Over the globe, millions of people have various pictures inked on their bodies. These pictures might have a meaningful sense for a person or be just a tattoo made in youth. Indeed, people celebrate the fact of having the tattoo, meeting at international tattoo conventions. These are events in which people gather and bring themselves together through tattoo art. As in Foucault’s works, tattoo conventions also help people become closer to heterotopic space (Bennaso & Stagi, 2021). Foucault defined heterotopia as spaces in society that are unlike other spaces. These are places where the erosion of people’s minds, available time, and history happens. Therefore, the tattoo space might refer to the concept of heterotopic spaces, and it is interesting to examine how the tattoo convention is seen through the prism of Foucault’s vision.
Foucault’s first principle of heterotopia defines it as a place of crisis or deviation. Multiple sources prove that Foucault noted heterotopia as the concept that inclines from the commonly accepted standard (Bennaso & Stagi, 2021). In addition, some people might not approve of wearing tattoos; some members of society can misunderstand people with inked pictures on their bodies. Moreover, some psychological theories refer to tattoos as mental issues of a person. Indeed, the place of deviation becomes a consolation for millions of people who strive to transform their mindset through body modifications.
Foucault’s second principle is that heterotopia reflects the values of society. The reflection of values, fears, and desires becomes one of the significant concerns of heterotopia. Foucault saw a body as an object inhabiting the world through a unique experience, suffering, and experiments (Roux & Belk, 2018). Through making the tattoo, the person reflects his thoughts and values, therefore, shaping the general picture of the society in which he lives. Besides, the principle applies to the given space, as tattoed people often put the meaning into their inked pictures, reflecting their values and worldviews.
Foucault’s third principle narrates the ability to bond several natural spaces. It is manifested in the possibility to interplay and interchange between past, present, and future times leading to utopian dreams and escape from reality (Roux & Belk, 2018). Tattoos reflect digressions of past and future, images of alternative realities, which can interact simultaneously. In this case, the fantasy is not limited; the combination of actual and past events, alive and passed-away people, and other aspects unavailable in reality bring several spaces together. Moreover, the interaction of the tattoo master and the participant may create a “symbolic boundary” between people (Bennaso & Stagi, 2021, p. 818). It becomes a part of a ritual that brings together body practices and obscures time frames.
Foucault’s fourth principle of heterotopia is linked to temporal continua or slices of time. According to several sources, the temporal continua is connected to the imaginary heterotopic function (Roux & Belk, 2018). People who got tattooed at the conventions report the obscurity of time, its resilience, and distortion of time perception. Symbolic pictures of various time fragments might be applied to the body and manifested in other nostalgic experiences (Roux & Belk, 2018). Therefore, the process of inking and the symbol itself may represent the concept of time slicing.
Foucault’s fifth principle tells heterotopias are not easily accessible or exclusionary places. Foucault’s heterotopic principle claims about the exceptionality of space that is hard to approach. Various research pieces often refer to tattoo convention participants as “insiders,” which emphasizes the degree of inaccessibility (Bennaso & Stagi, 2021, p. 818). This principle might apply to the tattoo space, as it is a place where people gather based on their specific needs and interests.
Foucault’s sixth principle is about illusionary or compensatory spaces. It is possible to say that unique desires and wishes unite people who participate in tattoo conventions. Besides, the body with a tattoo can be called illusionary and compensatory. It can reflect various events, people, and places that no longer exist or have never lived in reality (Roux & Belk, 2018). It is one of the ideological concepts closely connected to the imaginary reality created by heterotopic spaces. For instance, tattoos are in high demand in Americans, especially in Nevada’s Burning Man festival. It is the other particular place where people are connected by the idea of transformation and changes (St John, 2020). The “other space” is a utopia that distorts time, events, and identities. Through the examples with the tattoo convention and the festival, it is feasible to trace American society’s tendency and desire for change.
Overall, the tattoo convention is a space closely connected to Foucault’s ideas. The given space allows people to unite real and fantastic events, histories, and people. It creates a specific interplay between periods and results in utopian dreams escape. Concepts of heterotopic views apply to the tattoo convention, as it brings together people united by the idea of transformation. Tattoo convention is an alternative community that positions the body as a space for humans’ reflections, and it can be seen through Foucault’s heterotopic visions.
References
Bennaso, S., & Stagi, L. (2021). Getting inked at a tattoo convention: Subjectivity and belonging within an alternative cultural heterotopia. Italian Sociological Review, 11(3), 807-831. Web.
Roux, D., & Belk, R. (2018). The body as (another) place: Producing embodied heterotopias through tattooing. Journal of Consumer Research, 46(3), 483–507. Web.
St John, G. (2020). Ephemeropolis. Journal of Festive Studies, 2(1), 289–322. Web.