Introduction to the Tattoo Value System, The tattoo art value system is covered in detail on our courses, so this page is a brief introduction of our Tool to create a 6 Tone Value Trace.
Munsell Color Model
The Munsell color wheel or 3D model is covered in detail on our courses but here we are only interested in the value component of the Munsell system.
Value indicates the lightness of a color. The scale of value ranges from 0 for pure black to 10 for pure white. Black, white and the grays (as shown in figure 2) between them are called “neutral colors”. They have no hue. Colors that have a hue are called “chromatic colors.”
The value scale applies to chromatic as well as neutral colors. The value scale is illustrated for all neutral colors on the chart labeled Munsell’s Nearly Neutral, included in this book of color.
Black and Gray Tattoo 6 value System
The early tattoo artists simplified the value system to a 6 step system. They decided to creat 4 gray tones between Black and White. The Skin tone of the canvas you are working on is considered to be white, so the 6 tones are from black to skin tone.
The tattoo artists created this tonality by mixing black ink with specific amounts of destilled water to get variations of gray wash.
The reason we have created this tool is that many apprentice tattoo artists are not sure how to produce a trace that will help them get the correct tones in the correct places.
We hope that this tool is of benefit to you and you are welcome to use it as much as you want.
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