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Reuters

Entertainment

Kim Kyung Hoon and Elaine Lies

Japan Ink: Growing tribe proudly defies tattoo taboo, hopes for Olympian boost

People with tattoos gather together for group photos at the annual gathering of the Irezumi Aikokai (Tattoo Lovers Association) in Tokyo, Japan, February 16, 2020. "The event is important because usually we hide our tattoos from society, but just once a year we can proudly show off our tattoos and show each other what new tattoos we've gotten", said the head of the association Hiroyuki Nemoto. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-Hoon

Shodai Horiren got her first tattoo as a lark on a trip to Australia nearly three decades ago. Now, tattooed head to foot, even on her shaven scalp, she is one of Japan's most renowned traditional tattoo artists.

"Your house gets old, your parents die, you break up with a lover, kids grow and go," said Horiren, 52, at her studio just north of Tokyo.

Author Hiroki Takamura, 62, shows tattoos on his palms at the annual gathering of the Irezumi Aikokai (Tattoo Lovers Association) in Tokyo, Japan, February 16, 2020. "In the 2000s, tattoo magazines began to increase and even women began to get more tattoos. I thought there was hope that tattoos would finally be accepted the way they are in Europe", said Takamura. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-Hoon

"But a tattoo is with you until you're cremated and in your grave. That's the appeal."

Horiren belongs to a proud, growing tribe of Japanese ink aficionados who defy deeply-rooted taboos associating tattoos with crime, turning their skin into vivid palettes of colour with elaborate full-body designs, often featuring characters from traditional legends.

(Click https://reut.rs/2HtXVfI to view a picture package of Japan's tattoo aficionados.)

Burlesque dancer Aya Yumiko, 40, who performs under the stage name 'Aya Mermaid' poses with her tattoos at a bar she performs at in Tokyo, Japan, April 25, 2020. "Customers who see me dance with my tattoos, they're really clearly divided between those who like them and those who hate them", said Yumiko. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-Hoon

Banned from spas, hot spring resorts, some beaches and many gyms and pools, the enthusiasts hope the presence of tattooed foreign athletes at last year's Rugby World Cup and next year's Tokyo Olympic Games - postponed a year due to the coronavirus pandemic - will help sweep away suspicion.

"If you watch the All Blacks do the haka with all their tattoos, it makes your heart beat faster," said Horiren, referring to New Zealand's national rugby team and their pre-game ceremony.

"Basketball players are really stylish, too. But here, even boxers cover up with foundation."

Restaurant owner Hiroshi Sugiyama, 38, lies in the water at a Japanese public bath called a "sento", as he gets together with tattoo artist Asakusa Horikazu to pose for photographs in Tokyo, Japan, September 24, 2020. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-Hoon

Tattoos have been linked to criminals for as long as 400 years, most recently to yakuza gang members, whose full-body ink-work stops short of hands and neck, allowing concealment under regular clothes.

The popularity of Western rock music, though, with musicians increasingly sporting tattoos, has eaten away at this bias.

A court decision last year that tattoos were for decoration, and were not medical procedures, helped clarify their murky legal status and may signal a shift in attitude - perhaps leading the industry to regulate itself, giving it a more mainstream image.

Mari Okasaka, 48, and her son Tenji Okasaka, 24, pose for photographs at their home in Niiza, Saitama Prefecture, Japan, September 25, 2020. "Some people get tattoos for deep reasons, but I do it because they're cute, the same way I might buy a nice blouse", said Mari, who got her first tattoo at 28 and whose son, Tenji, is working towards having his whole body covered in ink and colour. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-Hoon

Referring to them as tattoos rather than "irezumi" - literally meaning "inserting ink" - as is becoming more common, may also help give them a stylish, fashionable veneer.

"Some people get tattoos for deep reasons, but I do it because they're cute, the same way I might buy a nice blouse," said Mari Okasaka, 48, a part-time worker who got her first tattoo at 28. Her 24-year-old son, Tenji, is working towards having his whole body covered in ink and colour.

Tattoo devotees are edging into the open as well, meeting at large parties to bare and share their designs.

Part-time worker Tenji Okasaka, 24, pets his cat as he poses for a photograph at his house in Niiza, Saitama Prefecture, Japan, September 25, 2020. "Some people probably look at me funny, but I don't pay attention to it anymore. Yes, there are times when people think I'm part of a gang, but I don't worry about it that much. I'll keep on going until I don't have any skin uncoloured", said Okasaka. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-Hoon

"We may have tattoos but we are happy and bright people," said party organizer and scrapyard worker Hiroyuki Nemoto.

Surfer and TV set-maker Takashi Mikajiri, though, is still stopped on some beaches and ordered to cover up.

Rie Yoshihara, who works in a shop dressing tourists in kimonos, said her shocked father has still not seen her full back tattoo, while Okasaka wears long sleeves to take out the garbage so her neighbours won't talk.