CaixaForum Madrid presents the biggest exhibition ever devoted to the history of tattooing

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CaixaForum Madrid presents the biggest exhibition ever devoted to the history of tattooing

Madrid, 2 December 2021

CaixaForum Madrid

Tattoo. Art Under the Skin, produced and organised by Musée du quai Branly – Jaques Chirac of Paris and ’’la Caixa’’ Foundation, takes visitors on a journey into the unique universe of tattooing from an anthropological perspective, and analyses the resurgence of what is now a global phenomenon.

Taking a singular and innovative approach, the exhibition traces tattooists and tattooed across time periods and continents to explore the confluences that have made tattooing a global form of artistic expression. Among the personalities featured is the Filipina tattoo artist Whang-od Oggay, 104, often described as the last master to use batok (traditional handmade tattoo).

The exhibition features more than 240 historic and contemporary works, including paintings, drawings, photographs, books, objects – such as tools, masks and stamps – and audiovisuals, among others.

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UpPress release and documents (1)

Press release: CaixaForum Madrid presents the biggest exhibition ever devoted to the history of tattooing

UpImages (23)

From left to right: Anne Richard, curator and founder of the magazine HEY! modern art & pop culture; Elisa Durán, Deputy General Director of ”la Caixa” Banking Foundation, and Emmanuel Kasarhérou, president of the Musée du quai Branly, have presented the exhibition Tattoo. Art Under the Skin.

From left to right: Isabel Fuentes, Director of CaixaForum Madrid; Anne Richard, curator and founder of the magazine HEY! modern art & pop culture; Emmanuel Kasarhérou, president of the Musée du quai Branly; Elisa Durán, Deputy General Director of ”la Caixa” Banking Foundation, and Ignasi Miró, the corporate director of the Culture and Science Area of ”la Caixa” Foundation, have presented the exhibition Tattoo. Art Under the Skin.

Visitors can also discover a score of prototypes of hyperrealist silicone body parts tattooed in ink, created expressly for the exhibition.

Tattoo takes visitors on a journey into the unique universe of tattooing from an anthropological perspective, and analyses the resurgence of what is now a global phenomenon.

The show Tattoo. Art Under the Skin examines the uses of tattooing in different periods and cultures, and the social role played by this ancestral practice.

The exhibition Tattoo. Art Under the Skin in CaixaForum Madrid until april 2022.

The show features more than 240 pieces from all over the world, including paintings, drawings, books, inked silicone, tattooing tools, masks, photographs, stamps and 9 audiovisuals.

The exhibition examines the different uses of tattoos throughout history, as well as the social role played by this ancestral practice in the world’s cultures.

Tattoo. Art Under the Skin in CaixaForum Madrid until April 2022.

Ranshō Masato Sudō (born in 1955). Japan 1980-1984. © Masato Sudô

Tattoo design on a male arm. Yann Black (born in 1973) Canada 2013. Musée du quai Branly – Jacques Chirac, Paris. © Musée du quai Branly – Jacques Chirac, Thomas Duval.

Mask representing a woman’s head Alaska, United States. Late 19th–early 20th century. Musée du quai Branly- Jacques Chirac, Paris Gift of Albert Schneider. © Musée du quai Branly – Jacques Chirac.

Triptych showing the catalogue of a tattooist. North Africa and the Middle East 1932. Wood, glass, pigment, paint Musée du quai Branly – Jacques Chirac, Paris. © Musée du quai Branly – Jacques Chirac.

Tattooed Marquesas islands man. Marquesas Islands, French Polynesia, Oceania. XIX century. Oil painting. Musée du quai Branly, Paris, gift of Ary Leblond (1880-1958). © Musée du quai Branly – Jacques Chirac.

Tattooing ink pad representing the Resurrection Jerusalem 17th to 18th century. Musée du quai Branly – Jacques Chirac, Paris. Gift of Alix de Rothschild (1911–1982). © Musée du quai Branly – Jacques Chirac.

Tattooed female statuette with a bowl on her head and another bowl on her left hand Orissa, India 19th century Lost-wax bronze casting Musée du quai Branly – Jacques Chirac, Paris. © Musée du quai Branly – Jacques Chirac.

Filip Leu. Switzerland. 2013.© Musée du quai Branly – Jacques Chirac.

Tattoo design on a female leg Tin-Tin (born in 1965). France 2018. Ink on silicone. Musée du quai Branly – Jacques Chirac, Paris. Purchased with the support of HUBLOT. © Musée du quai Branly – Jacques Chirac

Ritual mask. Thailand. Circa 1980. Musée du quai Branly – Jacques Chirac, Paris. © Musée du quai Branly – Jacques Chirac.

Koruru or Parata gable mask Māori, New Zealand. 19th century. Musée du quai Branly – Jacques Chirac, Paris© Musée du quai Branly – Jacques Chirac.

Figure for making tattooing ink. Burma (Myanmar). 20th century. Ashes. Musée du quai Branly – Jacques Chirac, Paris. © Musée du quai Branly – Jacques Chirac.

Container (Ipu èhi) Nuku Hiva, Marquesas Islands, French Polynesia, Oceania. Early 20th century. Musée du quai Branly – Jacques Chirac, Paris. Gift of Siméon Delmas. © Musée du quai Branly – Jacques Chirac.

The Ogress of the Forest, Phi Mè Nay Thanongsak Pakwan 2015. Chiang Rai, Thailand. Musée du quai Branly – Jacques Chirac, Paris. © Musée du quai Branly – Jacques Chirac.

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CaixaForum Madrid presents the biggest exhibition ever devoted to the history of tattooing

Press release: CaixaForum Madrid presents the biggest exhibition ever devoted to the history of tattooing

Video images (no edition) Exhibition Tattoo. Art Under the Skin. CaixaForum.

Spanish Statements Elisa Durán, deputy general director of ”la Caixa” Foundation. Exhibition Tattoo. Art Under the Skin.

French Statements Anne Richard, curator and founder of the magazine HEY! modern art & pop culture. Exhibition Tattoo. Art Under the Skin.

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CaixaForum Madrid presents the biggest exhibition ever devoted to the history of tattooing

Press release: CaixaForum Madrid presents the biggest exhibition ever devoted to the history of tattooing

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