Lars Krutak received his Ph.D. at Arizona State University’s School of Human Evolution & Social Change in 2009. In 2003, he began studying the socioeconomic impacts of tourism and tourism promotion on indigenous Rarámuri (Tarahumara) arts and crafts vendors living in the Copper Canyon region of Mexico for his dissertation.

Krutak began tattoo research in 1996 as a graduate student at the University of Alaska, Fairbanks. Trained as an archaeologist and cultural anthropologist, he spent three years exploring the complex symbolism and practice of tattooing throughout the Arctic.

Krutak’s tattoo research culminated in an unpublished Master’s thesis, , focusing on the traditional tattooing of the St. Lawrence Island Yupiit, as well as several freelance photojournalism jobs for leading tattoo magazines in Germany, England, and the United States. Today, Krutak also contributes articles to other international tattoo publications, including (UK), (USA), (Denmark), (Hungary), and (Netherlands).

Krutak worked for several years as a Repatriation Research Specialist at the National Museum of the American Indian, and as a Research Collaborator in the Department of Anthropology at the National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution. Between 1998 and 2003, he also worked in several countries of the former Yugoslavia monitoring democratic reforms and elections for the OSCE.

In 2002, Krutak embarked on a world tour devoted to recording the lives, stories, and experiences of tattooed people around the globe. He has worked as an Anthropological Consultant for three National Geographic television documentaries, and as the Technical Advisor for one of the world’s largest and most popular tattoo websites. In 2003, he was a co-recipient of the American Book Award in Literature.

In June 2014, Krutak’s book (LM Publishers/University of Washington Press, 256pp.) was published. The book focuses on the Indigenous tattoo history of the entire North American continent.

(Information gathered from www.larskrutak.com)