About 20 years ago, when Playgirl was owned by a different organization in a very different lifetime, I had pitched a tattooed Centerfold to my publisher. It was the early 00s and I was the Editor-in-Chief then, and my publisher — a straight man — took one look at the guy and said something along the lines of “You know, Michele, this magazine doesn’t exist just for you.” He seemed to believe that I was the only woman who was turned on by tattooed men.
Another time, I was preparing for my appearance on The Sharon Osbourne Show where I was going to present Sharon with a mock cover of Playgirl featuring the body of the actual cover model but with Ozzy’s face juxtaposed on it. Back at our offices in New York City, the two women who made up our PR team were going over important talking points for me and included that I should make sure to wear a long sleeve shirt because the last time they saw my tattoos on TV, it made me look like a burn victim.
I didn’t heed that advice. And the tattooed guy I pitched didn’t become Centerfold.
My memory is hazy with this next incident, but a well-known, full of tattoos, hardcore frontman came to me with the idea of posing for Playgirl. He had specific demands — there must be women in the shoot with him and I believe there may have been a bondage theme or perhaps motorcycles — potentially both. It all sounded very not Playgirl at the time. I loved the idea because it was different, but you can guess how this landed with my publisher. It never happened.
I longed for at least one model in our pages who wasn’t meticulously shaven, shiny with oil, and photographed under bright lights. You’d think I’d have more creative control but that’s another story for another day. I wanted to be seduced by the dirty, Brooklyn boy-next-door, tattooed and tattered, in dim lights.
All my dreams came true with the short-lived, now defunct Sweet Action magazine. Only I had nothing to do with it. It was everything I wanted to inject into Playgirl published, indie-style, by two women in Brooklyn — Micole Taggart and Robin Adams.
I didn’t know Taggart and Adams, but I was incredibly smitten with their production. They proved that I wasn’t the only one who fancied ‘alternative’ looking models.
Historically Speaking
Another person who “gets it” is Michelle Myles, co-owner of Daredevil Tattoo and Museum, and an incredible tattoo artist making skin more beautiful since 1991. She’s also the author of Liberty: The Tattooed Lady. Myles possesses a wealth of talent and knowledge about the tattoo industry and its history. When asked if tattoos were hot or not, her response was a resounding, “So hot!”
“Tattooing is a means of self-expression,” she continued, “acting as talismans, protection, markers of tribal, family, and organizational connections — military, trades, fraternal orders, religion.”
Tattoos were also a badge of the rebellion, the underworld, a mark of wild sailors, bikers, the Yakuza. But now every kind of person has a tattoo. “In the last 10 years or so, tattoos — once far out of the mainstream — have been embraced by popular culture and gained widespread acceptance,” Myles said.
We can look at Justin Bieber’s transformation from teen pop star “like baby, baby, baby” to his ascent into manhood, fully tattooed, fully matured. Arguably hot.
Myles shared that in her extensive research about tattoos throughout history, she has found multiple articles dating back to the 1800’s that talked about tattoos as the “latest trend.”
“I can’t think of anything else that has been a ‘new trend’ for well over a hundred years,” she said.
The practice and art of tattooing is timeless. But the styles have seen trends. Blackout tattoos have emerged as one such “trend” — though I use that phrase with caution. The style has roots within ancient tribes, notably traditional Polynesian body art. That style has seen a resurgence on Machine Gun Kelly, Kat Von D, and Laura Jane Grace. Folks today are blacking out large areas, often as a cover up of old work. Also, arguably hot.
Machine Gun Kelly • Photo: Erik Penzdich.
Myles’ favorite style to tattoo is traditional American. “The images are iconic and have a charm and timelessness that really grabs you,” she said.
The Meaning
Something happens to well-meaning folks when they see someone with tattoos. One is they want to touch them, which I don’t recommend. Personal space and consent is paramount. The other is asking what the tattoo means. We get tattoos for a myriad of reasons from deeply personal to completely topical. I went to Renée Zavislak, Integrated Psychotherapist and Host of “Psycho Therapist: The Podcast” for some insight.
“The intersection of trauma and tattoos is undeniable,” Zavislak noted. “That said, not all tattoos are symbols of personal process. Rather, there are two main schools of tattoo acquisition: aesthetic and emotional.”
She shared that there are overlaps, but some people get tattoos for fun and others people get them for reclamation.
“The more compelling tattoo content comes from the second category of tattoo acquisition – the emotional transaction group,” Zavislak continued. For those who get tattooed as an “emotional transaction” [it acts as] “a statement to the universe that we alone are in charge of our bodies and our destinies. Tattoos can be deeply healing as they provide both the experience of and also a statement on reclaiming our bodies and therefore ourselves from mistreatment and pain.”
I subscribe to this — there is power and healing in reclaiming yourself through tattoos. I also like to think of them like armor and protection. I tell my story through my tattoos and when people don’t understand my story, they will (hopefully and thankfully) stay away.
Zavislak addressed how it seems counterintuitive to those without trauma histories. Why would someone want to use pain to heal pain?
Manuel – photo Roberto Chiovitti
“It’s similar to what I hear from so many clients with abuse histories who find BDSM practices healing — when we reappropriate the pain, when we decide how and where it will happen, the experience can be transformative,” she said. “Clients have narrated the process of purging deep-seated despair with the buzzing pain from the tattoo needle; the release is potent. And what remains when the pain is gone is the permanent statement: My body is mine; my destiny is mine.”
This all adds to the appeal. “Those of us who have endured and resolved trauma are almost always more drawn to others who have done the same, as there is tremendous comfort in knowing someone else ‘gets it,’” Zavislak added. “Likewise, others who may not have endured their own trauma may be attracted to the emotional depth that almost inevitably defines those of us who have, and in this sense, tattoos can signal compelling intensity of experience and understanding.”
Myles added, “I think tattoos are so appealing because it’s one thing we can choose for our appearance that really reflects who we are in a concrete way.”
I like to compare it to clothing. Think of the question: Are dresses sexy? This isn’t a simple yes or no. It depends on the dress and how the person is wearing it. Is it complimentary to that person? Does it feel authentic that they are wearing it?
We have to question the question to get the answer. And yet the answer isn’t the same for everyone.
Self-expression is sexy. But it all comes down to authenticity. When any of us express ourselves in our truest way, there is a beautiful vulnerability. When tattoos are the form of outward expression, we get a peek into who a person is. It can be a visual representation of personality, an art form of telling your story, or simply a neat design.
Tattoos can be one of the sexiest and incredibly alluring parts of a person, and they can also be the opposite. It’s their dichotomy that makes them all the more fascinating. A tattoo that symbolizes hate? No thanks. But I melt at the sight of a floral ornamental or a scribble stick-and-poke a guy got decades ago. The answer to the question if tattoos are hot or not can be complicated. It depends.
What’s not complicated is the fact that there are many things that turn women on — tattoos are just one of them and I’m not an anomaly in my love of them. Playgirl’s mission is — and should have always been — to explore a myriad of turn-ons and kinks. Tattoos and all.
