Ealtainn – Canabhas Craiceann (Skin Canvas)
Thursday 21 September 2006, 7.30pm, BBC2 Scotland
Scottish-American Tattoo artist Sine Anderson takes a journey across Scotland to get a sense of where the art of tattooing sits in Scottish history and popular culture.
When were the first skin tattoos done in Scotland?, Why do people still decorate their skin with piercing and tattooing?
These are the questions that Ealtainn looks at on Thursday night.
While there is evidence from early writers that some form of tattooing was done by the Picts, the Celts, and the Anglo Saxons using woad, Sine discovers from Professor Willie Gilles of Edinburgh University that it is not clear whether they painted the imagery onto their skin or whether they actually made piercings to get the dye into the skin, possibly with sharpened bone fragments. Ancient bodies that have been discovered preserved in ice or bogs show that there were many recurrent patterns that were used, and many of these designs are evident today in the designs we still use in jewellery and tattoos, and other design mediums.
Church of Scotland Minister Domhnall Micheal Macinnes discusses early Christian attitudes to tattooing, and how early paganism became associated with skin decoration.
The programme also looks at the different approaches to tattooing today, for some people, like Mairi Macleod from Skye, it is an ambition to get a small tattoo, others like Sine herself have many tattoos. Others take the art of body decoration to more extreme levels such as Tom Leppard aka. The Leopard Man, who lives in isolation on the Isle of Skye. In a rare interview Tom Leppard discusses his full body tattooing, and Sine also swaps notes with Brazilian born Elaine Davidson who lives in Edinburgh and holds the world record for having the most body piercings.
Other Information:
Sine Anderson is from Seattle, she is the drummer with the punk band Mill a h-uile Rud. She learnt Gaelic in Seattle and Sabhal Mòr Ostaig.
The programme was produced by Ann Morrison and directed by Robbie Fraser of Mactv. It was funded by Seirbheis nam Meadhanan Gàidhlig.
Further photographs of programme presenter Sine Anderson with the Leopard Man are available from ann@mactv.co.uk
For further information:
MacTV
Portrona House
Rigs Road
Stornowa
y
Isle of Lewis
Tel 01851 705638
