How American society began to appreciate the art of tattooing

Deviant. Unattractive. Criminal.

All words that have been associated with tattoos. 

For a long time, tattoos have come with a bad reputation within American culture. Tattoos have been looked down on. Tattoos have been portrayed negatively. These negative perspectives about displays of body ink created a stigma around tattoos and the people that have them. 

Dave Sevilla, a tattoo artist at Black Hatchet Tattoo Co. in Wallingford, Connecticut, has always seen the artistic side of tattoos, which America has struggled with for decades. America’s story mirrors his: tattoos were once not accepted as art, but that ideology has changed.

Sevilla’s uncle and cousin introduced him to art and tattoos. He drew in high school, but was too shy to promote himself. 

“I never showed anybody my art,” he said.

Sevilla said he knew he wanted to be a tattoo artist right out of high school. He started working at Dunkin’ Donuts to fund his apprenticeship. His apprenticeships were at Imperial Tattoo in West Haven and Elm City Ink in New Haven, which are now closed. 

Sevilla started his professional tattoo career on his 18th birthday.

When he started tattooing, Sevilla’s family told him to stop. 

“That gave me more drive,” he said.

Sevilla comes from a very Christian family that thought he should not be getting tattoos, nevermind giving them to others, he said.

This perception toward tattoos dates back to the 1950’s. In the 1950’s, less than 1% of Americans ages 25-40 were tattooed, according to a 2010 study. This low number is due in part to the stigmas around tattoos at that time. 

Tattoos were often associated with gangs and criminals, rather than art. Looking back to ancient Greece, criminals and slaves were involuntarily tattooed as a form of punishment, according to a study written in part by Gretchen Larsen, of Durham University. 

The Greeks also saw their neighbors, the Thracians, using tattoos as a marker of status. 

Criminals in ancient Greece later began tattooing themselves voluntarily as a way to document their criminal careers. Similarly, sailors also started to tattoo themselves to document their travels. They used tattoos as a way to differentiate their lives from everyday society, according to Larsen’s study.

Sevilla’s strength in tattooing is lettering and text, based on his years of studying those artistic disciplines. But as of late, he has started to step out of his comfort zone to try a different style.

“I’m doing more surrealistic stuff now,” he said.

This interest comes from his idol, Megan Jean Morris, who is known for surrealism, according to Sevilla. 

Morris owned BHTC under the name Painted Souls Tattoos. 

In June 2017, Morris sold Painted Souls to her apprentice Ricky Borchert. Borchert and his wife, Katrina, redesigned and rebranded Painted Souls into the modern-faced Black Hatchet Tattoo Co., located in Wallingford. 

“We wanted a clean looking shop,” Borchert said. “We wanted it to be our own thing.”

The revamp of Black Hatchet mirrors the 1960’s, when tattoo shops were turning into studios, artists received formal training and the issue of sterilization was taken care of. 

Borchert and Sevilla joke that Sevilla came to Black Hatchet to work with his idol, but she had already moved her career out west. 

“I’m still waiting for (Megan) to show up one day,” Sevilla said to Borchert with a laugh.

Borhcert laughed back.

“Maybe one day,” he said.

Sevilla said he likes working with clients to turn their ideas into art.

“People come in with an idea and I end up convincing them to let me do it freehand,” Sevilla said.

One of Sevilla’s recent works features a japanese scene. His client, Tyler Main, said Sevilla is a relaxed guy.

“It’s important that you can be comfortable with your artist, and he definitely created a chill environment,” Main said.

Main’s tattoo is a scene from when he and his sister visited Itsukushima, Japan. 

“It’s one of my favorite places in the world,” Main said. “I love that I can look down at my arm at any time and it takes me right back there.”

Main’s tattoo also has a few Japanese characters, spelling out “daijoubu.” 

“It means ‘it’s okay’ or ‘don’t worry,’” Main said. “I loved the way the characters looked when I was learning Japanese, and I like the simple message.” 

In fact, Japanese culture has had a large influence on tattoos becoming more mainstream.

In the mid-to-late 18th century, English tourists in Japan sparked a “craze” in Victorian England, according to tattoo historian Anna Felicity Friedman.

