tattoo advice: japanese stuff!

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here's some more of the tattoo. what you're looking at is a cherry blossom tree. but what i need your help with is what to put in a blank space the artist intentionally left blank for now.

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it's hard taking pics like this. but anyway here's the blank space, it goes from my pointy elbow all the way down.

the reason the artist left it blank is that he thought cherry blossoms were really best used as a sort of frame for something cooler. his idea was a "badass katana" and i'm not sure i want to go that route. another idea he had was a geisha unbrella. as you can see the space is relatively narrow, but i'm not sure how limiting that really is honestly.

so like. japanese culture people! can you help me think of something awesome to tattoo on myself? religious imagery, possibly? or even anime type stuff. i am big into fantasy...

Isn't it very taboo in japan to have a tattoo because only the mafia have them?

>>18331047

I'm super into tattoos and I'm nearly covered myself but I think edgy white kids with traditional Japanese tattoos is Cringefest 5000.

>>18331080

>Isn't it very taboo in japan to have a tattoo because only the mafia have them?

I've been there and yes, yes it is. I was in Tokyo and there are still tons of places in and around the city where tattoos are associated with the criminal element. Also, I never encountered this situation myself, but according to some of the locals the Yakuza view adorning yourself with full body tattoos as disrespectful because in their culture, those tattoos are earned and are considered a rite of passage. There was at least one establishment though that viewed my tattoos and immediately asked me to leave.

Traditional Japanese tattoos are performed by a single artist painstakingly by hand and take several years of excruciating, multiple hour sessions to complete. Because the tattoo artists are so rare and the pieces themselves are so painful and difficult to complete, it is considered an honor and, again, a rite of passage to receive a traditional japanese tattoo. The practice dates back thousands of years so, in many parts of Japan, the tradition is being performed exactly the same way today as it was centuries ago. So, obviously, white kids getting giant sleeves of knock off Japanese art from tattoo guns in America is considered disrespectful to the culture and its traditions.

I'm not Japanese myself but I kind of get it, and I'd be a little embarrassed walking around with traditional Japanese shit tattooed on me.

>>18331125
>white kids
RACIST!!!!!

>>18331148

>RACIST!!!!!

I don't get it.

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>>18331125
it's not a traditional japanese tattoo knockoff lol. it's uniquely american, and what i like about cherry blossoms is that they often symbolize the impermanent quality of existence. one of my other tattoos has cherry blossoms too

>>18331176

>it's not a traditional japanese tattoo knockoff lol. it's uniquely american

No, its definitely Japanese. Taking something Japanese and doing it in America doesn't make it American, dumdum. The fact that you have absolutely no knowledge of Japanese art or culture makes your tattoo even cringier.

I feel like if I was going to walk around with a bunch of cheap ass Japanese art on my arm I'd at least make an attempt to not sound like an idiot if someone asked me about it.

>>18331047
Fill the blank space in with penises to symbolise the one you have between your legs.

>>18331165
>I don't get it.
you said something racist so I called you out on it sheesh

>>18331191
oh okay.

well you seem to know quite a bit about japanese culture. do you have any ideas of what i could have in the blank space on my arm?

>>18331198
KEK

>>18331199

>you said something racist so I called you out on it sheesh

Whenever you see a shitty yin yang or koi fish tattooed on someone's arm its always some white douche bag wearing a backwards hat or driving a piece of shit Honda with a monster sticker on the back.

The majority of people who get garbage Japanese art tattoos in America are white people. Don't mean to trigger you but its the truth.

Also, no one cares if someone says something racist about white people. Literally no one. White people get to maintain social and financial dominance and the trade off is that everyone else gets to make fun of you. Pretty good deal if you ask me.

>>18331200

>well you seem to know quite a bit about japanese culture.

I've been to Japan, yes, but an expert on Japanese culture I am not. Thus, the reason I don't have any Japanese tattoos. Personally, If I ever was going to get one I would go back to Japan and get it hand done by an actual Japanese artist, not some fuckboi street tattooer from Sacramento named Nick.

>do you have any ideas of what i could have in the blank space on my arm?

I dunno, something more true to your culture, like a box of mac n cheese or a portrait of Ross from Friends.

>>18331216
>I dunno, something more true to your culture, like a box of mac n cheese or a portrait of Ross from Friends.
i'm white hispanic but whatever.

>>18331216
>no one cares if someone says something racist about white people
those people are racist like you
sorry to shatter your bubble but racism is never ok not ever

>>18331221

>i'm white hispanic but whatever.

Go with a portrait of Monica then. She seemed to be the most tanned of the group.

