black-and-gray
{{Short description|Style of tattooing that uses only black ink in varying shades}}
File:Crusade tattoo.jpg that encompasses the whole back which is the tattoo industry is known as a back piece. The shading technique used encompasses different tones and line weights to create a sense of depth in the piece. ]]
Black-and-gray (also black-and-grey, black and grey/gray) is a style of tattooing that uses black tattoo ink mixed with distilled water to create various tones in the skin. This tattooing style originated from prisons in the 1970s and 1980s and was later popularized in tattoo parlors.
Origin
Black-and-gray is sometimes referred to as "jailhouse"{{cite book|last1=Wilkinson|first1=Beth|title=Coping with the dangers of tattooing, body piercing, and branding|date=1999|publisher=Hazelden|location=Center City, MN|isbn=1568382464|page=66|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FNwgkXnfsq4C}} or "joint style".{{cite book |last1=Miller |first1=Jean-Chris |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=5zaXPwAACAAJ |title=The Body Art Book: A Complete, Illustrated Guide to Tattoos, Piercings, and Other Body Modifications |date=1997 |publisher=Berkley Books |isbn=042515985X |edition=Berkley trade pbk. |location=New York |pages=52–53}} It originated in prisons where inmates had limited access to materials: they resorted to using guitar strings for needles{{cite book|last1=Hemingson|first1=Vince|title=Alphabets and scripts tattoo design directory : the essential reference for body art|date=2010|publisher=Chartwell Books|location=New York, N.Y.|isbn=978-0785825784|page=28|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=o2Cr3tIU97Q}} and cigarette ashes or pen ink to produce tattoos.{{cite book|last1=Levy|first1=Janey|title=Tattoos in modern society|date=2009|publisher=Rosen Pub.|location=New York|isbn=978-1404218291|page=[https://archive.org/details/tattoosinmoderns0000levy/page/39 39]|edition=1st|url=https://archive.org/details/tattoosinmoderns0000levy|url-access=registration}}{{cite book|last1=Gerber|first1=Larry|title=Getting inked : what to expect when you get a tattoo|date=2012|publisher=Rosen Pub.|location=New York|isbn=978-1448846160|page=[https://archive.org/details/gettinginkedwhat0000gerb/page/23 23]|edition=1st|url=https://archive.org/details/gettinginkedwhat0000gerb|url-access=registration}} Inmates constructed makeshift tattoo machines using small motors from tape players.{{Cite web |date=2017-11-22 |title=Tattoo you: Freddy Negrete, the black-and-gray style and an L.A. museum's new interactive exhibition |url=https://www.latimes.com/entertainment/arts/la-ca-cm-tattoo-show-nhm-20171126-story.html |access-date=2025-05-07 |website=Los Angeles Times |language=en-US}} Prisons prohibit inmates from tattooing, so these were done in secret. Jailhouse style developed in the Chicano{{cite news |last1=Frucci |first1=Angela |date=11 January 2005 |title=Los Angeles is becoming the capital of tattoo artists |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1817&dat=20050111&id=mT4dAAAAIBAJ&pg=3054,3376978 |access-date=20 September 2014 |work=The Tuscaloosa News |agency=NY Times News Service}} and cholo culture in Los Angeles.
During the late 1970s and early 1980s, this style became popularized in tattoo parlors outside of prison and was renamed "black and gray".{{cite news|last1=Kahn|first1=Eve M.|title=Tattoos' Impressions in Print and in Film|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2013/02/01/arts/design/tattoos-in-more-books-and-films-dog-art-at-william-secord.html|access-date=19 September 2014|work=The New York Times|date=31 January 2013}} Tattoo artists Ed Hardy, Jack Rudy, Charlie Cartwright, and Freddy Negrete contributed to popularizing the style for a wider audience, including in a shop called Good Time Charlie's in East Los Angeles.{{Cite web |last=Chesler |first=Josh |date=2016-12-07 |title=Once a Style Exclusive to Chicanos, Black-and-Gray Tattoos Are Now Taking Over the World |url=https://www.ocweekly.com/once-a-style-exclusive-to-chicanos-black-and-gray-tattoos-are-now-taking-over-the-world-7728101/ |access-date=2025-05-07 |website=OC Weekly |language=en-US}}
Technique
Black-and-gray tattoo work is produced by diluting black ink with distilled water in varying proportions to create a "wash" that results in lighter shades.{{cite book|last1=DeMello|first1=Margo|title=Inked: Tattoos and Body Art around the World|date=2014|publisher=ABC-CLIO|location=Santa Barbara, CA|isbn=978-1610690768|page=731|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=VmRyBAAAQBA}}{{cite book|last1=Reardon|first1=John|title=The complete idiot's guide to getting a tattoo|date=2008|publisher=Alpha Books|location=Indianapolis, IN|isbn=978-1592577255|page=79|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=4kyvcwBK0aUC&pg=PA7}} Gray shades can also be produced by mixing small amounts of black ink with white ink, which produces a thicker but brighter result and requires a slower application. Shading is an important component for these types of tattoos as they will fade over a period of years without strong black tones, which provide contrast and allows the tattoo to stand out.{{sfn|Reardon|2008|pp=170–171}}{{cite book|last1=Buchanan|first1=Fip|title=Art of tattoo design : creating masterful tattoo art from start to finish.|date=2014|publisher=F&W Media Inc.|location=S.l.|isbn=978-1440328879|page=26|edition=1st|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=PwqrAgAAQBAJ}} Subtle shading in black-and-gray requires a high level of skill from a tattoo artist.
Common usage
File:Irezumi Tattoo.jpg tattoo depicting rising koi]]
Black-and-gray techniques can be used for a variety of tattoo designs and styles. Japanese irezumi, such as the rising koi, are traditionally done using black-and-gray,{{sfn|Buchanan|2014|p=48}} although colored irezumi sometimes use black-and-gray backgrounds in a manner similar to sumi-e brushwork.{{cite book|last1=Green|first1=Terisa|title=The Tattoo Encyclopedia|date=2012|publisher=Simon and Schuster|location=New York|isbn=978-1471108617|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ycGaoqYm7eAC&q=%22Black+and+gray%22&pg=PT328}} Classic Chicano tattoos—which include a broad range of imagery such as icons in Catholicism or the Mexican flag and partially originated from prison life—are also normally done in black-and-gray.{{sfn|DeMello|2014|pp=105–106}} Photo-realistic portraits are also commonly done in black-and-gray,{{sfn|Gerber|2012|p=23}} and typically resist deterioration better than color portraits.{{sfn|Buchanan|2014|p=60}}
In some color tattoos, artists can use black-and-gray to provide a foundation for the subsequent shading using colors. The colored ink can be added directly above the black-and-gray portions of the tattoo.{{cite book|last1=Jordan|first1=C.R.|title=Basic fundamentals of modern tattoo|date=2009|publisher=Tattoo Books Online|location=Phoenix, Ariz.|isbn=978-0615281476|page=151|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=P6d1yoOfytsC|access-date=21 September 2014}}
Examples
File:Mlght13.jpg
File:A039-andreaafferni-seminars-seminar-tattoo-tattoos-tatuaggi-portrait-ritratto-realism (cropped).jpg
File:Full Back tattoo by jairo ramirez.jpg
File:Man with a full back tattoo. Black and White image.jpg