Tebori is a traditional Japanese hand-tattooing technique. The artist puts ink into the skin with a cluster of needles mounted on a long rod, using rhythmic, angled strokes. Outlines, shading and large areas of colour are all made this way without a machine.
How is tebori different from a machine?
The work takes longer, and the needle moves differently from a machine. Artists and clients point to a distinctive, soft gradation of shading that is hard to achieve otherwise. How it feels is individual: some people describe tebori as gentler, others as more tiring.
Where is tebori used?
The technique is tied to traditional Japanese tattooing, including large compositions such as horimono. Mastering tebori takes years of training, so few artists in the world practise it. Today the oriental aesthetic is more often done with a machine.
Other hand techniques include handpoke and the old, unhygienic kolka. We write about pain during tattooing, whatever the technique, in Does a tattoo hurt? Places and comfort.