180+ New School Tattoo Designs For Men (2024)

The New School tattoos art originated in the 1970s in the USA but it took some time for this tattooing style to cross boundaries and become a global phenomenon.

The birth of new school tattoo art was inevitable as the old school tattoo art was getting mundane and boring. Old School artists kept the information like how different tattoos were inked as secret.

The protection of information resulted in lower interest in future artists and thereby resulting in an overall loss of revenue in the tattoo industry.

The golden decade of the 1970s brought a new wave of attitude in the tattoo industry as artists became more open and progressive.

Not only these artists were breaking traditional rules of tattooing styles and inking new art but they were also open to sharing this information even with their competitors.

New School tattoo art soon found a devoted fan base among the younger generation. The major reason for the success of new school tattoo art was that it was not afraid to try new themes.

Artists were breaking boundaries and inking their versions of modern culturally significant items.

The choices of tattoos varied from Disney movies characters to alternate history and the steampunk era too.

By the end of the 1970s, New School tattoos established themselves as a popular tattooing style that is going to stay for decades to come. Every tattoo artist was learning the rules of new school tattoos.

Since the tattoo style was popularized by studios in California therefore many tattoo shops came forward and described how to distinguish a new school tattoo from an old school or irezumi and folk art.

The first thing these studios established was that there were no fixed rules for new school tattoo art.

This was because the art itself was born by breaking the rules of old-school tattooing.

The only common noticeable patterns were the use of vivid colors with heavy outlines and in an exaggerated manner.

The birth of new school tattoo art is not given to anyone tattoo artist. As of today, there are many popular tattoo artists (like Duda Lozano of Brazil) who are specialized in New School tattoos. Duda even went viral on Instagram in 2016 after he shared his Alice in wonderland tattoo in new school style.

Difference Between Old school Tattoos and New School Tattoos

The Old School tattooing style focused heavily on black outlines and a limiter color palette. New School tattoos on the other hand focused on designs vivid colors, exaggerated designs, and heavy outlines.

The old school tattoo art was kept secret by the tattoo artists due to the fear of stiff competition. The New school tattoo art brought openness among artists who shared knowledge with their peers and even with competitors.

New School Tattoos Meanings

The New school tattoos refer to the tattooing style and not to a particular design. Therefore the meanings of new school tattoos depend on the chosen design itself. Millions of tattoos fall under the new School tattoo umbrella.

If you are going to pick a new school tattoo art then it can signify one thing that you are an open-minded person who is not afraid to experiment. It will also show that you believe that sharing is caring. You believe that together we can push our limits and take our society beyond the imaginations of sci-fi authors.

New School Tattoo Placement

New school tattoos are inked in medium to large sizes. Even though you might stumble upon many small designs but in my opinion, a large size new school tattoo stands out than a smaller one. Chest is an easier choice to get inked with new school ink but if you want to get creative and challenge yourself then try a large design around the curves of the forearm.

Here we have picked 300+ new school tattoo designs that will suit both men and women. Kindly note that we have focused on the tattooing style and not the particular design itself.

New School Tattoos Ideas

Japanese New School Tattoos

New School Tattoos Outlines

Conclusion

When it comes to choose new school tattoos the sky is limit. There are endless designs and it is almost impossible to pick the best design. You can share this post on Facebook and Pinterest and ask your friends about their favorite design from this photo gallery.

References: New School Tattoo Art