Matty McLaughlin, Borrowed Rice Tattoo
Body modification has long since served as a symptom of human civilization, from the ritualistic practices and symbolic application of diversely cultured indigenous populations, to the more individual, aesthetically concerned practices of modern times. This unanimous human desire to exert control over the delivery of nature is no more signified than by the ever-increasing presence of tattoos within popular culture. Initially subject to social stigma, the Western roots of tattooing began underground in sailor and criminal counterculture. During such time, appointments were unheard of and tattoos were collected like stamps. This placed high precedence on efficiency and ready-made flash designs were the norm.
In contemporary times, the rise of custom designed tattoos within the public sphere is undeniable. In a society so saturated by images, the permanent combination of image and skin, now being publicly internalized, only seems natural.
Matty McLaughlin, co-owner of Borrowed Rice Tattoo located in the heart of Chinatown in Toronto, has been tattooing for 8 years or over one third of his life and has witnessed first-hand the change of season within the industry.
“When I first started getting tattoos, there were definitely undertones of rebellion. I got asked a lot of questions like; how will you be employed? How will you get a good girl? What will your grandkids say? What people didn’t understand back then was that tattoos are a reclaiming of self-image and not a lifestyle choice. The markings on your body do not make who you are.” The move towards social acceptance was most powerfully symbolized in McLaughlin’s application of a tattoo on the son of a Canadian Court System Judge, in the presence of the justice magistrate himself.
Matty McLaughlin, Borrowed Rice Tattoo
The popularization of tattoos, or the “Revolution” as McLaughlin refers to it, has increased the respect and the quality of work within the industry.
That being said, the inherent commercialism associated with popularization is a new front the artistic medium will have to face. With the presence of reality TV, the glorification of tattooing as a profession will undeniably lead to a significant impact on competition within the trade and as with all arts fuelled by consumers, there is a looming threat of capitalist exploitation.
Although there are many symbolic reasons for the application of a tattoo, McLaughlin asserts that the principle stems from the ability to choose a permanent facet of an appointed body. “I feel like our bodies are the only things in this universe that we own in our lifetime. Everything can be taken away: Our loved ones, our money, and our dreams. Having a tattoo is taking true ownership.” As a traditionalist-innovator with a bold aesthetic, Matty McLaughlin is leaving his mark on the Toronto tattoo scene in a confident style only encapsulated by the word “timeless”.
As the mainstream culture continues to absorb this growing medium and becomes more tolerant of the visible diversity of appearance, McLaughlin does highlight the beauty of aesthetic lifetime commitment; “Tattoos are marriage without the possibility of divorce.”
