Lets learn from Portland!

I always thought it was San Francisco that was the true mecca for tattoos. Where else can you find a city where almost every other person you encounter on the street has either a tattoo or a piercing out of the norm. I had discovered that although San Francisco is definitely a city where the heart of tattoos lie, Portland, Oregon is another city way up in the ranks of being the one big city with many tatted up people. Somehow, those that were once living and tattooing out here in the Bay Area have migrated to the north where the city of Portland stands. Portland doesn’t care if you have body modifications; it doesn’t care if your ear lobes are 10 times the size of what normal ear piercings look like. What made Oregon such an attractive state for these talented artists to move up there? 

            Both San Francisco and Portland have their differences on the outlook of tattoos. In San Francisco, tattoos are becoming more of a subculture, while Portland accepts tatted individuals and it gives people the courage to show their art rather than hiding them under ridiculous long sleeves even during 100 degrees weather. With the growing number of people wanting tattoos, you’d never think that it is considered a West Coast kind of thing to do. “Nationally, 14 percent of U.S. residents say they have at least one tattoo, but 20 percent of West Coast residents admit to one”. It’s almost every 1 in 4 person you encounter will have a tattoo or two peeking out the sides of their sleeves or behind their hair.

            Although society has become more accepting of tattoos, there are still issues regarding positions at work and the employer’s thoughts on tattoos before hiring you. But in Portland, you may even encounter doctors in a hospital with tattoos. Why are there so many more people with tattoos living in Portland? “San Francisco has a population of about 808,000 and 70 tattoo shops listed in its Yellow Pages. Portland’s population is 580,000 and it has 73 shops. Seattle has only 40 shops and Phoenix 36. Los Angeles lists 167 shops, but its population of 9.8 million is more than 10 times that of Portland. On a per-capita basis, Portland has far and way more tattoo shops than any major city in the country.” The number of tattoo shops seen in Portland and San Francisco makes a difference in the number of tattoos seen on people. For a population only a little over half of what it is in San Francisco, Portland houses more tattoo shops than the city that was once thought of as the true mecca for tattoos. 

            Even though the numbers of shops located in San Francisco isn’t as high as Portland’s, San Francisco is still the city where many talented artists reside. Many people in San Francisco tend to do research or look up the works done by artists’ before they get a tattoo so they can find the best artists that draws the style of art they want. A majority of the shops in San Francisco are dominated by artists that are sought after for their artworks and talent. This is where quality is always going to be better than quantity. No matter how many more shops open up in Portland, it’ll all fail unless they have the talents that San Franciscans have.

            While it seems like tattoos are making a breakthrough in our generations, it is still not fully accepted in some parts of the world. Some companies may not even hire you if they see even the smallest tattoo on your arms or legs but it doesn’t mean you should stop pursuing your career. Not everyone is going to be against those with body art. For example, let’s talk about one of the Forever 21 stores in San Francisco. It’s a clothing store with your average teenage workers as sales associates so it’s definitely normal to see over half their employees sporting tattoos. It is corporate policy to have all tattoos and piercings hidden but it also can depend on the employer. The store manager from this particular store has no problem with most of the employees showing their tattoos as long as they dress according to the dress code. So tattoos and people with them aren’t really the problem, it’s whether a person is willing to accept them or wants make it a problem for both tatted people and themselves. Portland has moved one step higher in society’s acceptance of tattoos.