13 Tattoos

Bird Press, 2011. First edition. Dennerline, Thorsten. Block-printed wrappers, in chemise. 15 x 5 inches (90 x 130 mm.) Edition of 25 copies, woodblock prints and polymer letterpress details printed in black and red on Richard de Bas handmade paper by the artist. Artist Statement:

Some time ago I suddenly got the urge to make a book about tattoos. I decided to think about tattoos not just as pictures or designs, but to consider them more broadly (scars, living drawing marks, body adornments, rites of passage, magic to improve the body’s function, ways to relieve or relive pain, signs of bravery, remembrances, cultural signifiers, or tribal/group markings). I also thought of the idea of drawing on skin and marking its surface as a way to be aware of it as a three-dimensional picture plane (with psychological implications). I have to admit that their association with crime and other “bad” things was enticing to me as well. This book of tattoo proposals is a simply a non-linear document of my own thinking about these ideas.