INK-SINGERS
Tattooed Kiwis hit back at Aussie critic
An Australian commentator who labelled people with tattoos as ‘‘morons’’ and ‘‘tramps’’ has raised the ire of ink-lovers on this side of the ditch.
Members of Wellington’s creative community have labelled Jeff Corbett’s opinion piece in The Newcastle Herald as being ‘‘narrow-minded’’ after he wrote that society had ‘‘reached peak tattoo’’.
Corbett said people with tattoos were ‘‘usually frumpy teenage girls or young skulkers in saggy pants trying to buy manhood’’.
‘‘The idiocy of the tribal sleeve on other than Pacific islanders must be painfully obvious now to those who were so idiotic,’’ he wrote.
‘‘The tramp stamp that dives into and out of skin folds must appear now in the mirror as gruesome to the tramp as it always did to the rest of us, and the posh will giggle that they were so silly.’’
Among those hitting back was Plimmerton resident Sarah Hallum, who said she was saddened by Corbett’s intolerant attitude.
‘‘He was so discriminatory against the whole industry. I’ve got a tattoo, does that make me an idiot or a moron?’’
One of the capital’s first female tattoo artists, Jolene Tempest, said that Corbett’s remarks were reminiscent of a bygone era.
Since joining the industry in 2001, and having worked at Wellington’s Dr Morse Tattoo parlour over the past three years, she has seen fads come and go.
What hasn’t changed as much as she would like is the attitude of the older generation towards bodymodification practices. ‘‘Once that generation moves on, then the narrow-mindedness will fade.’’
Craig Lee, who owns Union Tattoo in Wellington, was taken aback by the publication. ‘‘I was really angry. It’s 2018, how can this stuff still be published, you know?’’
Corbett said we had reached peak tattoo ‘‘because I think all the idiots have been tattooed’’.
‘‘Of course, graffitied people are going to see me as bigoted and discriminatory. They wouldn’t be able to see much beyond that because, remember, they were thick enough to get the tatts.
‘‘Yes, I am a member of the oldest generation, and your painted readers should bear in mind that it was my generation who brought about change for the good in society.’’