The world we live in is, at times, a strange and often superficial place. Impersonal, rapid-fire platforms, like Facebook and Twitter, have become the most popular modes of communication. We watch and listen daily as words and images that used to have such solid meanings are thrown around like they are nothing, by our friends and leaders alike. The fruits of boredom and whim, rather than contemplation and integrity, become the ideas that represent individuals to the world. It seems nothing is permanent, nothing is lasting. Our generation grasps for stability and often comes up with nothing but fluff and the knowledge that nothing lasts forever.

So when we find something that lights our souls on fire, something that suddenly forces the world to make even a little bit of sense, we wonder what to do with it. Post it on Facebook or Twitter, along with all the other flimsy parts of ourselves that we broadcast in hopes that people will see us for who we want to be? Blog about it? Scour the internet for a t-shirt that conveys the message? None of it is lasting, none of it becomes a part of who we are. But a tattoo does.

A tattoo becomes a billboard for an idea, a memory or anything else that we choose to define who we are to the world around us. It can be a treasured gift, a phrase, or even just a beautiful, terrible, or poignant image that speaks to us. Regardless of what it is and what it represents, it becomes a part of who we are the moment we decide to tattoo it on our bodies.

This series is about that process. It is about the images, the words, the symbols, and the people who have chosen to make a those things a part of themselves. It is about wearing our hearts on our sleeves.