Tattoo

“Yakuza-tattoo”: a journey into the mysterious world of the Japanese mafia

There is a fingertip in a glass jar on a wooden table. The skin is strangely translucent, and the nail is slightly discolored, the bruise is dirty green – as if pinched by the door.

Yakuza tattoo – a journey into the mysterious world of the Japanese mafia – information and photo examples of finished tattoo designs

“Yakuza-tattoo”: a journey into the mysterious world of the Japanese mafia – all the fun

The table and glass jar are in the house of the yakuza boss, and the owner of the finger sits nearby, frankly explaining the meaning of yubitsume (literally “shortening a finger”) – a tradition of cutting off a part of a finger that is strongly associated with the Japanese criminal world.

“It was actually quite funny, so it was difficult to separate it,” says the yakuza. – I used a hammer singing a song from Super Mario. When I hit my finger bounced just like Mario.

This striking dark scene is one of many that Andreas Johansson has described. His book “Yakuza Tattoos” was published in 2017 and is dedicated to the artistic symbolism of the culture of Japanese gangs..

“I have studied the history of religions for a long time, so it was the religious symbols used by organized crime that interested me,” says Johansson. – Once I was in Japan at a conference. After graduation, my friend and I went to a bar for a beer. I knew about the existence of the yakuza and their religious tattoos, so I asked to introduce me to someone who could give an interview on this topic..

This request was the beginning of a large-scale project that allowed to get closer to representatives of the Japanese mafia and capture them in photographs..

“Suddenly, one person said he knew a guy named Ken-san. He’s a good guy, whatever that means in the underworld. Very quickly I learned that I could get an interview tomorrow. It was about 3 o’clock in the morning, but I said: “Yes, of course, I will come.”

After this first meeting with a senior member of Masuda-gumi, a gang affiliated with the Yamaguchi-gumi, Japan’s largest crime family, Johansson immersed himself in the world of the yakuza, taking pictures and talking to about 30 of its various members, but concentrating mainly on Ken-san. and his immediate environment.

– At first I thought that a stranger would be given a cold welcome, but everyone turned out to be extremely friendly and sweet. So welcoming that I even thought, “It’s too great to be true, what do they really want?”

In total, Johansson spent 2 and a half weeks in the company of the yakuza.

“It took a couple of days before I was finally accepted,” he says. – But then it became easier and easier. Since I worked mostly with my camera, I just became a “camera guy”. In a way, I became part of the gang. I came there thinking that one should be extremely respectful of their specific traditions like cutting off fingers, but they themselves joked about this. They have a very calm attitude towards these rituals. It took off any tension, we laughed a lot talking about it.

“Yakuza Tattoos” is divided into chapters, based on Johansson’s own stories about encounters with the yakuza and the theme of tattoos: “Heroes and History”, “Dragon and Carp”, “Gods and Spirits”. Each chapter combines memorable imagery with contextual information and quotes from Johansson’s conversations with gang members to build a detailed and informative picture of the various tattoos and their symbolism..

– I thought that the dragon on the hand was just a sign of leadership, as, for example, among the Russian bandits. However, Japanese tattoos are more personal in nature. The relationship between the master and the client is extremely interesting, you should discuss everything. This should match your personality. Some tattoos are not even associated with the yakuza. One grew up in poverty, so he received images of old Japanese money – he did not want to become poor again.

In the last part of the book, Johansson delves into the less traditional styles that are becoming more prevalent among young gang members..

– The most interesting things for me were modern Western-style tattoos on young guys and the understanding that older members do not like the departure from tradition. They didn’t even want me to write about the change in style, because they themselves see it not just as tattoos, but as irezumi, with a clear distinction between them. When I called the book Yakuza Tattoos, Ken-san was worried because he didn’t like the word. He looked at my tattoos and said, “You just have fashion. I have them based on my personality. “

And this is Johansson’s main conclusion from his research: regardless of their appearance, tattoos acquire a meaning that penetrates deeply into the realm of the spiritual.

Photo examples of tattoos in the style of “Yakuza” from 01/28/2019