medium becomes more refined as new techniques and styles evolve.
But no matter how outstanding any of the modern tattooers are, we
owe it all to those that came before us.
How about if Charlie Wagner hadn’t opened up a tattoo supply
business? Let’s say Sam O’Reilly had become an accountant
instead of an inventor, where would the tattoo machine be? What
would flash be like if Lew Alberts had remained a wallpaper
designer? Nor do we know where we might be today without the
influence of countless relative unknowns, whether that influence is
obvious or not. As a modern tattooer, I think it’s important to get in
touch with the history of our trade, because by knowing who came
before us and what they contributed, we expand our understanding
of what it is we are doing now. And try to remember the countless
nameless tattooers that contributed as well, because if you haven’t
become one yet, you will one day be one of the old timers that
doesn’t want to be forgotten.
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