Part of The Tao Tattoo Series
Concept
Some people ask me whether I feel more Chinese or Canadian. While some first-generation Canadians say that they’re neither, I feel like I’m both, because I appreciate and understand things from both cultures. I have the best of both worlds.
I already have a the hanzi character for “tao” on my right wrist, so I got the word “tao” on my left in English. This tattoo serves two purposes: as an expression of this dual heritage, and as another reminder for me to follow the tao.
The Operation
(Since Vimeo doesn’t support embedded HD videos yet, you can
watch me get inked in glorious High Definition on the Vimeo site. The quality is so good, you can see the needle!)
I went back to Jay at New Moon, who did an awesome job on my first tattoo. When I walked in, he had the latest Mars Volta album on, which I didn’t even know was out until that day. Most of the time was passed comparing them to Tool, two of our favourite bands1.
Can you tell when he’s going over my artery? (Hint: I start to swear)
Typography
The three-letter word is written in Avenir. As the Humanist, sans-serif typeface designed by Adrian Fruitiger (also used for the title and menu of this site), it’s my favourite font. Clean, sharp, minimalist, and legible. The most distinguishing part, as with most good fonts, is the double-story “a”, which increases legibility.
I had over a dozen variations, at different point sizes, kerning values, and weights. I wanted the weight, size, and position to balance with the one on my right wrist. In the end, I went with one that was 63.78 points, and the 35 “light” weight.
Spelling
I chose the Wade-Giles Romanization of “tao”. “dao” (the Pinyin Romanization), while commonly accepted nowadays, is too new for me to recognize it as the official spelling. “Dō”, the Cantonese/Japanese pronunciation, was also an idea, but it doesn’t carry the same connotation when relating it to “Taoism” because it’s not “Dōism” (in my mind, at least).
Another consideration was the capitalization. Most Taoist books capitalize tao as the “Great Way”, but I felt “tao” was less pretentious, especially since there’s no sense of capitalization in Chinese. It also balances the rest of the word out nicely, as the large “T” makes it look as if the word is about to topple over.
Popularity
In the last few months, the most popular searches to this site by far are for terms such as “tao tattoo”, “taoism tattoo”, “chinese wrist tattoo”, so it looks like people are seeking similar ideas. The most popular Taoist tattoo is the yin-yang by far, but it’s overdone now, even on people who don’t understand the concept.
I’ll have to accept the fact that more and more people are getting tattoos, and that as people try to unique, someone out there will eventually have the same one as me.
- Tool was a favourite until Lateralus came out, and I discovered Dream Theater. Ænima remains one of my top albums though. [↑]
You’re a braver man than I… I have two tattoos but I don’t dare put them out where they can’t be covered in a professional setting.
Looks cool though! Congrats.
Yeouch, I thought about getting a tattoo but I watched Pat get his and it just looked like it hurt too much :p
@James — I’m glad to have a career in an industry where tattoos don’t really matter. They’re covered up with a long-sleeved shirt most of the time anyway; most people don’t notice them. I would think that in most professional settings tattoos wouldn’t be a big deal, as long as they’re not on the hands, neck, or face, but I’ve never been employed in a really prestigious place.
@Sophia — It does hurt at lot at some points, but it’s such a localized pain that it’s tolerable. The funny thing is that Pat said it just felt like a bit of scratching on his back. I’m sure you thought the pain was a lot more than he was feeling.
how much do i love that you broke down the typography in such detail?
very much.
The choice of the text came as a surprise, but it’s not bad. You do have the best of both worlds, as opposed to the worst of both.
@fathima — And it matches my website!
@Uncle Joe — In the end, there wasn’t any other style of Chinese calligraphy I was satisfied with, even though it may fall more in line with Taoist beliefs. I’m very thankful to feel like I’m part of both cultures, which is unlike most Chinese born Canadians I know.
Nice font choice. lovely symmetry to it. I don’t see myself watching the vid tho. ( needle-squeamy)
nice!! congrats
@Pearl — Sometimes I’m needle squeemy as well, but only with those big, long ones. It’s not too bad with a tattoo machine, although the sound can be quite intimidating.
@Liz — Thanks!