Bristol is a city known for its progressive ideas and independent creative scene. In 2017, the Sunday Times named Bristol as the best place to live in the UK for its nature as ‘cool, classy and supremely creative’ so it’s perhaps no surprise that Bristol is a city where a lot of artists congregate. From art to music, Bristol is a bit of a hub for the indie scene.
Tattoos and body art have only recently begun to be accepted by wider society; historically they have been marks of gangs and criminals, and thus associated with them. My parents would never have considered a tattoo as stylish or professional, but current society has begun to accept them as such. There’s still some backlash and lingering prejudices, particularly for individuals who are heavily tattooed or have tattoos in less common areas like the neck or face, but this is generally decreasing.
Bristol, as a pretty liberal city, has a wide acceptance of tattoos. Urban areas are always known to be more accepting of progressive ideas, but Bristol in particular has a strong focus on individualism and the art scene, so this attitude becomes even more prominent. I’ve never received anything but positive reactions to my (sparse) tattoos here, which I think is a result of both changing times and the kind of people who are drawn to a city like Bristol.
With all that said, tattoos and tattoo parlours are a common sight around here. If you were to walk half an hour across the city centre, you would probably spot a minimum of two or three tattoo parlours (and far more if you have a quick look at Google!). For comparison, driving half an hour from where I live outside of term-time might find you two tattoo shops, so it’s pretty clear that Bristol has a handle on quantity. Of course, quality is the key factor, but quantity shows how many people think they can find customers.
An interesting thing to bear in mind about tattoos is that they are essentially just a different medium of art, and so there is a huge variation within the scene. Tattooists will all have their own set of styles, and so every parlour is unique because of who works there and what kind of tattoos they do. Before technology, this meant a physical trip to any tattoo parlour around to check out the pieces they’d keep in the shop, but most tattooists now have websites and Instagrams to browse through so that individuals can find someone who works in their preferred style.
Another thing about tattoos is that because styles are so heavily individualised, once you find a tattooist you like, you tend to stick with them. You know you can trust them to do good, reliable work that you like, so when it comes down to it, tattooists matter more than the shop they work with. The main benefit of the parlour itself is its reputation, so if it has a reputation for good artists and good hygiene, more newcomers will flock to it. Cost isn’t really a competitive factor in tattoos either, because it’s always worth paying for a tattooist who does the style you want, and regardless, Bristol is pretty typical in terms of prices.
When you consider all this, it’s easier to see why I’d put Bristol pretty high up on the places I’d get a tattoo at. The sheer number of tattoo parlours around makes it easier to find an artist that you like, whilst the number of people living around here makes it easier to find reviews and reputations of individual parlours. Good artists come to Bristol to make a living, because of its reputation for creativity, so you’ll find a good mixture of styles. And after all, I’ve had one tattoo done here, so why wouldn’t I come back?