The exhibition “Rock art tattoo” aims to highlight tattoos inspired by rock art around the World. The content in the exhibition is produced in its entirety by people kind enough to share their tattoos and stories with us.
“The tattoo became my story, my roots, told “through” our ancestral art and works and performed in an equally old profession and craft “
“The images really speak to my soul!”
“After I discovered a good reference about the Tanum rock art site and I wondered about how could look that all new world of designs translated in tattoos on my skin.”
The method used to collect images and stories for this exhibition is asking people to post their rock art tattoos on Instagram and tagging them with #rockarttattoos.
Feel free to continue using the hashtag to be featured in this feed.
“I’ve always been interested in history. And I’m also very fascinated by rock carvings”
“Working in a pile dwelling museum inspire me the idea of tattooing a bronze age village on my leg”
“to have these memories and sensations in my luggage as a very, very old woman, it started in 2018 with a common whelk in dotwork”
On June 16th 2019 Vitlycke museum arranged an event in connection with the exhibition at Vitlycke museum. Hootchie-Coo Tattoo will set up shop at the museum and there were workshops in screen-printing, mehndi and sketching, artist talk with Linn Andersson Franek.
“They are my favorite, most meaningful tattoos out of many. I look at them every day and remember and cherish my trip to Sweden and the ancestors who inspire me“
“Every time that I encounter the picture stone, I get a feeling of awe, it’s just so powerful and is utterly vibrating with ancient power”
“It is called the “Dancing Shaman”, or possibly the “Dancing God”, a stylized human figure executed in black “
During the work with the exhibition we have come across many dedicated individuals in the tattooing field. One of those is Colin Dale, check out Hampus Samuelsson’s beautiful movie to get a glimpse of Colin’s exceptional work.
“He traveled far to be the best man at my wedding, so I decided to give him a tattoo as a gift in return“
“I am Scandinavian, a boatbuilder and a tall ship sailor, who also happens to have a big interest for history, having a tattoo of a ship in some kind makes sense!”
“My rock carvings started as a symbol of love, prior to my wedding”
Getting tattooed is far from a new trend. There are many examples of tattoos in the archeological material, two of the most famous examples are the so-called Altai princess and the World’s earliest figural tattoos discovered on 5,000-year-old mummies. Learn more in these movies made by the British museum.
“For me the reindeer symbolizes the peace, tranquility, purity and independence one finds in nature”
“To reinforce this symbolism, I added the tattoo of a spear warrior, inspired by Scandinavian petroglyphs of the Bronze Age.“
“We have often lost the original meaning of these representations, but they have a raw beauty that brings us closer to the roots of what makes our humanity.”
Tattoo anthropologist Lars Krutak has spent twenty years documenting the vanishing indigenous tattooing culture. Learn more about his work in this TEDx talk.
“they tell a story about sun-worshippers evolving from an archaic state of mind to an international sea-faring tribe”
“My tattoo is a mix between contemporary and ancient culture.“
“With such art on our bodies we can spread it all over the world and contribute so it will not be lost.”
During the summer of 2019 this digital exhibition resulted in a photo exhibition av Vitlycke museum.
“I have been interested in runes and rock carvings since childhood.”
“I chose to tattoo rock carvings because I like the design language.“
“The geometric whorls exuded a sense of calm, yet monumental timelessness that mesmerized me.”
Lastly, we would like to extend our gratitude to all of you who has contributed to this exhibition. It would not have happened without you!
A special thank you goes out to: Nanna, Karla, Luca, Kim, Simone, Christina, Jenny, Cecilia, Gianluca, Knut-Asbjørn, Silas, Reneé, Laurin, Denis, Joël, Tord Sigmund, Ida, Maria, Irené, Veronica, Tristan, Colin Dale, Balder Andersen, Tor Ola Svennevig, Alex Denver, Linda Hale and Donna Tinta. Thank you all!