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Wabori: Traditional Japanese Tattoo

by Manami Okazaki

Wabori: Traditional Japanese Tattoo is a collection of interviews and photos of some of the most influential masters in Japanese tattooing. Included are hundreds of photos from esteemed photo journalists as well as archival material from the masters' albums spanning four decades. This book is the end result of eight years' work in getting acquainted with and interviewing these masters from various regions of Japan.

The full-length interviews give insight into some of the more subterranean, underworld aspects of Japanese tattooing as well as the technical aspects of their craft. Japanese traditional tattoos are typified by a single large narrative or symbolic subject taken from Japanese iconography and often embellished with other complementary elements. The motifs used range from protagonists of folkloric tales to religious deities to animals that are both mythical and real, complemented with flowers, maple leaves, and smaller iconography taking into account the seasonal compatibility of the main subject.

Softcover. 256 pages. Measures 8 1/2" X 12"

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