Native young people leave behind traditional tattooing customs

In indigenous populations, young people are moving away from traditional tribal tattooing customs, according to Lars Krutak. 

Those young people are more interested in getting sports star or public-figure tattoos because those are  trendy and fashion-oriented, Krutak said. 

Those tattoos are also considered more modern, according to Krutak. 

“Traditional tribal tattoos in some places are sort of looked down upon as more primitive and sort of backward,” Krutak said. 

“The youth ... want something more colorful. They don’t want this geometric stuff, and so they’re migrating towards these more modern designs ... which I think is a shame,” Krutak said. 

But some people in these communities try to preserve the tattooing culture, according to Krutak.

“Certain individuals ... are coming up in these communities and trying to ... promote awareness ... that we have something that’s unique and that’s our own. ... that no else has in the world. ... Why would you want to go copy others people’s designs when we have this incredible tattooing culture and history?” Krutak said. 

Krutak said that one of his goals is to honor those who came before and document both their stories and the meaning behind tattooing. 

How do we know where we are going in the future if we don’t know where this all came from in the past? Krutak said. 

Krutak's research is about promoting awareness, educating the public and "trying to create some sort of a renaissance back in these home communities where tattooing is disappearing," he said.