NOTE: This is part twelve of a thirteen part article. Enjoy!!!
Part XII- Anthropologists – Keepers of Culture
Tattoo Detail - Moorea
Tricia Allen is a contemporary Anthropologist. She holds a masters degree in Anthropology from the University of Hawaii. She has chronicled the modern revival of Polynesian culture; its art and tattoo. Besides her academic expertise in Marquesan culture, she is an accomplished photographer, organizes tours to Polynesia, and is a tattoo artist in her own right.
Tattoo Application - Moorea
In 1991 she helped kick start modern interest in Marquesan tattoo design in Rapa Nui (Easter Island) by instructing locals about modern hygenic technique and providing copies of traditional Marquesan art. She discovered that the local population was denied access to tattoo motifs contained in historic literature at the local library.
Tattoo Application - Moorea
In an interview with Steve Gilbert, author of Tattoo History, a Source Book; Tricia Allen describes how tattooing came back to French Polynesia….
Tattoo Application - Moorea
In 1980, a Hawaiian nightclub owner from Waikiki traveled to Samoa where he received a set of tattoos. The tattooist then accompanied him to Tahiti during the month long Bastille Day celebration. Tattoos were demonstrated and the art form was reborn. The tattoo technique was not modern and relied upon traditional tools. In ancient Polynesia where disease did not exist, tattoos could be safely applied with tools that were not sterilized. Not so in modern times. The French government banned tattooing in 1986 due to health concerns. Tattooing emerged again, this time with hygenic technique and modern equipment.
More to follow…… the last installment, Part XIII is on its way. Suzan
