For the last forty years, tattoo artist and historian Henk Schiffmacher has poured his heart and soul into his collection, amassing tattoo drawings, designs, photographs and artefacts from around the world.
Made up of lithographs, etchings, tattooing instruments, paintings, photographs, posters, shop signs, original drawings and tattoo designs known in the business as flash, among them extremely rare vintage flash sheets from major players in early western tattooing.
The vastness and variety of tattooing around the globe is chronicled in this Taschen book and includes images of the indigenous tattooing of the Maori and South Pacific islanders, the ancient traditions of Asia and the origins of old-school western tattooing in Europe and the United States.
Schiffmacher brings a fascinating perspective to tattoo history through his personal reflections and wild tales of adventure. He is a self-taught tattoo artist in love with the craft and its innovators.
You can purchase ‘TATTOO. 1730s-1970s. Henk Schiffmacher's Private Collection’ here
