Scars are beautiful. Textured, almost iridescent in the light, they are wonderful to touch and see. They can be even more wonderful to have. You never know how something will scar. It's a lengthy journey between planning and finally seeing a finished product. In fact, the scar is never finished. It will always continue to change, as the body forms and absorbs scar tissue. Getting a scar can be a very intimate experience with your own body.
At A Glance Author saram Contact saram@bme.anon IAM saram Artist Luis Garcia Studio Infinite Body Piercing Location Philadelphia, PA I had seen a lot of scarification pictures, but I had never gotten a close look at a cutting until RABcon 2000, the rec.arts.bodyart convention in Detroit. There, I saw an incredible cutting on the chest of another attendee. She had gotten it done by Ron Garza, down in Texas. It was rather fresh, but I was awestruck. It was so beautiful on her body. I was enamoured with scarification right then and there. I had never seriously considered getting a cutting before seeing hers. Scarification had always been a little scary to me. I have a lot of scars on my body, and many of them do not make me proud. Cutting is often perceived as "self-mutilation," and I wanted a distinction between a new scar and all of the old ones. I decided that a lot of that was in the experience and the practitioner, and set about doing some research.
Unfortunately, the last of the local studios offering scarification, Perforations in DC, had closed over a year before. I knew that Luis Garcia up at Infinite had done some cuttings and other work, and I looked at his online portfolio. It was small, but after talking to Luis on #bodyart on IRC and considering my very positive experiences being pierced by him, it seemed like a good choice. I made an appointment and arranged for my friend Angie to accompany me. I started designing two spirals, to be placed on my torso between my left breast and hip. Spirals have a lot of meaning for me, both philosophical and mathematical. My goal was to have these spirals on the left side, and to balance them out with a tattoo of nautilus shells on the right.
Finally, the weekend came. I spent the night at Angie's the Friday before, and we set out bright and early Saturday morning for Philly. Before we left, Angie drew out the final spirals on a piece of paper with crayons. We wanted to be able to present these to Luis before he started. We got to Infinite extremely early, and I sat around impatiently and nervously for a few hours. I ate lunch so I wouldn't get light-headed, and finally my time came. Luis seemed comfortable with the design, and said I could bring my video camera in. I grabbed all of my stuff and walked into the piercing room I had been in so many times before.
The first big task was cleaning and marking. This took forever! It took a lot of tries with the marker to get both spirals symmetric and properly placed. I looked in the mirror, and Luis drew, and Angie pointed out the flaws. Finally, they looked "perfect" and I approved them. Luis had me lay down in the big reclining chair. I was in my bra and pants, and Luis stuffed dental bibs into my clothes (after warning me) to protect them from blood. He also got my camera focused and ready to record. Luis proved himself to be extremely versatile (he also danced around with clotheshangers on his head later).
I took some deep breaths and the cutting began. I stared at the ceiling and Angie held my hand. It was a very strange feeling! It was an intense pain that followed the scalpel -- I could feel the trail of the scalpel because it only hurt where it actually was. After an area was cut, the pain disappeared. I hadn't known what to expect, but this was certainly not it. Angie played coach and kept me breathing, and Luis would ask me if I was alright every little bit. I felt loved and safe. It was very positive, and I felt connected to the other two people in the room with me. Before I knew it, the first spiral was done. Luis let me rest for a minute and commended me on my stillness. Apparently, he was expecting more reaction, and I just sat there. I started to feel a little shakiness in my extremities and told him to keep going. He leapt right in with the other spiral. It hurt a little more! But the same sensation was there, with the pain following the scalpel. I closed my eyes this time, which concerned Angie and Luis. I assured them, I was alright. I was just tired of staring at the lights. It was even more intense with my eyes closed. It was a buzz within my body as the scalpel moved. I could imagine the skin splitting, the cut white at first and then filling with blood.
The second spiral was completed, and Luis went over a few spots in both. This was the nastiest part. I commented that it was like being attacked by a cheese grater! It didn't feel very good. But in a minute he announced that he was done. All in all, it took about 13 minutes. It seemed like an hour, but the video camera told me the truth. 13 minutes. Angie snapped some pictures, and Luis cleaned me up. He bandaged me and helped me sit and then stand. I felt surprisingly good. My body made the endorphins it needed, and used them up.
After I packed up and left the room, I felt like I could run a marathon. I tried to sit around in a chair in the waiting area, but I really wanted to walk around the city. So I did. It was more uncomfortable to sit around (especially in Infinite's low chairs) than to walk around and shop. Angie and I spent a few more hours in the city, and left that night to return to Maryland. I came home and started to unbandage myself. I was stuck to the bandage! I knew it was good to irritate the fresh wound, but I'll be damned if I was going to rip that gauze off at 2am right after it was done. So I woke up my boyfriend and he helped me soak the gauze off. He put warm, wet towels on it, and I snipped loose pieces away with bandage scissors. It took over an hour, and I kept drifting to sleep. I rebandaged with non-stick pads and went to bed.
After a couple of days of washing with antibacterial soap and keeping it bandaged as it scabbed up, I decided it was time to irritate. I had discovered that the top line of the upper spiral was already sealing shut, and I ripped it back open with the tip of a hypodermic and packed it to keep it from healing before the rest. Unfortunately, this problem happened with that line repeatedly. I couldn't keep it as open as the rest because of the pressure from my breast pushing the skin together. Regardless, I irritated the entire cutting for a month. I tried just about everything. I took antibacterial bubble baths and scrubbed off the softened scabs. I scrubbed with a loofah, and a nail brush when I thought I needed more grit. I used fine and coarse facial scrubs. I used peroxide after every shower or bath. I tried toothpaste and didn't like it. Even after I ceased the more intense irritation, I kept using some walnut shell scrub on it every day. I did this for months. This continued a little irritation even as I let it close and heal.
It's been over a year since Luis did the cutting. It's raised quite nicely, and is still very pink. It has itched for the past year, too, which I soothe with an arnica-based lotion. I did get that balancing nautilus tattoo, and may be adding some tattooed accents around the scar. But I love my scar very much. I love to touch it, and look at it, and poke it with my finger to show how rubbery it is and gross people out. I love it when other people touch it. I watch the video now and again to see it from the outside perspective. I'm very grateful to Luis and Angie, and everyone else at Infinite, for making it another wonderful experience for me. Pictures of my spirals and some procedurals are on BME, and more are available if you contact me.