Tattoo Traditions of Asia

Colophon

Author

Lars Krutak

Publisher

University of Hawai`i Press

Year

2024

Language

English

ISBN

9780824895709

Pages

520

The volume

The Indigenous peoples of Asia have created some of the world’s oldest and most distinctive tattoos, but their many contributions to tattoo body art and practice have been largely overlooked. Tattoo Traditions of Asia is the first single volume dedicated to the anthropological study of an ancient cultural practice and artform that spans many countries and societies, ancestral lands, and contemporary communities across the continent and its islands. Based on tattoo anthropologist Lars Krutak’s twenty years of fieldwork including interviewing hundreds of Indigenous tattoo bearers and contemporary tattoo practitioners as well as painstaking research in obscure archives throughout the region and elsewhere, this richly illustrated survey breaks new ground on one of the least-understood mediums of Indigenous Asian expressive culture—a vital tradition to be celebrated, an inspirational story told in skin and ink. Advanced Praise… Lars Krutak has given us a landmark publication, a geographically wide-ranging and historically informed survey of tattooing practices in Asia. In addition to bringing together beautifully a diverse range of sources, he shares insights from two decades of fieldwork and dozens of interviews with Indigenous tattooists and tattooed people—all enriched by a stunning collection of historical prints, drawings, objects, and photography. —Sean Mallon, coauthor of Tatau: A History of Samoan Tattooing This is a tremendous feat of research, writing, and decolonization by a renowned scholar of indigenous tattooing. Krutak’s personal engagement with the cultures he chronicles—including participation in initiation rites—allowed him intimate access to varied tattoo practices, many of which are slipping away. Written with sensitivity and authority, the book marks a major milestone in tattoo ethnography. —Margot Mifflin, author of Bodies of Subversion: A Secret History of Women and Tattoo and The Blue Tattoo: The Life of Olive Oatman Traditional cultural practices are fast becoming endangered due to cross-pollination and westernization. Tattoo Traditions of Asia is an important resource for both those interested in understanding the foundations of tattooing and those who are committed to reclaiming a practice that has been ignored by dominant societies. Lohe i kani o ka hāhau, o ia nō i ka leo hāwanawana o ke kupuna—listen to the sound of the hāhau, it indeed is the whisper of the ancestors. —Suluʻape Keone Nunes, traditional Hawaiian tattoo master