Good Practice Guidelines for Tattooing and Piercing Procedures

The regulations introduced for tattooing and piercing activities aim to protect the right to health, promote high standards of quality and competence, and enhance the artistic skills of practitioners.

In the Lombardy Region, the regulatory references are:

Regional Law No. 13 of July 23, 2021, “Regulation of Tattooing and Piercing Activities” ;
Resolution No. XI/5796 of December 21, 2021, “Implementing Provisions of Regional Law No. 13 of July 23, 2021” .

Regarding tattooing practices (as defined in Article 2, paragraph 1 of Regional Law No. 13 of July 23, 2021), on January 4, 2022, Regulation (EU) 2020/2081 came into effect, amending Annex XVII of Regulation (EC) No. 1907/2006 of the European Parliament and Council concerning the registration, evaluation, authorization, and restriction of chemical substances (REACH) contained in inks. The restriction introduces a ban and maximum concentration limits for individual substances or groups of hazardous substances used in tattoo inks or permanent makeup, and requires that labels on mixtures intended for tattooing and permanent makeup indicate the intended use. Additionally, the label must include a list of ingredients and relevant safety declarations.

Check the REGULATION (EU) 2020/2081 here.

Here you can check a document from the Ministry of Health regarding information on the Reach-22 Regulation for the use of tattoo ink mixtures.

Here you can check a document from the Ministry of Health regarding the entry into force of Regulation 2020/2081 of 14/12/2020 of the European Community on the “restriction of chemical substances (REACH) contained in tattoo or permanent makeup inks.

Where to find useful information:

Reach Helpdesk

European Chemicals Agency

Italian National Institute of Health

National Center for Chemical Substances

Ministry of Heath

All the provisions mentioned are in force. A derogation until 04/01/2023 applies for the implementation of point 1 of the restriction under Regulation (EU) 2020/2081 for the following pigments:
a) Pigment Blue 15:3 (CI 74160, EC No. 205-685-1, CAS No. 147-14-8);
b) Pigment Green 7 (CI 74260, EC No. 215-524-7, CAS No. 1328-53-6).

Regarding the above, the following key points are reiterated:

OPERATOR’S PERSONAL HYGIENE
The operator is required to wear appropriate PPE, such as disposable gloves (provided in the welcome kit), disposable masks, protective goggles, disposable gowns or pre-sanitized clothing.
- Warm water and soap at the bathrooms reserved for operators;
- Hand sanitizing gel provided in the welcome kit.

Lavaggiosociale INGLESE page 0001 Good Practice Guidelines for Tattooing and Piercing Procedures

Frizioneidroalcolica inglese page 0001 Good Practice Guidelines for Tattooing and Piercing Procedures

The procedure should be repeated before and after contact with each client, after removing disposable gloves, and after contact with blood or any other bodily secretions or wounds, even when wearing gloves.

2. HANDLING AND DISPOSAL OF SHARP OBJECTS, NEEDLES, AND CREAMS

Needles and sharp objects must be placed directly in the designated containers provided immediately after use.
To avoid cross-contamination, creams and gels should be taken with disposable spatulas.

3. MATERIALS

The use of any disposable materials is strongly recommended.

4. SURFACE HYGIENE

The surfaces provided must be sanitized after each use.

Gian Maurizio Fercioni

Born in Milan in 1946, Gian Maurizio Fercioni attended the Brera Art High School and completed the Set Design program at the Brera Academy of Fine Arts, graduating in 1970. He made his debut at the Piccola Scala in 1969, designing the sets for the ballet Il circo by Elide Bonagiunta, set to music by Sergei Prokofiev. He later created sets and costumes for Mozart’s Il re pastore (1980) and designed the stage setup for Variété, a concert-show by Mauricio Kagel (1981), both also for the Piccola Scala.

In 1970, he began collaborating with the Piccolo Teatro di Milano as an assistant set designer. In 1973, he designed and made the masks for Toller by Tankred Dorst, directed by Patrice Chéreau. This led to further work with Chéreau’s team, eventually becoming the assistant to Richard Peduzzi, whom he later followed to Spoleto, Lyon, and Paris.

He established the costume department and designed costumes for all the productions of the Laboratorio Teatrale di Prato, directed by Luca Ronconi.

In 1972, alongside Andrée Ruth Shammah, Franco Parenti, and Giovanni Testori, he co-founded the Salone Pierlombardo in Milan, where he went on to design sets and costumes for over 40 productions directed by Shammah and Parenti, based on works by Shakespeare, Molière, Pirandello, De Filippo, Pinter, and Testori.

Throughout his career, he has designed sets and costumes for both opera and drama in major European theatres, working with renowned directors such as Roger Planchon, Werner Düggelin, Antoine Bourseiller, Peter Lotschak, Jean-Claude Auvray, Mario Morini, Bepi Morassi, Tobias Richter, Louis Erlo, Roberto Guicciardini, Luca De Filippo, Gabriele Salvatores, and Robert Sandoz. He has also worked in film, television, and advertising. In 2004, he oversaw the renovation of Milan’s Teatro Franco Parenti in collaboration with the De Lucchi architectural studio.

In parallel, in 1970 he opened the “Queequeg Tattoo Studio & Museum” in Milan — one of the first tattoo studios in Italy — which also houses his historical and anthropological collection. The collection includes tools for both modern and traditional tattooing, original flash art from around the world, vintage prints, and photographs of tattooed individuals from various cultures. By 2000, the studio had become a major reference point in Europe and worldwide for those interested in tattooing and was awarded official recognition by the City of Milan.

He has worked in Lyon and Oxford and has participated in the world’s major tattoo conventions for the past thirty years. Fercioni practices tattooing with both electric machines and traditional hand techniques, including the Japanese tebori method, which he learned in Japan from the legendary master Horiyoshi III.

He is the founder of T.I.P.A. (Italian Professional Tattoo Artists Association), an honorary member of T.A.I. (Italian Associated Tattoo Artists), and, since 1978, a member of the National Tattoo Association, which includes the world’s most important tattoo artists. He published a book on his mentor titled Horiyoshi III. The Art of Japanese Tattooing.

Luisa Gnecchi Ruscone

Luisa Gnecchi Ruscone is an anthropologist and tattoo historian, known as:

Author: She has published several books exploring themes related to art and culture, including Tattoo: History and Origins in Italy, an in-depth analysis of the tattoo’s history in the country.
Art Curator: Gnecchi Ruscone has a deep passion for art and has curated numerous successful exhibitions. Among the most recent is Tattoo. Stories from the Mediterranean, held at the Mudec Museum in Milan in 2024.
What is a tattoo? Why do people get tattooed today? What stories lie behind a mark that becomes forever “ours”?

This original and unprecedented exhibition project explores tattooing from a historical, anthropological, and cultural perspective, focusing on the Mediterranean basin — the region where the earliest undeniable evidence of tattooing has been found.

Starting with Ötzi, the oldest naturally mummified human body ever discovered bearing tattoos, the exhibition traces the history of tattooing from prehistoric evidence to the present day. It presents a compelling, kaleidoscopic collage of images, colors, and lived experiences as told by contemporary tattoo artists.

Set within a multimedia and interactive scenographic design by the Dotdotdot design studio, the exhibition features a rich array of documentation: objects, historical artifacts, tools, audio materials, video installations, infographics, prints, engravings, texts, and reproductions from prominent institutions and museum collections.

The exhibition is produced by 24 ORE Cultura – Gruppo 24 ORE and promoted by the City of Milan’s Department of Culture. It is curated by Luisa Gnecchi Ruscone and Guido Guerzoni, with the collaboration of Jurate Francesca Piacenti.