, the arm of the government responsible for defining and regulating the practice of tattooing. Kisen arranged for me to meet with Ms. Lu and two of her colleagues, Vice General Secretary Mr. Liu and acting General Secretary Mr. Yu Tao to discuss government policy. Ms. Lu is a warm woman with a gentle face who speaks through Dr. Tan's translation in a soft, interested voice.
"There
are also cosmetic and medical uses. Tattooing can be used to cover
scars or for other medical applications. The government has addressed
medical uses of tattooing, but 2004 marks the first time that artistic
tattooing has been included. As the economy continues to develop,
people will have more income to spend on these tattoo practices.
Self-presentation will become a larger issue, as people look for
different types of jobs. Tattooing is only one element of the beautification
industry. Now there are 20 million workers doing cosmetics. This
primarily represents hair and beauty salons. In China now, there
are 300,000 people doing all forms of tattoo, mostly cosmetic and
medical. At this point, there are very few artistic tattooers, in
comparison. The government must regulate the industry, because of
health issues. We are educating the consumer." LUCKY
TATTOO Chang Cheng has been tattooing for seven years in Beijing. Originally, he was not interested in doing the tattoos. He opened the studio and hired other people to do the work. He had a change of heart and now does the tattooing with his friend, Lu Bai. They are both from the Liao Ling province in northeastern China and were classmates in the Central Industrial Art and Design School. Lu Bai studied interior design and photography, Chan Cheng majored in industrial design, which he continues to practice on the side. Lu Bai noticed a general interest about tattooing start in the year 2000 among young people in Beijing. Business has been climbing every year since. "The tattoo business has only taken off over the past two years," Lu Bai explains. "It is like a newborn baby. Tattooing is both old and new in China. Tattoo history goes back 2,000 years, but modern tattooing is starting right now. We are just discovering what is involved. "Until very recently, life in China has been controlled. The possibilities were very limited. We have magazines now. We see things that we have never seen before. There is Chinese word, jie-gui (connect-rail), that describes this new culture trend. This is a popular word now that means connect rail with international society. This is what happens now. I look at tattoos made by Paul Booth and Filip Leu. We appreciate this work, but now we try to develop a style of our own. I like to use the black-and-gray shading styles. I can make it look very smooth, but sometimes I like to make it look like a pencil drawing." Chan Cheng remarks on Filip Leu's style saying, "I admire Filip because the whole family does tattoos. Also Filip's Eastern-fusion style is very influential. Both Lu Bai and I appreciate what Filip does with this style very much." DONG
DONG "I am the first generation of tattoo artists in China," Dong Dong says. "In many ways I feel an isolation here. There are not older tattoo people to learn from. I must discover everything on my own. I go to websites and I look at magazines. This is very difficult to get information like this. Right now I try to do my own thing. Sometimes, I see the work from people in other parts of the world and I get pulled off center. I feel I lose resolve and power with my own work." Dong Dong is attracted to the black-and-gray style and feels this is the essence of tattooing. He attended the Central Art Institute where he developed his abilities, and draws all of his tattoo designs directly onto the body. "I feel like I want to bring tattooing in China to the level it deserves. I have seen some tattoo studios in Beijing and I notice that there should be more cultural material from China. I think this will change more and more as tattooers develop more confidence in their own art. "It is
very early now for tattoo in China. I feel just as people today
look at Japanese tattoo styles and say, 'Oh, that's Japanese,' sometime
soon they will look at Chinese tattoo artists' work and say, 'Oh
that's a Chinese-style tattoo.'" SHEN-YI-ZHE "I have not had the opportunity to see the work of many artists. I have seen some work from Japan. I do think that the tattoo style you develop depends on the disposition of the artist. I am friends with all the Beijing tattoo artists and can see that many have tried to explore styles from all around the world. It is difficult to get the information, but tattoo artists in China try to see what is available. Eventually, I realize that I will have to develop my own style. This will integrate my interest in Chinese culture and Chinese art. "I think that most of my customers are women. I am just getting started with developing my style, I only opened this studio six months ago. For me, the key issue in China is communication with the outside world. In the future as communication improves, China will take its place in the world of tattooing." LONG
