Contour: Tattoo Workstation Workflow & Comfort

Tattoo artists are professional artists that work in niche environments where ergonomic sacrifices and adaptations are made to perform their practice. This group of understudied workers suffer from ergonomic health concerns similar to those of dental hygienists, but less time and resources are put into understanding where their pain points and challenges lie. Current studies in the tattoo industry disregard the experience of tattoo artists, focusing on other factors of tattooing that are void of relevance to the workflow and comfort of tattoo artists. In the market, few products are specifically catered to the well-being of tattoo artists, while many designs are still driven by neglect and lack the ability to accommodate their ever-changing duties at work. This thesis topic will evaluate the ways that tattoo artists are hindered in their workflow and comfort by various factors, some predicted to be their environment/surroundings, their furniture, and available equipment for them on the market. Due to the absence of research on tattoo artists’ experiences in the workforce, this project will conduct various primary research methods including semi-structured interviews, qualitative surveys on discussion forums, and on-site visits/observational studies to truly capture and understand the problems in this area. Through these findings, a full-bodied design solution will be created and tested with 1:1 and/or scaled prototypes. The goal of this design will be to counteract some of the challenges that tattoo artists face in terms of their workflow and comfort, creating a more ergonomic and pleasant place to work with a design that is catered to adapt to the user. Keywords: tattoo artist, tattoo client, tattoo workstation, ergonomics