To better acquaint myself with the understanding behind why people get tattoos, I plan to focus my strategy on the following deliverables:** Using (http://secondlife.com) online video game created by Linden Lab as a medium for visual communication.
1) Second Life avatar - character should represent self; specific tattoos need to be selected to gain insight into how people perceive the visual appearance of others. Variation in layout and design of tattoos will be applied to the avatar to obtain different results for study.
2) Digital Remix - create a portfolio of different tattoo images worthy of being displayed on (http://www.worth1000.com/default.asp).
3) Film - this movie should reflect how others interpret meanings from tattoos; it should also demonstrate how people observe and reflect upon people's appearance. Tattoo artist and tattoo enthusiasts will be interviewed for this insight.
4) Virtual Exhibit - construct a new world in Second Life to teach others about tattoo meanings; a tattoo parlor is at the top of my list.
If you were able to get this far, it's safe to say that I don't have a tattoo! You heard me correctly. The problem with this decision is that I don't have the complete information to be able to rationalize an informed commitment. Tattoos are permanent and there are numerous designs to choose! The book above is very helpful to get a broad sense of many tattoos around ("The Tattoo Encyclopedia").