“King George V had two very well documented tattoos–a dragon he got in Japan and a Jerusalem cross tattoo he got in the Holy Land,” Friedman wrote in an article on her website.

The craze continued in the 19th century, when European aristocrats were frequently tattooed, according to Larsen’s study. 

Some scholars say the upper class’ tattoo phase was a desperate effort to modernize the aristocracy and stay relevant in an anti-aristocratic age.

Those are Sevilla’s words about his first tattoo. His first experience with ink was with his cousin, who tattooed an Aztec god on his shoulder.

“I actually didn’t want this, I wanted a grim reaper,” Sevilla said.

He said his cousin refused the idea. Instead, he decided to give Sevilla an Aztec god, based on their Mexican roots.

“He didn’t want to send me home with a grim reaper, so we did this,” Sevilla said.

Sevilla has family portraits of his son and father that are very meaningful to him.

But he also has more lighthearted and fun tattoos, such as a character from his favorite video game, Resident Evil. 

“I get shit that I like,” Sevilla said.

Sevilla said he is not the type of person who thinks every tattoo needs to have a deep meaning. This mindset took over in the 1980’s, when tattoos began to be associated with art and free thinking, rather than crime and gangs.

One scholar, Arnold Rubin, called the late 20th century the “Tattoo Renaissance.”

In the late 1980’s, only 3% of Americans ages 25-40 were tattooed, according to the 2010 study. A 2% increase over 30 years. Despite that minor change, the youth of the 1980’s shifted the perspective on tattoos entirely.

Larsen’s study describes two “major forces” that came together during the Tattoo Renaissance: ethno-history and aesthetic legitimacy.

“Tattooists began to look to indigenous cultures and their traditional tattoos for inspiration rather than to more modern North American designs,” Larsen wrote in her study.

This trend of cultural inspiration is what built up the “force” of ethno-history in the tattoo world and increased the cultural value of tattoos. The tattoo world also experienced a surge of artists who saw tattooing as a “legitimate artistic pursuit,” according to Larsen’s study.

The art world began to accept tattoo artists into their realm. This is how the “force” of aesthetic legitimacy propelled tattoos into mainstream American culture.

In the 1990s, tattooing was one of the most rapid growing service industries in the United States, according to Larsen’s study. This push can also be attributed to celebrities with tattoos. 

Tattoo’s push into mainstream culture was boosted in the mid 2000s with television shows like “Miami Ink.” In the late 2000s the percentage of Americans ages 25-40 with tattoos was 40%. 

Another 20 years passed, but a 37% increase, according to the 2010 study.

Tattoos now have more cultural meaning, rather than being seen as deviant markings. Tattoos are a means of self-expression and often anchor a person’s identity, according to Larsen’s study.

“All my tattoos are a reflection of me showing how much those who are present in my life mean to me,” Emily McGuire, 20, of Kent, Connecticut said. “They are a way of expressing myself, and I will continue to use them as such.”

McGuire got a dragonfly tattoo when her grandmother got sick. After her grandmother passed, she got the phrase “Love you now and always, Love Gram” beneath the dragonfly in her grandmother’s handwriting.

“I added the words underneath (the dragonfly) after she passed as a reminder she is always with me,” McGuire said.

McGuire also has a tattoo on the back of her arm of her brother and mother’s fingerprints interlocking to form a heart.

“They have been my rock my whole life,” McGuire said. “(the tattoo) reminds me to keep going.”

Sevilla said people are more open-minded toward tattoos, because they see the artistic value behind them.

“Times are changing,” he said. “Tattoos are definitely more acceptable.”

Sevilla has been on both sides of the needle. Given ink, and received ink. And he says that is right where he is meant to be.

“I couldn’t see myself doing anything else,” he said.

By Victoria Wauters

With the Sleeping Giant state park being officially reopened for four months now, the love and beauty of the mountain have finally returned.

Although the Sleeping Giant has not always been a state park, it officially became one in 1924. This State Park is known for its two miles of mountaintop, a variety of beginner, intermediate and advanced trails, and lookout points that are accessible to the public. 

On May 15, 2018 a tornado hit Connecticut, damaging multiple areas of land, homes and parks. The Sleeping Giant State Park is one of the biggest monuments that resulted in destruction from the tornado. 

