Inside: Flash tattoo art types, ideas, history & meaning.
With inspirations easily found on social media and tattoo shops open on every corner of a street, tattoos are becoming more and more popular among the youth and adults alike. With the rising popularity of tattoos, there has been an advent of new and unique tattoo styles, designs, and types.
There is no doubt that tattoos are an art form, and the different styles and types of tattoos we see today are all a representation of different cultures and influenced by times and people gone by through centuries
Nowadays, when you walk into a tattoo shop, you are likely to see a variety of tattoo designs displayed on the walls and the tattoo artists busy making interesting designs for their clients. The experience of walking into a tattoo parlor can be overwhelming and also calming for people who frequent the place and have good memories of getting their favorite tattoos.
If you are familiar with the scenery at a tattoo parlor, then you must be able to recognize a wall or corner full of common tattoo designs. If you know about this, you must know about flash art and tattoos.
Flash tattoos are perhaps the most common sight at every big or small tattoo shop. As someone who has been to a tattoo parlor a few times, you are sure to be familiar with flash tattoos – but do you know what they really are? If you don’t, then this is the right place for you.
Today, let’s get to know about flash art and flash tattoos.
What are Flash Art Tattoos?
Flash art tattoos, also known as flash tattoos, are basic, pre-made, and most common tattoo designs at tattoo parlors and shops. They are usually either in tattoo books and binders or drawn on a cardboard poster and displayed on the walls and doors of a tattoo shop to advertise it to people coming to the shop to get their tattoos. Have you ever gotten an infinity sign on your wrist, a butterfly tattoo on your back, or a small arrow on your ankle?
We see such tattoos everywhere and on almost every person who has gotten inked because these are all common tattoo designs known as flash tattoos.
The History of Flash Art Tattoos
We know flash tattoos are common, and we have seen these designs on people for years now – but when did they become a thing, and how did people accept them as pre-made tattoo designs?
Well, there is a history to flash art and how these tattoos became a permanent thing in tattoo parlors.
At times when tattoos were still an elicit practice and a taboo for young people, especially women, tattoo artists would work “on the go.” They didn’t have a place they could call their own, a shop where people could visit to get tattoos; instead, they sat in places men would frequent, such as barber shops or bars.
At that time, they usually also set up temporary shops where they would display their hand-drawn designs to attract customers. People who wanted tattoos could gauge the artist’s way of working and choose a design from the ones displayed to get on their skin. Since their shops were temporary, they could also leave the location at any instance, unannounced. They would grab their sheets of tattoo designs and would be “gone in a flash,” hence giving their tattoo designs a permanent name of “flash tattoos.”
Need Inspiration? Here are some ideas!
Types of Flash Tattoos
There are two types of flash tattoos:
● Market flash
Market flash tattoos are a set of popular tattoo designs that most clients ask for. These designs, such as hearts, butterflies, and roses, are often found in almost all lobby books, tattoo walls, and posters. These designs are easy to make and often completed in one sitting – you can find one market flash design in multiple tattoo parlors.
● Collector Flash
These are also pre-set tattoo designs, but one tattoo artist specifically makes them. With these designs, the tattoo artist represents their own interest and tattooing style. Most artists add these tattoos to their portfolios and show them to clients who request to get a tattoo from a pre-made design. In most cases, artists do not repeat collector flash designs on multiple clients, and you won’t find these designs in several tattoo parlors.
Flash Tattoos vs. Custom Tattoos – What Should You Get?
Flash art tattoos and custom tattoos are two completely different types of tattoos, and both are interesting on their own. If you talk about what tattoos look cool, we would say both look cool in their own capacity. While a custom tattoo represents your own styles, speak to you individually – a bunch of flash tattoos give a familiar vibe and complement almost everyone.
So if you have to choose between the two types, it totally depends on you and what you expect from your tattoo.