New School Tattoos
New school is a tattooing style originating as early as the 1970s and influenced by some features of old school tattooing in the United States. The style is often characterized by the use of heavy outlines, vivid colors, and exaggerated depictions of the subject. New school also represents a transition towards openness in the sharing of techniques in tattooing.
New school tattooing incorporates elements from many tattooing traditions including irezumi, old school, and folk art. It is similar to old school tattooing in that they both generally employ heavy outlines. In contrast to the restricted palette in old school, however, new school tattoos frequently use a range of bright colors. New school tattoos are not realistic in that they exaggerate details in the subject; they are sometimes compared to styles seen in cartooning, graffiti art, and themes seen in hip hop culture such as jagged edges and bubble letters. In terms of subject matter, new school tattoos are not restricted to traditional subjects (such as hearts and eagles).
New school is also considered to represent a transition in artists' attitudes towards sharing information on their work and techniques. New school artists were more open with this information and pushing the boundaries of tattooing, and explains why there is some tension between older and newer tattooers; regarding this transition, traditional tattooers remark that "tattooing has lost some of its charm," whereas newer tattooers consider this openness to be progressive.