First posted on http://www.queerriver.com in September 2022
I’m developing my drawings with inks made from plants found near the River Avon, to include drawing on the body. Part of the inspiration for this are sailor tattoos, together with Scrimshaw. (engraved images on bone/ivory, including whale teeth) I was also hoping to link in with canal folk art too, but I’ve not found anything I really connect with as yet.
I’ve been reading a bit about the significance behind different maritime tattoos, here’s a little taste from a site on American Sailor Tattoos:
Swallow:Each rendition originally symbolized 5,000 nautical miles underway
Pig and rooster:This combination—pig on top of the left foot, rooster on top of the right—was thought to prevent drowning. The superstition likely hearkens back to the age of sail, when livestock was carried onboard ship. If a ship was lost, pigs and roosters—in…
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James Aldridge - Art, Ecology and Learning 