Yes, the rumours are true. According to a recent article in The Guardian the number of female tattoo artists is on the rise - something that is very well documented.
Fantastic artists such as Valerie Vargas, Claudia De Sabe and Annie Frenzel have amazingly long waiting lists, and with good reason. The article (and some ridiculous comments) speculates as to why, but the truth is, there has always been a great number of female artists with waiting lists as long as your arm.
This may also be because tattoos are apparently more socially acceptable now, although my view has always been that if you want ink badly enough, you will hide it anyway you can. It could also be because women are more likely to be tattooed now.
Whichever the reason is, can we please just celebrate the fact that we have some fantastically talented women in stupidly high demand? Tattoos are not a man’s game, although some of the comments point that only sailors and thieves have them. Believe me when I say that this (obviously) isn’t true.
Tattoos are certainly more prolific in the public eye now, with celebrity women gracing their skin with ink, and even journalists provoking public controversy (Hello, Liz Jones, you are quite ridiculous). This probably means that those who look to these women as role models are more likely to follow suit.
All I wish for the future of tattoos is that people do their research. Find the artist you love and wait for them. I want my next piece to be by either Aimee Cornwell (based in Wales) or Amanda Wachob (based in New York), so I’m preparing myself for a long postponement. Think about what you want and wait, my friends.
As for female artists versus male artists, gender plays no role in this game. Art has no genitalia and I certainly don’t think that it should have a part to play in what artist you choose.
It just begs the question, why do we need to point out that women are talented?
Image via SarahG's Fickr