The interest in custom work has led to changes in the kinds of people who become tattoo artists. In the early to mid-twentieth century, tattooists were more interested in the craft aspect of tattooing, focusing on the technical details such as building the tattoo machine and mixing the inks rather than the artistic aspect. They often learned the technical skills of tattooing from other tattooists. According to Sanders, “The traditional clientele consisted of young men from working-class backgrounds…. Practitioners were generally from the social background as their clients, unassociated with the larger art world and primarily motivated by economic gain.”

Today, tattooists are often from artistic backgrounds and have chosen the field of tattooing as a way to practice art. Carl Williams, who has a master’s degree in art form the University of Hawaii, is an example of a typical modern tattoo artist. “My original intention was to teach college art, but I started hanging out at nights at tattoo shops,” Williams said. “After you’ve worked in different mediums, you can tell a big different. I can get the skin to do more than paper.”

Pat Fish is another example of tattooist with an artistic background. She earned degrees in studio art and film studies from the University of California Santa Barbara and taught drawing there after graduating. Fish opened a tattoo studio in Santa Barbara in 1984 so she could practice art full-time. She is best known for her Celtic designs, which are defined by intricate knotwork, braids, spirals, and circles. Clients come from all over the country for a Pat Fish original work.

The art community is beginning to consider tattoos as a legitimate art form. Galleries and museums, such as the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology, are displaying photos of tattoos and b body piercings along with living examples of body art. Art journals have also taken notice of body art. For example, the July 1997 issue of Art in America featured an article on the work of Artist Tony Fitzpatrick, founder of the World Tattoo Gallery in Chicago. Fitzpatrick’s etchings an drawings are based, in part, on tattoo art.