The damage that came with the tornado brought devastation to the Hamden community with how much was affected. However, people did not lose hope about what could be restored and fixed. With the help of volunteers and the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection the mountain was  renovated.

“The summer after I heard about the tornado I remember coming to Hamden and driving by the Sleeping Giant,” Anna Giglio a Quinnipiac University student said. “There were fences along side the street and you literally couldn’t get past them. I remember feeling such a state of sadness because it looked so depressing than how I was used to.”

Although there are many changes in the appearance of the park compared to before and after the tornado, it does not take away from the soul purpose of the mountain. Each season brings a different sense of beauty from each mountaintop and no matter the reason for coming to the mountain, each hiker takes away a memorable view.

Jenna Hickey, a senior Quinnipiac University student, says she spent many weekends of her freshman year hiking the Giant and taking in the views from the top. One of her favorite spots was hiking to the lookout tour.

“I actually just recently hiked the Giant for the first time since they reopened,” Hickey said. “I was really impressed with how much was cleaned up. I wasn’t expecting it to look as nice as it did but everything looked good as new.” 

According to the New Haven Register, the Sleeping Giant Park Association cleaned up about 32 miles of trails that were congested with fallen trees and branches.

A long time Hamden resident has a similar outlook on the situation. 

“Raising my kids in Hamden, I would always bring them over to the state park,” Christine Metivier said. “It was kind of like a Sunday ritual: we would bring snacks and spend the day there. Going back it was great to see how much effort they put into fixing everything, it’s nice to know that the community still cares.”

While there are some areas that are not fully finished, DEEP put up caution tape to direct the visitors where to go and what paths to find. The state park is now back in full force regardless of the areas that need improvements.

The community’s feelings post-restoration have fallen back to appreciation, love and enjoyment.

“It’s really awesome to be able to come here and hike,” said Bob Ryan, a Cheshire resident. “Doing something I love with those who love to do this as well. Everyone is happy and friendly on the trails. I always see a smiling face wherever I am. I’m glad this hasn’t changed since all of the messiness that took over.” 

This landmark attracts those from neighboring towns and has turned this state park into a welcoming place for those of all over. It lets individuals embrace a sense of diversity within each person that adventures through the mountain, creating a happy environment for everyone.

 

Although the initial reaction of the community was sadness and hopelessness, they soon realized how change brings a sense of appreciation for something that once was.

“I kind of took for granted how special the Sleeping Giant was,” Nellie Petriello, a senior at Quinnipiac University said. “I knew this state park was something that everyone loved, but I didn’t realize how much it would affect me once I heard that there was so much damage done. I’m really glad that there our community put an immense amount of time in cleaning it up because it made all the difference.”

As the leaves on the mountain change, it reminds the community that even though change brings a feeling of uncertainty, it also brings happiness. The mountain may have new paths and trails, but the beauty still remains.

The importance of all the destruction that took place on this mountain is learning to be appreciative. The lesson that comes from this tornado is appreciation. Appreciating change and embracing new aspects of the mountain is what makes the Sleeping Giant State Park still great.

Earlier this year, Connecticut released data revealing that over 100 Connecticut schools had vaccination rates below federal guidelines. As a result, Gov. Ned Lamont and other officials are working to repeal the religious exemption law, under which people can choose not to vaccinate due to their religious beliefs.

“Connecticut has pockets of very dangerous numbers of low vaccination rates, which is what caused the problem in New York State,” said Democratic House Rep. Matt Ritter, referring to the outbreak of measles in Brooklyn earlier in the year. 

“We suspect later this month, when the more updated list comes out it will be a lot more schools,” said Ritter.

Ritters suspicion was correct, as the 2018-2019 school-by-school vaccination rate data revealed that 134 schools have vaccination rates for measles, mumps and rubella below federal guidelines. The schools featured in the data had more than 30 kindergarten students.

While Connecticut has a much higher overall vaccination rate than New York – Connecticut is placed #6 and New York placed at #31 for overall vaccination rates in the country – there is still a concern.

All it takes is one unvaccinated person to set the percentage rate below the federal guidelines. 