DRAGON TATTOO Zhang-Ben-Lu owns Long Dragon Tattoo and opened here because, in his opinion, this is the area to be. He does not tattoo but hires talented tattoo artists to work for him. He has studied English and speaks very well. "There are many tattoo artists in Beijing today," Zhang-Ben- Lu says. "They do not have the means to open a tattoo shop themselves, so they prefer to work at existing shops. These artists do not like to work in beauty salons doing tattoos. The work done in places like that is not professional or good. They want to work at an established tattoo studio that specializes only in tattoo. In my opinion, today the key point about tattooing is hygiene. Shops that specialize in tattoo have higher standards of hygiene?autoclave sterilization. Tattooing in a city like Beijing will continue to grow. It is just beginning here." Wang-Jung-Feng is a tattoo artist who works for Zhang-Ben-Lu at Long Dragon Tattoo. He has been tattooing for seven years and came to the art form as a self-trained artist. Dr. Yadi Tan and Zhang-Ben-Lu translate. "I get a feeling of satisfaction and achievement from my tattooing," he says. "I do both custom style work and pre-made flash designs. Either way, I enjoy what I do. Tattooing is a very important art form. I have a large collection of art books that I use for reference material. I tattoo 50% women and 50% men. The ages run from 18 to 40 years old. My parents feel that tattooing is okay. If the tattoos are pretty, they enjoy them. It is difficult to make connections to tattoo artists outside of China," he continues. "Communication is difficult. It limits me as an artist. I hope that in the future China will continue to change and my ability to experience tattoo art from other parts of the world will improve." Zhang-Ben-Lu continues, "Western culture influences young people to get tattooed. For young people, they look to the West. The slightly older generation does not look so heavily to the West, however. When I opened this store, one purpose was to make money but the other purpose was to explore and emphasize Chinese culture and Chinese tattoo. "The East and West both have good and bad. The big thing is that Chinese people think differently than people in the West. Art in the West, like the Impressionist or Abstract movements, use color and pattern to represent the world. A lot of color and pattern. Typical Chinese art expresses very abstract, deep concepts by simple brush techniques. For example, the horse painting by Xu-Bei-Hong or the shrimp painting by Qi-Bai-Shi. These use only black and gray and a very clean background. They express Chinese philosophy and an understanding of the world. This art 'goes beyond the brush.' This is a big thing in Chinese art?it goes beyond the brush. The complexity of what is being expressed is deeper than the actual painting. There is an internal life. Not everything is expressed. This might explain why many Chinese tattoo artists enjoy working with black-and-gray techniques. "When you visit a classic Chinese garden, there are large stones always featured in the gardens," Zhang-Ben-Lu continues. "These are called Spirit Stones or Scholar's Rocks. They have many shapes and are meant to represent the inner earth, the inner life. They promote internal thought. Western thought looks outward. Eastern thought looks inward. A big difference. The global process is going on but will not be able to overpower Chinese culture over time. And Chinese culture will not overpower Western culture. There will be a balance of some kind that will develop." LIEHOU
TATTOO "The famous tattoo story from the Water Margin about General Song Jiang and his 108 tattooed bandit heroes originates from this province," Mr. Fu says. "They lived nearby in the watery margins around Mount Laingshan. The Japanese took the story and used it to create their style of tattooing. This originated in China, not Japan. Some of the changes made by the Japanese are not acceptable. "I named my tattoo studio Liehou, because it means "fierce burning fire." This is how I feel about the power of tattoo. I have been tattooing professionally for six years, but I tattooed by hand when I was 13 years old. There are reasons why so much of Chinese tattoo is black-and-gray. Black is the favorite color Chinese people use to paint. The color can be divided into five major shades, depending on density and intensity. From ancient times, Chinese have used the nuance of shading with black to create complex patterns. Using black in different shades represents an accomplishment of skill over time. Another reason is the tone of Asian skin. Some colors do not show up well in Chinese-toned skin. "There are traditional styles of Chinese painting that contribute to tattooing in China," Mr. Fu continues. "There is the traditional Gong-Bi painting style of fine brushwork. Gong-Bi means "work of pen." There is close attention to detail in this style. Then there is Xie-Yi freehand brushwork style that is characterized by expression and bold outline. In these styles there are 18 different ways to make a line. The nuances and complexity of these 18 original varieties have a lot to contribute to tattooing. Because of this complexity, Chinese tattoo style can evolve into an assortment of choices. In China, I feel that many tattoo artists have a bigger goal to integrate Chinese culture into the tattooing that is developed here." WANG-DA-YONG At the end of a darkened street there is a sign with a photo of a man tattooing. He is looking back over his shoulder at the camera. An arrow points into a poorly lit door and stairway. Upstairs, Wang-Da-Yong sits at a desk in the front room of his tattoo shop smoking a cigarette. He is wearing a sweater zipped to the neck, dress pants and very shiny shoes. There