Body inking has been used for centuries to reflect changes in life status, whether passage into adulthood or induction into a group like the military or a gang. However, in recent years, tattoos have come into the mainstream as they have also become a fashion accessory, a trend fuelled by athletes, bands and celebrities, reports nytimes.com
Movie stars, athletes, singers, and even politicians (Franklin Roosevelt, George W Bush reportedly had tattoos) proudly sport their special ‘tats’ on various body parts.
Recently, Hollywood actor Rooney Mara flaunted a dragon tattoo in her highly anticipated film The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, due to be released on December 21, reports E!Online. The 26-year-old, best known for her work in The Social Network, beat the likes of Carey Mulligan and Scarlett Johansson to play young computer-hacker Lisbeth Salander in the movie, directed by David Fincher. For the film, Mara, who wears a temporary dragon tattoo on her back, also had her ears pierced four times. The role also required her to have her lip, brow and nose pierced, according to wmagazine.com.
Additionally, teen star Demi Lovato recently got the word ‘faith’ tattooed on her right arm, reports IANS. The 19-year-old already has ‘stay’ and ‘strong’ tattooed on her wrists. The “Skyscraper” singer posted a picture of her new tattoo on her Twitter account with the message, “Sometimes you just gotta have a little bit of...,” reports femalefirst.co.uk. The image revealed the word ‘faith’ tattooed on her skin as a constant reminder for the talented singer-actor.
Meanwhile, some stars (who dared not to go close to the needle) have vociferously revealed their fantasies regarding tattoos. Cheryl Cole, for instance, has expressed the desire to get her whole back covered in tattoos, reports England channel ITV1. The singer, who already has several pieces of body art, said that while she’d love to take the plunge and get a full back tattoo she’s too afraid. “I would like to, I really like the idea of it,” she said.
So while most celebrities seem to be making a statement through tattoos, others seemed to have outgrown the fascination. Megan Fox, who as a child got a large Marilyn tattoo on her right arm, is reportedly regretting her big tattoo and was recently in the process of getting it removed from her arm. “I’m just over it,” Fox told People Style Watch last month. “You outgrow things that you love when you were a child.”
Stars famous for their tattoos
Amy Winehouse
Winehouse had a lot of popular tattoos, with the huge tattoo on her right arm being the most popular. It’s a tattoo of a girl with her hands on her waist that looks a lot like the singer.
David Beckham’s
Beckham is known to be obsessed with tattoos, with over 20 on his body. His latest tattoo is the name of his daughter ‘Harper’ in script just below his neck.
Angelina Jolie
The actor has at least a dozen tattoos over her body, with a Gothic letter tattoo being one of the popular ones. It’s between her shoulder blades and says “Know Your Rights”.
Published in The Express Tribune, December 13th, 2011.
COMMENTS
Comments are moderated and generally will be posted if they are on-topic and not abusive.
For more information, please see our Comments FAQ