What is it like being a heavily tattooed woman in America today? What obstacles do these women face in their interactions with others, in terms of employment possibilities and discrimination, and when working as tattoo artists? What responses do heavily tattooed women receive from both family and strangers they meet and how do these women navigate a world in which women who are heavily tattooed are often viewed as ugly, unattractive, in violation of normative gender rules and disrupting of feminine beauty standards? In Covered in Ink: Tattoos, Women, and the Politics of the Body, Beverly Yuen Thompson discusses the history of tattooing, the stigma women face and how their need to be covered in tattoos (as part of representing their identity) can subject them to discrimination in all areas of life.

By employing ethnographic research with heavily tattooed women, both working as tattoo artists, and those who are immersed in the culture of tattooing through the collection of large numbers of tattoos, Yuen Thompson provides the reader with detailed description of how the collection of tattoos clash with notions of femininity. Just about all the women describe to Yuen Thompson how they concealed tattoos from loved ones because they are worried about negative reactions, how they cover up at work due to policies prohibiting visible tattoos and how they receive public harassment in the form of negative remarks, stares and unwanted physical contact, such as strangers touching their tattooed bodies when out in public. There is a general consensus among these women that they are treated differently than heavily tattooed men, especially in terms of strangers touching their bodies. At the same time, both Yuen Thompson and the women that she interviewed describe how society is slowly becoming more accepting of not only heavily tattooed women, but also women working as tattoo artists, even though negative comments and remarks are still very common. But the women also share stories about how their passion for tattoos and tattooing came about, how they are proud of their covered bodies representing art, life changing events, memories and tributes to loved ones, how they have forged lifelong friendships and relationships, and how they have grown as individuals and professionals in the field.

Covered in Ink provides a detailed and gendered look at the lives of heavily tattooed women and how their choices to cover their bodies in ink represents both group belonging, yet a life that is still on the periphery of society, especially so for women who are expected to be pretty and sexy, not covered in large “unfeminine” tattoos. Yuen Thompson discusses concrete examples of how we can combat discrimination through the use of unions, but also simply through understanding and accepting that people display their identities differently, and by using tattoo etiquette, which includes the notion that we should not touch or stare at the bodies of those who are heavily tattooed. Covered in Ink is an interesting read, targeting mostly those who are tattoo artists or those women who are heavily tattooed. Yet, anyone interested in the history of tattooing and the gender stigma associated with the profession would enjoy Covered in Ink.  

© 2015 Hennie Weiss

Hennie Weiss has a Master’s degree in Sociology from California State University, Sacramento. Her academic interests include women’s studies, gender, sexuality and feminism.