is a healthy amount of gold jewelry on his fingers and wrists that jingles when he removes his cigarette and exhales. His jet-black hair is slicked back tight. A few of Wang-Da-Yong's associates sit nearby smoking. They are wearing suits and shiny shoes and their shirt collars are also buttoned up tight. It is very quiet in the shop, just the inhaling and exhaling of cigarettes. There are a few rooms off to the side that are plastered with hundreds of curled, tiny photographs of tattooed customers. Some people are smiling, others just stare at the camera. One wall is covered with a collection of tattoo flash from different periods of time. There are traditional hearts and banners juxtaposed with contemporary tribal-style art. The shop smells like old, camphor antiseptic astringent. Finally, cautious smiles break across everyone's face and hands are extended in greeting. There is not even a hint of English spoken here, and Dr. Yadi Tan is kind enough to translate. Wang-Da-Yong has been tattooing for many years in Nanjing. He has had this shop for more than 11 years and plans to move in the future to a more modern shop. "I have a second shop location in the city where my associates work," he says. "I am looking for a place to relocate this shop. I would like to have a more modern look to things. "Nanjing is a good place to have a tattoo business. It is an historic city and people travel here from different parts of the world. My location here is good. It is near the shopping and restaurant area where everyone walks around, day and night. I have a good reputation in Nanjing and I have a nice mix of customers. "This city has a reputation for many gangs. These organizations go back very far into Chinese history. I cannot mention the names of the gangs but many come here to get tattooed. This is a part of the old life in Chinese cities. In Nanjing, there are more than 30 gangs. Most of the members have elaborate tattoos. Certain animals associated with the name and reputation of the gang?an eagle, a dragon. Things like this. Members wear the animal tattoos to show pride and loyalty. This is a very old practice. It is the way things are done."
Jing-an is typical of many city districts in Shanghai. It is a blend of old Li-Long alleyway neighborhoods and contemporary shopping emporiums. Xing-Hai-Song, whose anglicized name is John, and his wife Zhou Wei have a nice tattoo shop in the Jing-an district called Long John Tattoo. The shop has two floors; a downstairs with couches and jewelry display cases and an upstairs loft for tattooing. "This district used to be an affluent area. The old buildings here are protected for their historical significance," Xing-Hai-Song explains through Dr. Yadi Tan. "I opened this shop in 1998-'99. It was the first tattoo studio in Shanghai. Now there are more than 100 people tattooing in Shanghai. Some work from shops, some from home. I opened this shop near the center of Shanghai and I have a second shop located in the same area. "Shanghai is a very international city," Xing-Hai-Song continues. "There are people working here from all around the world. It is an interesting place to tattoo. Unlike a city like Beijing where the buildings are old and the thinking of the people is more traditional, life in Shanghai is open and the people like change. Tattoo customers are more willing to accept new tattoo ideas and designs." The young men and women sitting in the shop project a worldly sense of sophistication. They are dressed stylishly and constantly talk on cell phones. There are a few tattoo magazines from the West, Taiwan and Japan scattered near tattoo flash books that are full of up-to-date designs. "A lot of my customers like abstract tribal styles of tattooing. I am very excited about my involvement with tattooing," Xing-Hai-Song says. "The art form excites me very much. There are new possibilities for me to explore this art. I have always been interested in art. I read the Water Margin story at an early age and worked on drawings from an early age. I have family in Taiwan and I apprenticed there for a while. I was introduced to a Japanese sensei and traveled there for one month to study and observe tattooing. China is still a closed place and information is limited," he continues. "At times I am not sure if my techniques are correct. I try to duplicate the looks of tattoos I see from outside China, but I am not sure. It is difficult. I ask myself constantly if I am doing this correctly. It is a challenge to figure things out. I look forward to the growth of tattooing in China." A
FOND FAREWELL Throughout my travels in China, I was greeted by engaging and interested people who were very helpful and accommodating. The trip would have been impossible without them, particularly Dr. Tan. The theme of openness and the global flow of information was mentioned by all the tattoo artists I met and I was always reminded how this luxury is completely taken for granted in the West. The opportunity for young people in China to explore the world around them is controlled by the government. A sobering thought. This is changing quickly, but limitations persist. Tattooing is a dynamic art form and in one way or another it always has been. The impulse to mark ourselves with artistic or symbolic representations is stronger than governments or political ideologies. The young tattoo artists in China are a powerful example of the human drive to explore and create. |
