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A life in tattoos: Discover legendary artist Henk Schiffmacher’s stunning collection

Showcasing over two hundred years of global tattoo history

Independent Staff

Saturday 09 January 2021 13:19 GMT

A life in tattoos: Henk Schiffmacher's Private Collection

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1/11A life in tattoos: Henk Schiffmacher's Private Collection

A life in tattoos: Henk Schiffmacher's Private Collection

TATTOO. 1730s-1970s. Henk Schiffmacher's Private Collection

Portrait of a Māori woman with chin moko and feather from the prized huia bird, ca. 1900s. Māori women were traditionally tattooed on their chins and lips.

Courtesy of the Schiffmacher Tattoo Heritage

A life in tattoos: Henk Schiffmacher's Private Collection

TATTOO. 1730s-1970s. Henk Schiffmacher's Private Collection

Famous American tattooed woman Artoria Gibbons, ca. 1920s. Gibbons was one of the longest-performing tattooed ladies ever. She worked the circus sideshows, dime museums, and carnivals until 1981.

Courtesy of the Schiffmacher Tattoo Heritage

A life in tattoos: Henk Schiffmacher's Private Collection

TATTOO. 1730s-1970s. Henk Schiffmacher's Private Collection

Famous American tattoo artist Charlie Wagner, center, with a tattooed lady and American sailor, ca. 1930s. Wagner loved staging photographs. Here, he’s tattooing the tattooed lady’s shoulder, while she tattoos the young sailor.

Courtesy of the Schiffmacher Tattoo Heritage

A life in tattoos: Henk Schiffmacher's Private Collection

TATTOO. 1730s-1970s. Henk Schiffmacher's Private Collection

Tommy Stephens with tattoos by the legendary American tattoo artist Bert Grimm, ca. 1940s. Grimm was a master and a huge influence on Western tattooing.

Courtesy of the Schiffmacher Tattoo Heritage

A life in tattoos: Henk Schiffmacher's Private Collection

TATTOO. 1730s-1970s. Henk Schiffmacher's Private Collection

Rare tattoo album by the early Japanese tattoo artist K. Akamatsu, ca. 1910s. These incredibly delicate drawings could only be made into tattoos using hand instruments.

Courtesy of the Schiffmacher Tattoo Heritage

A life in tattoos: Henk Schiffmacher's Private Collection

TATTOO. 1730s-1970s. Henk Schiffmacher's Private Collection

An album of original tattoo designs by unidentified British tattoo artist, ca. 1918–20s. Given the dress code back then, the private part of your body was much bigger than it is now. And inside this large private zone, they would put very private tattoos like these.

Courtesy of the Schiffmacher Tattoo Heritage

A life in tattoos: Henk Schiffmacher's Private Collection

TATTOO. 1730s-1970s. Henk Schiffmacher's Private Collection

Hand-colored photograph of a tattooed messenger, by Italian-British photographer Felice “Felix” Beato, ca. 1864−1867. One of the first war photographers and photojournalists, Beato took incredible photographs of Edo Japan.

Courtesy of the Schiffmacher Tattoo Heritage

A life in tattoos: Henk Schiffmacher's Private Collection

TATTOO. 1730s-1970s. Henk Schiffmacher's Private Collection

Original tattoo designs by famous British tattoo artist Joseph Hartley, ca. 1910s–20s. Hartley sold a lot of commercial flash to artists around the world, but he also made time to develop new designs like this.

Courtesy of the Schiffmacher Tattoo Heritage

A life in tattoos: Henk Schiffmacher's Private Collection

TATTOO. 1730s-1970s. Henk Schiffmacher's Private Collection

Portrait of world-renowned tattoo artist and collector Henk Schiffmacher Copyright: © Rudi Huisman

Rudi Huisman

A life in tattoos: Henk Schiffmacher's Private Collection

TATTOO. 1730s-1970s. Henk Schiffmacher's Private Collection

"Homeward Bound" tattoo design by famous American tattoo artist Bert Grimm, ca. 1940s, colored in by another legend, Doc Webb. The "Homeward Bound" motif was a beloved tattoo in early Western tattooing.

Courtesy of the Schiffmacher Tattoo Heritage

A life in tattoos: Henk Schiffmacher's Private Collection

TATTOO. 1730s-1970s. Henk Schiffmacher's Private Collection

TATTOO. 1730s-1970s. Henk Schiffmacher's Private Collection Henk Schiffmacher, Noel Daniel Hardcover, 29 x 38.8 cm, 6.16 kg, 440 pages £ 125

For the last forty years, tattoo artist and historian Henk Schiffmacher has poured his heart and soul into his collection, amassing tattoo drawings, designs, photographs and artefacts from around the world.

Made up of lithographs, etchings, tattooing instruments, paintings, photographs, posters, shop signs, original drawings and tattoo designs known in the business as flash, among them extremely rare vintage flash sheets from major players in early western tattooing.

The vastness and variety of tattooing around the globe is chronicled in this Taschen book and includes images of the indigenous tattooing of the Maori and South Pacific islanders, the ancient traditions of Asia and the origins of old-school western tattooing in Europe and the United States.

Schiffmacher brings a fascinating perspective to tattoo history through his personal reflections and wild tales of adventure. He is a self-taught tattoo artist in love with the craft and its innovators.

You can purchase ‘TATTOO. 1730s-1970s. Henk Schiffmacher's Private Collection’ here

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