Sailor Jerry - Sailor Jerry Tattoos

Sailor Jerry Tattoos

Popular symbols used by Sailor Jerry include:

• Bottles of booze
• Snakes
• Wild cats
• The infamous “Aloha” monkey
• Eagles, falcons and other birds of prey
• Swallows
• Motor heads and pistons
• Nautical stars
• Classically styled scroll banners
• Knives, guns and other weapons
• Dice
• Anchor

Collins expanded the array of colors available by developing his own safe pigments. He created needle formations that embedded pigment with much less trauma to the skin, and he was one of the first to utilize single-use needles and to use an autoclave for sterilization. His attention to detail was so precise that the depiction of rigging in his nautical tattoos was said to be perfectly accurate. Artistically, his influence stems from his union of the roguish attitude of the American sailor with the mysticism and technical prowess of the Far East. He maintained a close correspondence with Japanese tattoo masters during his career. He regarded tattoos as the ultimate rebellion against "the Squares". He took the bold line style of tattooing and incorporated what he learned from his correspondences with the Japanese masters, known as Horis. He brought this style to the Sailor Jerry Tattoo parlor he opened on Hotel Street in Honolulu.

Sailor Jerry's last studio was in Honolulu's Chinatown, then the only place on the island where tattoo studios were located. He thrived in the hotbed of competition. His work was so widely copied, he took to printing "The Original Sailor Jerry" on his business cards.