“You’ll see schools in the low 70’s and it’s interesting because you’re only talking about 30 kids,” said Ritter. Some will argue, well if you just add two kids that are vaccinated, the rate goes up to 95%, and that argument works both ways. What’s scary about it is that if you lose one kid, you’re back below, so it works both ways.”

In 2007, about 460 people had vaccination exemptions in Connecticut. Today, that number is closer to 2,000 people. While 96.5% of Connecticut residents receive vaccinations, it is still considered a health issue.

“The job of a legislature, public health commissioner and her staff is to not to wait until something happens,” said Ritter. “It’s to see a pattern and say ‘If we don’t do something about this pattern, we know something bad is going to happen.’ It’s trying to get ahead of it.”

There is a broad consensus between the governor and the public health commissioner to propel this bill forward.

“Governor Lamont is standing side by side with the families who have made the responsible decision to ensure their children are immunized in order to attend public schools, a figure which DPH reports consists of 95% of children in our education system,” said Rob Blanchard, Gov. Lamont’s communication director. “Decades of science clearly proves that more children who receive their vaccinations, the safer it is for everyone, especially those who may be susceptible to serious diseases.”

The bill does not require children to get vaccinated, but instead would prohibit them from entering Connecticut’s public and private schools. Those with medical exemptions due to immunization complications will not be affected by the new law. But there is a backlash from people who say those exemptions are important for their beliefs and to honor their religion. 

“My great grandparents would be appalled knowing that vaccinations would be mandatory for children in Connecticut,” said senior marketing major Jessica O’Keefe, a member of the Orthodox community. “They would definitely feel like this was an attack on our religion.”

But Ritter says that that legislators are not challenging anyone’s beliefs.

“The problem is, we have to look at the greater good for the state of Connecticut and we have to look at the population that’s medically fragile, the other 96 percent of the state and we have to make a policy decision,” said Ritter.

There is a stereotype that all members affiliated in the Jewish religion do not receive vaccinations. There is a small sector of the branch of Orthodox Jewish affiliates that are the anti-vaccers. In latin, Orthodox means a “strict adherence to the law.”

“I think it’s sinful,” said Rabbi Reena Judd of Quinnipiac University. “I think it’s our human responsibility to embrace technology and medical advancements that not just lengthen the days of our life, but enhance the quality of those days.”

The sector of Orthodox Jewish members that refuse to get vaccines does so because they are in denial of modernity. 

“My great grandparents generation believed everything was to be natural and to avoid medicines,” O’Keefe said. “They believed their bodies would heal through the power and believe through investment in our religion.”

Although the United States has combated the first measles outbreak in 1912 and was declared as a “measles free” country, the measles have now taken residency in 31 states since 2019.

“I think the main reason we have another measles outbreak, is that people don’t understand what measles does to the human body,” said Dr. Brett Lindenbach, an associate professor of microbial biology at Yale. “They don’t know much about the virus. People have forgotten what it’s like to have measles or to have their children infected by it.” 

According to the CDC, measles is known as one of the most contagious diseases in the world. It is an airborne virus that can infect anyone that has been in the same vicinity as someone who is infected. Measles can lead to blindness, brain swelling, intellectual disabilities and even death. In 1657, measles appeared for the first time in Boston. Due to a high number of vaccination rates, America was able to declare that they were a measles-free nation in 2000. Today, America faces a record number of measles outbreaks and has lost its measles free status. The measles are in New Haven County’s backyard, with three reported cases in New Haven in 2019.

As Connecticut is working to combat its measles outbreak, so is the rest of the world.

“In seven countries, there has been a return of the measles and indigenous transmission of measles,” said Dr. Saad Omer, a vaccinologist and infectious disease epidemiologist at Yale University. “In this country, we eliminated indigenous transmission of measles and now it’s mostly imported from places like Europe and the outbreaks associated with it, but if measles return as an indigenous disease, then we have more cases.”

If the bill passes, it won’t be in effect until the school year of 2021-2022. 

Though it was cancer that Judd overcame and not the measles, the Quinnipiac rabbi said she believes modern medicine is the answer.

“I embrace concepts of modernity,” Judd said. “I’m an eight year survivor of fourth stage colorectal cancer. Had I not embraced modernity, I’d be dead.”