>>18331231
dude why are you such a dick lol

>>18331047
Fagit

>>18331222

>those people are racist like you
>sorry to shatter your bubble but racism is never ok not ever

Ah. You're one of the classic "kumbaya lets all hold hands and all get along" white kids. The kind that never does or says anything about racism and is perfectly happy to remain neutral and out of the conversation until someone makes a joke that hurts your feelings then suddenly you're all outspoken about how "racism is never ok". No one gives a shit about the "oppression" of white people, anon. White peoples' feelings has been the flavor of the week for the past 300 years so, consider this current social climate the proverbial "shoe on the other foot."

Bukkake.
Oppai.

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>>18331235

>dude why are you such a dick lol

Its the internet, dude.

>>18331176
You said right in your OP that you are looking for japanese culture stuff to go with the japanese themed tattoo you already have because you like japanese stuff. It's not uniquely american- it is clearly intentionally japanese oriented. Don't try to sugar coat it after the fact.

>>18331245
you're the one defending racism not me
sorry bud but you're the problem in this conversation

>>18331410
i wasn't saying it wasn't japanese at all, but if you compare it to actual traditional japanese tattoos you'll notice they are very different :P

my tattoo is an american-styled tattoo of japanese themes

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Get something more personal to you instead of trying to force a japanese kind of picture when you don't seem well versed in japanese culture.

Maybe get a unicorn, rearing on its hind legs. You seem like you'd like unicorns. In european medieval mythology, the unicorn was closely associated with flowers and trees, although those were apple trees.

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omg forgot pic lol

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>>18331524
thanks :P

first serious post in the thread?

i'm actually thinking of going with a faerie, or if the artist would rather do a sword then some kinda elven-looking sword. for some reason the artist really really wanted it to be a complete japanese theme and i find it's usually best to give your artist some room for creative freedom (if you want their best work), but if i can't find something that tops my weird fantasy fetish then i'll have to put my foot down.

>>18331471

>sorry bud but you're the problem in this conversation

I could not literally care less about your white comfort, anon. Your unrealistic, disconnected views on race relations and the knee-jerk cry-baby reactions that come with it sit monumentally below the very bottom on my list of things I give a shit about at any given moment.

I'm sorry that your sensitivities as a white person aren't the number one priority whenever a conversation about race takes place but as long as there are people out there who are ACTUALLY being physically attacked and hurt by racism the world at large will continue to laugh at you whenever you try to pretend like your struggle as a white person against jokes that hurt your feelings is anywhere near equivalent to the things that minorities experience on a day to day basis.

>>18331523

>my tattoo is an american-styled tattoo of japanese themes

Ok. If I take a plate of sushi and arrange them into the shape of an American flag it is not an "American style sushi of Japanese themes", its still a 100% Japanese dish. I don't understand why you're still struggling with this concept.

You're getting art created in Japan based on Japanese traditions. Organizing the art in a different fashion doesn't make it another style. Its Japanese art.

fuck I lost that tumblr pasta with that guy sperging about japanese cultural appropriation

would have been perf for this thread, someone post if they have it

>>18331536
Go to a different artist if your creative ideas aren't meshing. It may be his art but it's your skin, after all.

Just do your research on whatever subject you choose. Or better yet, pick something you're already comfortably knowledgeable in.

Your tattoo guy might be able to draw, but his katana idea is just tacky and offensive.

>>18331523
And getting it japanese themed in the first place is what makes it come off as a knockoff.

Why don't you just go for maximum offensive and get a tattoo themed around another culture in which tattoos are prohibited or bear serious great cultural significance, like a star of david, or a polynesian tribal tattoo?

>>18331047
kill yourself whore

>>18331557

>japanese cultural appropriation

That isn't what I said. I just said it was cringey. Its just as cringey as a fat white dude in samurai robes and a head band on chopping watermelons with samurai swords. Just as cringey as a white guy from Illinois dressing up in a doorag and a grill trying to rap about the hood. Just as cringey as some left-wing, upper middle class cry baby with dreadlocks.

It has nothing to do with cultural appropriation. You just look like an idiot.

>>18331564
That's the same thing retard. Stop pretending you don't sound like a stupid smacked ass.

>>18331564
I kind of agree with you that those things look stupid and cringey, but every thing you just listed is an example of what would be considered cultural appropriation. That's usually the very reason it's considered so stupid. Just embrace the term and accept your inner tumblrite.

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>>18331525
>>18331050
These are all very similar. The artist in the OP pic even made sure to include the background swirls so that you'd know it was inspired by a traditional yakuza sleeve.

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lol you guys are funny.

>>18331558
our creative ideas mesh well enough and i'm glad i went to him. he's creating an amazing work of art on my arm and i can tell that i'm gonna love it. there is a reason i'm going with cherry blossoms :)

you're right about the katana though. i knew once he said that i had to set him straight. and the more i think about it the more i realize that i want there to be more fantasy-type things in the tattoo.

i'm going for 3 major themes with my tattoos overall: literature i love, cherry blossoms, and cute nature-y fantasy elf/faerie stuff. i'm gonna be pretty well covered eventually. already have two more planned, and this one on my arm is my third.

so like i don't see a problem combining two of the themes in this one tat.

