This book focuses on the traditional (old school) style of tattooing and its ongoing impact on today’s tattoo art. More than 300 stunning color photos are combined with tattoo artists’ personal explanations of why they love to work in the traditional style, and the artistic challenges that it poses today. For the fifteen tattoo artists in this book, the essence of real and true tattooing is the traditional one: bold lines, simple motifs, black and red colors—tattoos built to last on the skin. From the early beginnings in the late 19th century among sailors, traditional tattoos have been developed further by today’s tattoo artists. Neo-traditional, Americana, new school, old school—the names are many, but all have that single common heritage: they are based on the simple lines created on the sailors’ skins many years ago.

Photographs by: Peter Booker Nielsen