an industry revolutionist passes away at 78
by Paige Bellinger
Spider Webb was a tattoo artist known for his complex designs and his efforts to overturn the law that made tattooing illegal in New York City for decades. On July 2nd, Spider Webb has passed away in his home in Asheville, N.C. due to chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. Joseph O’Sullivan (Spider Webb) was born on March 3, 1944 in the Bronx. At the age of 14, Joseph wandered into a Coney Island tattoo parlor and found his calling. He started to learn the craft of tattooing in Coney Island parlors, but after serving in the navy for 4 years, Webb expanded that knowledge of art with art education. In 1970, Webb earned his bachelor’s degree from the School of Visual Arts in New York and followed up with a Master’s degree from the Institution Allende in San Miguel De Allende, New Mexico.
( Annie Sprinkle and Spider Webb on the steps of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in 1981 protesting NYC tattoo ban. Via Annie Sprinkle )
In 1961, New York City banned tattooing for the concern that it could spread hepatitis. Webb had his own theory for the real reason tattooing was banned. In 1976, Webb told the United Press International “tattooing is perfectly safe, the real reason it was made illegal was that people associate tattoos with undesirable types. They figured that by getting rid of tattoo artists, they’d get rid of undesirable.” Webb was so passionate about his craft he took matters into his own hands to try and overturn this law. Webb decided he would tattoo a woman outside of the Museum of Modern Art hoping to get charged with unlicensed tattooing, a misdemeanor, to plead his case in court that tattooing is an artistic expression protected by the First Amendment. Unfortunately, the state court rejected his argument. Although the state court rejected Webb’s argument it did not stop him from trying again. In 1981, Webb sat on the steps of the Metropolitan Museum of Art again but was not arrested.
Although Webb did not win the court battle, he claimed victory when New York City dropped the tattoo ban in 1997. Webb maintained a parlor in Mount Vernon, N.Y., Woodstock, N.Y., and Connecticut. Webb was able to not only tattoo thousands of people but inspire artists to create freely. Webb stated in an interview with The Daily News of New York, “I’ll tattoo anything; from a ladybug for $10 to an entire body for $5,000.” He later stated, “ People should celebrate their bodies and their own freedom, maybe they have to put on a necktie, go to work and play that game, but at least they’ve experience a little escape.”