A black-and-white photo of a person mid-air in a Superman-style body suspension pose, supported by multiple hooks in their back and legs, smiling joyfully toward the camera. They are suspended horizontally in a large indoor space with high ceilings and visible rigging. A group of onlookers—some seated, some standing—watch with expressions of admiration, amusement, and support. The atmosphere is lively and communal, capturing a moment of shared experience and transformation.

Oh yes, there will be blood

A lot of the scarification pictures that we see are often clean.  What I mean by that is they’re taken after the work has been finished, and the site has been cleaned up for a good photo.  That or we see the healed scar some time later.  One of the most significant aspects of scarification is the process.  It’s not always just about the final result.

With a scar you have those first few cuts of the outline going in.  The blade slicing open your body, breaking the surface of your outer shell.  As it continues, the blade becomes a paintbrush, with every stroke a work of art being crafted out of your own flesh.  Then the removal begins.  These lines that have broken your skin are now used as point to remove whole sections of your flesh.  As your armor peels away, you become exposed fully to the world.  That thin layer of protection is forever gone, and you are forced to show the world what is truly inside you.  Then as the scar begins to heal, a new layer begins to take the place of the old.  While that old layer was a small barrier to the outside, this new barrier, having come from within is tougher, stronger, ready to show off what has come from deep inside you.

The process of a scar isn’t meant to be pristine.  It is a raw experience, where you shed not only your flesh, but your blood.  It is a cleansing ritual where the outside is removed, cleaned with the blood, and healed by the body into something new.  While other modifications use metal and ink as a form of expression, the scar is created entirely by the body.  Of course ink and metal can be incorporated into it depending on who the person is, but the process is on a base level the same.

In a recent addition to the skin removal scarification galley, we can see just how revealing this process is.  Here you have a person in the process of having their flesh removed, revealing the person buried just beneath the surface.

hxc_vega904

And here we have the final shot of this portion of the process, the traditional clean picture.

hxc_vega904

The rest of the images from the cutting can be found in the scarification gallery.  And yes, there is more blood.

Comments

70 responses to “Oh yes, there will be blood”

  1. Rob Avatar

    @angela: The images were uploaded anonymously all with the title “hxc_vega904″. I looked around and couldn’t find any studios or usernames matching the title. I always include the studio/artist information if it is included when the person uploads their image. If it isn’t then I spend some time trying to find any information I can based on either the uploader’s name or the title of the image.

    But in the end, if people don’t include the artist info, there isn’t too much I can do.

  2. Rob Avatar

    @angela: The images were uploaded anonymously all with the title “hxc_vega904″. I looked around and couldn’t find any studios or usernames matching the title. I always include the studio/artist information if it is included when the person uploads their image. If it isn’t then I spend some time trying to find any information I can based on either the uploader’s name or the title of the image.

    But in the end, if people don’t include the artist info, there isn’t too much I can do.

  3. Jon P Avatar
    Jon P

    I applaud anyone who didn’t recognise this as a Slipknot logo. At least some people escaped that shitty nu-metal craze from a few years back. Cringe-worthy shit. Unless of course this scar isn’t actually recent but from over a decade ago. Then my reaction would be, “Slipknot used to be cool when I was a kid, so that would’ve been cool when I was a kid too”.

    Wait… I liked Slipknot. And Korn, Limp Bizkit, Taproot, and all the rest of that innane shit. We’ve all gotta start somewhere. The haters can eat dick.

  4. Jon P Avatar
    Jon P

    I applaud anyone who didn’t recognise this as a Slipknot logo. At least some people escaped that shitty nu-metal craze from a few years back. Cringe-worthy shit. Unless of course this scar isn’t actually recent but from over a decade ago. Then my reaction would be, “Slipknot used to be cool when I was a kid, so that would’ve been cool when I was a kid too”.

    Wait… I liked Slipknot. And Korn, Limp Bizkit, Taproot, and all the rest of that innane shit. We’ve all gotta start somewhere. The haters can eat dick.

  5. Jon P Avatar
    Jon P

    “this new barrier, having come from within is tougher, stronger, ready to show off what has come from deep inside you.”

    I thought that scar tissue wasn’t actually stronger than the original skin which was destroyed?

  6. Jon P Avatar
    Jon P

    “this new barrier, having come from within is tougher, stronger, ready to show off what has come from deep inside you.”

    I thought that scar tissue wasn’t actually stronger than the original skin which was destroyed?

  7. N Avatar
    N

    This piece really isn’t done very well. The removal is very uneven and choppy, definitely done too deep in spots.
    It looks like a classic case of someone trying to run before they can walk. There is no way this person should be doing removal pieces yet, perfect your line work, then get some guidance from someone with more experience for your removal. SLOW DOWN!

  8. N Avatar
    N

    This piece really isn’t done very well. The removal is very uneven and choppy, definitely done too deep in spots.
    It looks like a classic case of someone trying to run before they can walk. There is no way this person should be doing removal pieces yet, perfect your line work, then get some guidance from someone with more experience for your removal. SLOW DOWN!

  9. kendall Avatar
    kendall

    I dated a girl who had a SLIPKNOT tattoo, same one actually, then told me she didn’t know what it was just thought it was random tribal, so I have no idea if she was actually a [nü]metal head in her past or not \m/

  10. kendall Avatar
    kendall

    I dated a girl who had a SLIPKNOT tattoo, same one actually, then told me she didn’t know what it was just thought it was random tribal, so I have no idea if she was actually a [nü]metal head in her past or not \m/

  11. Lj Avatar
    Lj

    When people get this done, are they under GA? or at least get local? I can’t imagine being awake for this, let alone feeling it.

  12. Lj Avatar
    Lj

    When people get this done, are they under GA? or at least get local? I can’t imagine being awake for this, let alone feeling it.

  13. satan Avatar
    satan

    FUCKIN METAL BRO
    \m/

  14. satan Avatar
    satan

    FUCKIN METAL BRO
    \m/

  15. snubby Avatar
    snubby

    ya bro, slipknot like totally changed muh life. ha.

  16. snubby Avatar
    snubby

    ya bro, slipknot like totally changed muh life. ha.

  17. Ricky Andrew Avatar

    rob this is awesome i did this piece and it was a ton of fun! thank you to everyone that had kind words to say and thank to josh misery for helping me do that!!!

  18. Ricky Andrew Avatar

    rob this is awesome i did this piece and it was a ton of fun! thank you to everyone that had kind words to say and thank to josh misery for helping me do that!!!

  19. matt Avatar
    matt

    thats my leg! 😀

  20. matt Avatar
    matt

    thats my leg! 😀

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