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Tamara Santibañez is a professional tattoo artist who brings their experience in social justice work to their creative and body modification practice. Believing that the best tattooing happens when it is person-first, trauma-informed, and justice-centered, they strive for the potential of tattooing as a transformative practice, a space for healing, and as a vehicle for resistance to mechanisms of oppression.
Photo: Carlos Jaramillo (Image description: Tamara sitting on a stool, in profile, leaning over to tattoo the arm of a person whose back is to the camera. In the background is a white photo backdrop with brick behind it. Framed art hangs on the wall.
could this be magic? tattooing as liberation work
2021
Now out with Afterlife Press
Using the concept of trauma-informed care as a foundation, Santibañez expands on the vast political potential of tattooing, illuminating the unseen work tattoo artists perform without exception. Underpinning the infinite magic of tattooing is the emotional work that artists often come to fear and avoid. Santibañez argues that tattooing has enormous potential to both empower and disempower its recipients, and that we cannot fully realize its positive potential without first acknowledging the scope of what it accomplishes and supporting ourselves in our abilities and limitations.
Co-authored with K Lenore Siner , this document outlines the rights and treatment a client should be able to expect during any tattoo experience. Meant for display in shop, private studio, and other tattooing environments, the graphic is available as a printable poster-size PDF for free download, or via purchase here.
CLIENT BILL OF RIGHTS
2020
trauma aware tattooing and informed consent: practical guidelines for artists
2019
Created in collaboration with the Women’s Prison Association (WPA), this pamphlet was developed in response to the needs of clients who are trauma-impacted or survivors of violence. The guide describes ways to integrate informed consent into the tattooing process, practical ways to be mindful of boundaries and communication, and tips for active listening.
It is available for free download via PDF here.
sexiness: rituals, revisions, and reconstructions
2016-2018
Sexiness: Rituals, Revisions, and Reconstructions features contributions from a diverse group of fifty artists, educators, sex workers, creatives, and activists exploring the political potential of sexiness. The work presented in this anthology references and complicates long-standing cultural associations with sexiness, including power, bodies, gender, and desire. At the same time, it introduces new and thought-provoking connections to sexiness, such as listening, healing, water, and being alone.