Old school, also called American traditional or Western traditional, is a

tattoo A tattoo is a form of body modification made by inserting tattoo ink, dyes, and/or pigments, either indelible or temporary, into the dermis layer of the skin to form a design. Tattoo artists create these designs using several tattooing ...

style featuring bold black outlines and a limited color palette, with common motifs influenced by

sailor tattoos Sailor tattoos are traditions of tattooing among sailors, including images with symbolic meanings. These practices date back to at least the 16th century among European sailors, and since colonial times among American sailors. People participat ...

. Many common

flash Flash, flashes, or FLASH may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Fictional aliases * Flash (DC Comics character), several DC Comics superheroes with super speed: ** Flash (Barry Allen) ** Flash (Jay Garrick) ** Wally West, the first Kid F ...

designs are in this style. This style influenced

new school The New School is a private research university in New York City. It was founded in 1919 as The New School for Social Research with an original mission dedicated to academic freedom and intellectual inquiry and a home for progressive thinkers. ...

tattoos, which use a wider range of colors, shading, and subjects.

Artists

* Norman Keith Collins, also known as

Sailor Jerry Norman Keith Collins (January 14, 1911 – June 12, 1973), known popularly as Sailor Jerry, was a prominent American tattoo artist in Hawaii who was well known for his sailor tattoos. Biography Norman Keith Collins was born on January 14, 19 ...

, (1911–1973) was one of the most well-known traditional tattoo artists. *

Herbert Hoffmann Herbert Hoffmann (December 30, 1919 in Freienwalde in Pomerania - June 30, 2010 in Heiden, Switzerland) was a German tattoo artist and photographer. Hoffmann as photographer From 1961 he produced professional photographic works in his Hambu ...

(1919–2010), began tattooing in Germany during the 1930s. Together with fellow artists Karlmann Richter and Albert Cornelissen, he was featured in the 2004 film ''Blue Skin'' (German: ''Flammend' Herz''). *

Amund Dietzel Amund Dietzel (28 February 1891 – 9 February 1974) was an early American tattoo artist who tattooed tens of thousands of people in Milwaukee between 1913 and 1967. He developed a substantial amount of flash art, influenced many other tattoo ...

(1890–1974), Norwegian-born artist who began his career as a sailor, before settling in the United States. Known as the "Master in

Milwaukee Milwaukee ( ), officially the City of Milwaukee, is both the most populous and most densely populated city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at the 2020 census, Milwaukee ...

". *

Bert Grimm Bert Grimm (born Edward Cecil Reardon, later known as Bertram Cecil Grimm, February 8, 1900 – June 15, 1985) was an American tattoo artist considered the "grandfather of old school". Grimm's work contributed to the development and popularity of ...

(1900–1985). Began his career in the city of

St. Louis St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which e ...

and then moved to

Long Beach, California Long Beach is a city in Los Angeles County, California. It is the 42nd-most populous city in the United States, with a population of 466,742 as of 2020. A charter city, Long Beach is the seventh-most populous city in California. Incorporate ...

, to set up a shop at the Nu-Pike. His parlour was said to be the oldest continually running in the continental US and the place for sailors to get inked. Grimm sold the shop to Bob Shaw in 1970. *

Bob Shaw Robert Shaw (31 December 1931 – 11 February 1996) was a science fiction writer and fan from Northern Ireland, noted for his originality and wit. He won the Hugo Award for Best Fan Writer in 1979 and 1980. His short story "Light of Other Days" ...

(1926–1993), American artist who learned tattooing from Bert Grimm in

. Later worked with Grimm and became the president of the National Tattoo Association from 1983–1988.Clerk, Carol (2009), ''Vintage Tattoos - The Book of Old-School Skin Art'', Universe, pp 12-15.

Common motifs

Tattoo Design with a Naval Theme MET DP327935 (cropped)

Many old school motifs derive from tattoos popular among military service members, including patriotic symbols, such as

eagles Eagle is the common name for many large birds of prey of the family Accipitridae. Eagles belong to several groups of genera, some of which are closely related. Most of the 68 species of eagle are from Eurasia and Africa. Outside this area, jus ...

and

American flags The national flag of the United States of America, often referred to as the ''American flag'' or the ''U.S. flag'', consists of thirteen equal horizontal stripes of red (top and bottom) alternating with white, with a blue rectangle in the ...

, along with

pin-up girls A pin-up model (known as a pin-up girl for a female and less commonly male pin-up for a male) is a model whose mass-produced pictures see widespread appeal as part of popular culture. Pin-up models were variously glamour models, fashion models ...

. Other old school tattoo designs include: * Mermaid *

Swallow The swallows, martins, and saw-wings, or Hirundinidae, are a family of passerine songbirds found around the world on all continents, including occasionally in Antarctica. Highly adapted to aerial feeding, they have a distinctive appearance. The ...

(sometimes confused with sparrows and bluebirds) * Heart * Anchor * Eagle * Panther * Snake * Luck (black cats, 13, four-leaf clover, horseshoe, etc.) * Navy and sailing symbols * Dagger * Rose *

Nautical star The nautical star is a symbolic star representing the North Star, associated with the sea services of the United States armed forces and with tattoo culture. It is usually rendered as a five-pointed star in dark and light shades counterchanged in ...

Examples

Designs circa 1900–1945 by Clark & Sellers: File:Tattoo Design with a Ship MET DP327934.jpg, alt=, Ship File:Tattoo Design 'In Memory of My Mother' MET DP327936.jpg, alt=, "In memory of my mother" File:Tattoo Design of a Female Performer MET DP836709.jpg, alt=, Performer File:Tattoo Design of an Army Nurse MET DP327937.jpg, alt=, Army nurse File:Tattoo Design with an Anchor MET DP836706.jpg, alt=, Anchor with heart and rose File:Tattoo Design with Madonna and Child MET DP836710.jpg, alt=, Madonna and child File:Tattoo Design with a Dragon and Snake (Inspired by Japanese Examples) MET DP836708.jpg, alt=, Dragon and snake File:Tattoo Design representing 'America' MET DP836712.jpg, alt=, Woman representing "America" File:Tattoo Design for a Butterfly MET DP836714.jpg, alt=, Butterfly

References

External links

Old School tattoo gallery
on BME zine {{Tattoo Tattooing traditions