If one thinks back to the tattoo work that may Where modern flash tends to be photorealistic or very two dimensional, such as is the case with most tribal artwork, old school flash tends to fall somewhere in-between the two. Old school tattoo flash tends to employ bold and simple colors, little shading and a more two dimensional feel than modern flash. Some of these tattoos hearken back to a different age and have a nice, historical feel that can liven up a very modern sleeve or collection of tattoos. Military devices are also popular as tattooing is one of the ways in which veterans of the past tended to wear the record of their service literally on, or under, their sleeve.
Cards, wild women, motorcycles and other themes tend to predominate. Many of the themes of this art center around the underground from which tattooing emerged. Old school tattoo art tends toward simpler designs and more comic-book styled depictions than do the more modern forms. Over the years, the older style flash tattoos have seen a gain in popularity as more and more people have decided to decorate their bodies with tattoo art.
The 1990's in general represented a renaissance in tattooing where the art moved from the underground to a decidedly acceptable position in society. In the 1990's, there was a significant movement toward realism in tattooing which tended to relegate the more old school designs to second choice. Old school tattoo flash has some characteristic elements that have made it popular on and off throughout the ages.
