When Tatau: Samoan Tattoo | New Zealand Art | Global Culture was first published in 2010, Mark Adams’s images documenting a great Polynesian art tradition were a revelation. The book told the story of the late Su‘a Sulu‘ape Paulo II, the pre-eminent figure of modern Samoan tattooing, a brilliantly innovative and often controversial man who saw tatau as an art of international importance. Tatau documented his practice, and that of other tufuga tātatau (tattoo artists), in the contexts of Polynesian tattooing, Samoan migrant communities and New Zealand art. Long out-of-print, this revised and extended new edition makes a cultural treasure available once more.
The 2023 edition of Tatau has been completely reimagined in scale, format, materials, layout and typography, adhering to the best photographic publishing traditions – with an eye to present the artist’s images in the best possible light.
While the images were shot on many different film formats and types, most images were realised on Adams’s trademark 8 x 10 inch view camera. So it was important to reproduce the images at a size nearing that of the original 8 x 10 inch negatives and contact prints. A significant consideration was to not only make the book larger, but to move to a square format – allowing the horizontal and vertical format images to be reproduced at the same size. In addition to this, the images were also given complete, uninterrupted pages by moving the captions to the facing page. The section-sewn case binding allows the book to open flat for a better viewing experience.
This kaupapa extends to the reproduction of the images. The colour images capture the colourful vibrance of the settings and subjects, as well as some of the colour idiosyncrasies of the different film stocks used by the artist. The black and white images are printed as duotones to deliver greater tonal contrast and consistent neutral greys throughout the book. The images are also enhanced by a spot gloss seal – adding density to the blacks, and further increasing visual contrast in the images, creating depth and lifting them from the page.
The design uses a carefully structured layout grid and timeless, readable, highly crafted typography. Care has been taken with the placement of the essay illustrations – with these kept at a good size throughout and punctuated with generous full-bleed images to draw the interest of readers.
The materiality of the book is also significant. Adams pays great attention to the materials and technique to realise his photographic prints – so the papers, fabrics, binding and print qualities of the book were chosen to reflect the same level of care.
