Decoration

"Having a clear idea of concepts like "self" and "other," both as individuals & groups, humans work hard in devising ways to represent those differences." This quote was taken from our History of Fashion's course, which discussed the concept of Decoration as a very important function of dress. This topic brought to mind a story I had once read about the history of Tahitian tattooing and the different ways in which they "stood apart" within their group. Tahitians used tattooing as the most identifiable element when doing this. One incredible form of this studied by Jane Resture is as follows:
"In ancient Tahitian society all women were tattooed. Young girls were tattooed at a very young age with marks on the inside of their arms to show that they were free from food tabus. Until that time they could only accept food prepared by their mothers - no-one else. There are no illustrations of these marks, just a few descriptions. Young women were again tattooed and they began to wear clothes as they reached puberty.

These tattoos are often described as heavy black patches on their posteriors, and were absolutely required before a woman was permitted to engage in intercourse. As a young woman grew slightly older, the smaller designs in arch shapes across the top were added. As a sign that they were sexually mature and desired a man, women were reported to lift their bark cloth skirts showing their tattoos. Quite often this was directed at the Europeans who were surprised, if not shocked, particularly the missionaries."

This image can be seen on her website:http://www.janeresture.com/oceania_tattoos/tahiti.htm