DEAR TATTOO FRIENDS, I am honoured and proud as a dog with seven dicks to present this exquisite book, a result of the utmost diligence of my friend, Yushi Takei. I saw this book take shape in our own museum. As he sat in silence on the tatami in our Japanese room and drew sheet after sheet, I witnessed the transformation of a black-leather-clad punk into a true modest master of the Japanese tattoo tradition and the switch from an electric machine to a tebori hand-tool. Each of the unique half-sleeve designs in this book testifies to that transformation. I tried to play a part in enthusing and brainstorming about the final 108 left and right sleeve designs (54 pairs). The number 108 has special and sometimes sacred connotations: a Buddhist rosary has 108 beads; there are 108 heroes in Shi Nai’an’s 16th-century Chinese epic Shuihu Zhuan (The Water Margin; Suikoden in Japanese). One of Japan’s greatest print artists, Utagawa Kuniyoshi, illustrated this tale in a print series from 1827. Six of the heroes featured in the original version of this Robin Hood-like tale had tattoos. In his series of woodblock prints, Kuniyoshi expanded this group to fifteen and their designs form the basis of tattoo themes that are still used to this very day. Kuniyoshi’s influence is immense and some have suggested that he was a tattooist as well; that he himself was tattooed is also quite possible. The latter is attributed to what is assumed to be a self-portrait of Kuniyoshi with his likewise tattooed friends during a pilgrimage to a ¯ sacred waterfall (Great Falls of Sekison at Oyama, late 1830s). This book provides a good insight into the proper use of the different elements – the correct motifs and their combinations – that make up a Japanese tattoo. Certain stories, for instance, take place during specific seasons, and the use of incorrect floral motifs will therefore make a design ridiculous. Takei informs us about the where and why in an accessible style. This rich source of knowledge will enhance any tattoo book collection. An absolute masterpiece showing the results of a steady transformation of a young tattoo artist, like a koi into a dragon. It is an achievement that underscores Takei assuming his new title, an honour that coincides with the publication of his book. In recognition of this, today’s foremost living Japanese tattoo legend, sensei Horiyoshi III, wrote a Foreword to this book. It was with great pride that I was able to participate in all of this. Proud of my small role and proud of the Amsterdam Tattoo Museum for publishing this work, especially since I see this jewel as the fruitful harvest of this young museum that is claiming its role and respect in the tattoo world. It fills me with hope for the future of this Institute. So, I make an enormously respectful bow to my friend Yushi Takei and an even more respectful one to Horikichi, the tattoo master he will become. I wish him a long and creative career and am convinced that he will always rank in the major league of the world of Japanese tattoos. My thanks for allowing me to be a fellow traveller on this unique journey and lots of happiness and health in your work! Your old Dutch teacher, H.P.
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