>>18331577
>>18331572

>I kind of agree with you that those things look stupid and cringey, but every thing you just listed is an example of what would be considered cultural appropriation.

I don't really care what other people consider it. It looks dumb. Thats my opinion. I don't know what logic train you road into town on but two people coming to the same conclusion about something doesn't mean that they came to that conclusion for the same reason.

You and I can not like a piece of art but that doesn't equal you and I having the same reason for doing so. According to your logic, you would also be considered a Tumblr-fag because you also think those things look stupid and cringey. Shouldn't that mean you should also embrace your "inner tumblrite"? We do have the same opinion, after all. Just a bit of logic, you know?

Despite your strongest efforts to pigeonhole me into the role of a Tumblrista for the purpose of streamlining your justification for writing my opinion off its just not clicking, anon. I don't agree with their views on cultural appropriation. Repeatedly saying I do does not make it so.

>>18331597
>Shouldn't that mean you should also embrace your "inner tumblrite"?
Oh, I have.

But if you think our reasoning is so different, then explain why is it that you find all of those things in your list stupid and cringey?

I know I'm a bad person for defending anon ITT, I just hate tumblr faggots. I wouldn't recommend fairy tattoos, that's the fat girl's calling card.

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Maybe a series of masks? Demon? I dunno, seems like the space he left is kind of awkward. You're best getting consultations from different artists you like.

>>18331639
But OP's not fat. We've got a pic of her. I guess she could potentially gain weight later, though.

>>18331176
for fuck's sake, it's you again.
you posted that tattoo on /r9k/ for attention months ago and got shat on.

it's still complete garbage and it's quite apparent you have zero knowledge of any culture at all, let alone japanese culture.
go back to tumblr

>>18331176
>all that groks is qod

what did you mean by this?

what do you hope to gain by staining your body with this?

>>18331952
Shit, is there a chance that thread is still in the archive? I could go for some quality cringe right about now.

>>18331125
Not related to the thread, but I thought I would chime in that I had a friend who has a tattoo of the enola gay (her grandfather did something with it during the war) and when she went to Japan she was confused by all the dirty looks she received.

>>18332044
Did she ever manage to put two and two together and figure it out?

>>18332051
She sort of realized it, but it didn't click. She thought people wouldn't be upset about something that happened so long ago. I told her that black people are still demanding reparations for slavery, so no shit the japanese would still be irked by such a "reference."

>>18331952
What happened in that thread? Any screencaps, by chance?

>>18332063
>she thought people wouldn't be upset about something that happened so long ago
Holy shit that is insensitive.

>>18331547
youre a very negative and racist person.
people dont like negative and racist people like you. sorry but its the truth

>>18331597
>>18331564
Her tattoo looks okay. It's nothing special, but it's nowhere near as bad as
>a fat white dude in samurai robes and a head band on chopping watermelons with samurai swords
>a white guy from Illinois dressing up in a doorag and a grill trying to rap about the hood
Her cherry blossom tattoo, evaluated just on aesthetics and leaving cultural sensitivity out of it, is reasonably attractive. If it has a fault it's that there are a zillion other tattoos like it out there. It's a little samey. But all it really says about her is that she thinks it's an elegant piece of visual art. Unlike the other examples you mentioned (except the dreadlocks) which are cases of nerdy dudes clumsily aping other cultures in an attempt to look like a badass.

>>18332001
>>18332084
turns out it was almost exactly a year ago
http://desuarchive.org/r9k/thread/28666781

What is bad about "cultural appropiation" tho? I think it gets a bad rep because of Japan fanatics and weebs, but what if an American gets a celtic tattoo, or hangs African paintings in his home because he likes them or whatever? Is that also bad cultural appropiation?

>>18332108
People don't like shitty spoiled sjw types either, you're no social engineer bub.

look up 浮世絵 or Ukiyoe for inspiration.

but you're a fucking faggot for even considering this

>>18331047
this is the tranny with a trip fairy something right?

>>18332556
I think the tattoo thing is troubling because it's the style of a tattoo that is traditionally earned as a rite of passage. It's not the same as throwing a random piece of art on the wall, it's like wearing a badge of honor as a trend. Personally, I think these things are situational and come in a set of different degrees. Not everything should be off limits, imo, but if you're going to do something, it's best to try to be educated.

>>18332209
I don't know whether to respect or be ashamed for the guy that went to the trouble of doodling a parody tattoo just to piss on OP, but either way that's pretty funny.