Tattoos: Expressive or conforming?

The act of becoming tattooed is seen by many as a means to communicate one’s individuality. However, in the quest to express individuality, is the tattoo wearer actually conforming to social norms? For example, if a woman wants to express her independence and that she is a "strong woman" and then tattoos a feminine image on herself such as a heart or butterfly, is she just conforming to what society may view as "acceptable?" And also, do women tend to conceal thier tattoos more so then men?

while i am sure some people only get tattooed for self-expression, other people like the aesthetic or the art. or they want to be tattooed because they think it's cool. or because they wanted to be able to say some miami ink hack did their daddoo. it's conformist and non-conformist at the same time. by being tattooed you're joining a new club, which non-conformists might look down upon. who cares? seriously, lets start 10 more miami ink and white and maori and sanskrit and arabic and playboy bunny and tribal shark threads god.