Not Just for Sailors Any More - Maritime Tattooing in Context with Dr Matt Lodder

As an opening line for an article in a popular newspaper about tattoos, the suggestion that "tattoos are not just for sailors anymore" is a familiar one.

The popular media has been reporting the arrival of tattooing in high society for nearly 150 years. Indeed, in 1926, Vanity Fair reported that “tattooing has passed from the savage to the sailor, from the sailor to the landsman, and is now to be found beneath many a tailored shirt”.

In this talk, Matt will discuss the longstanding intersections between tattooing and maritime cultures. He'll also consider why tattoos have been so indelibly associated with the sea, despite their continuous presence among urban populations in Europe and America for more than four centuries.

With attention to visual evidence, he will illustrate the relationships between handicrafts made aboard ships, and the persistent folk imagery of the Western tattoo tradition.

Ages 16+

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