xoxo 

If you don't know who Sailor Jerry is
you don't know tattoos.
Norman "Sailor Jerry" Collins (1911-1973)
is considered the foremost
American tattoo artist of his time,
and defined the craft in two eras
 BSJ and ASJ (before and after Sailor Jerry).
Arguably, he did more for the
ancient art of tattoo than
most any other single person.

At age 19, Sailor Jerry enlisted in the US Navy.
It was during his travels at sea that he was
exposed to the art and imagery of Southeast Asia.
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

Sailor Jerry regarded tattoos as the
ultimate rebellion against "the Squares".
His legendary sense of humor
is oft reflected in his work
but he was never one to
compromise his professionalism
or take his craft and responsibilities lightly.

Sailor Jerry’s first studio was in Honolulu's Chinatown,
then the only place on the island
where tattoo studios were located.
His work was so widely copied, he had to print
"The Original Sailor Jerry" on his business cards.
There's a guy up in Canada that
goes by the same name,
but don't be fooled
although he's good in his own right,
he ain't the original Sailor Jerry.

Sailor Jerry remained a sailor his entire life.
Even during his career as tattoo artist,
he worked as licensed skipper of a large
three-masted schooner, on which he
conducted tours of the Hawaiian islands.
Sailing and tattooing were his only
two professional endeavors.

Sailor Jerry went out of his way to mentor
those tattoo artists whose talents
and attitude he respected,
among them tattoo legends
Don Ed Hardy and Mike Malone,
to whom he entrusted his legacy
of flash designs.
He also railed against flashy tattoo artists
such as Lyle Tuttle,
and what he called "hippie tattoo" culture.

From his 20s to his late 50s, he stopped
tattooing entirely as a part of a
disagreement with the IRS.
Believe it or not,
Sailor Jerry only tattooed
for approximately 12 years.

In 1999, Hardy and Malone partnered
with an independent Philadelphia clothing
company to establish Sailor Jerry Ltd.,
which produces clothing and other crap.
Some say that Ed Hardy sold his old mentor,
Sailor Jerry, up the river
taking much credit for Jerry's
style and pocketing the dough.








I hope you enjoy it! 

xoxo