Tattoo Art Gallery

Tribal Art

Most tribal tattoos are solid black in design, but some artists will through in variuos shades and colors to break up the design.

For the most part tribal tattoos are derived from ancient tribal art, and have no significant meaning. They tend to be random patterns of lines and curves that are put together in order to create an abstract form of art.

Modern tribal tattoos are based off of ancient tribal designs, such as Borneo, Aztecs, Indian, Hawaiian, Maori, Samoan, and Polynesian. These tribes use their tribal art to depict rites of passage, social status, family identification, and for medicinal purposes. Each tribe has their own way and special design that they focus on.

Types of Tribal Tattoos

Borneon Tattooing

Even though most Borneon tattoos are copied from the Kayan Kenyah and Bakatan tribes, they are the most popular form of tribal style tattooing.

This style of tattoos hold up well over time with it's bold black lines and simple coloring. This style is less prone to fading and blurring when compared to other styles of tribal tattoo that may call for shading and coloring.

Hawaiian Tattooing

Hawaii once had a tradtion of tattooing that is now diminished with the contact with Western culture. These designs have a lot of geometric elements and are primarily black.

Hawaiian tattoos are more commonly seen as flowers, palm trees, sun/star, ocean waves. Many Hawaiian tattoos symnboliz the paradise of the seven islands.

Maori Tattooing

The aboriginal people of New Zealand, once practiced some of the most unique tattooing in the world as their tattooing style evolved from facial tattoos. These tattoos is a sacred from of family and personal identification; they tell the story of a person's family, achievements, skills, and other social status information and details, all in one glance...

Source : HubPages