BME: Body Modification Ezine

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.

Tattoo, Piercing, and Body Modification News, Events, and Culture

  • The Blood of Non-Violence

    Written by

    Rob

    Those of you familiar with Jainism will recognize this symbol right away.  For those that don’t, the palm with the wheel signifies Ahimsa, one of the main principles of Jainism.  It essentially is a symbol meaning to do no harm to any other living creature.  Seeing it in this form is interesting, as the creation of this involved not only cutting but branding as well, both of which are pretty harmful.  So who better than a minister then to create this piece.  Richard Effin Ivey is a minister with the Church of Body Modification, and part of his personal beliefs is using modification for spiritual growth and harmony.  Richard serves as a conduit, bringing his faith and skill into his work so that the owner of this scar will take away something that will be with him forever in body, mind, and spirit.

    Richard works at Warlock’s Tattoo in Raleigh, NC.

  • Back to 1984

    Written by

    Rob

    When Jason Stephan’s wife asked him to tattoo her back, it was the first time he’d ever been able to complete a piece of this size on blank skin.  The couple came up with the design together, and the result is fantastic.  Here’s what Jason’s wife had to say about the design:

    This piece is the culmination of feelings about many of the issues of today. Some of these issues have come up in the past, most notably in George Orwell’s book “1984″ and so this tattoo could be described as a creative visualization of that novel. The lamb/ human figures are representative of all things that are good and innocent about mankind: curiosity, naivete, kindness, tolerance, etc. The robot is symbolic of all of the forces that corrupt those “good things.” The corrupting forces could be technology, government, greed, etc. On the robot’s screen is a face reminiscent on “Big Brother” in Orwell

    Jason works at Loose Screw Tattoo in Richmond, VA.

  • Fall into colour

    Written by

    Rob

    I’m pretty sure that’s an ad campaign slogan, but I’ll be damned if it doesn’t sum up this tattoo by Roger from Star City Tattoo.  I don’t know how he does it, but his eye for color is remarkable.  I swear he’s managed to make this tattoo gold in places.

  • How High?

    Written by

    Rob

    It’s time again to check in with our friends in the Moscow based Sinner Team.  The last time we saw the gang, they had 5 of their members lined up with hooks ready to suspend.  Not just any suspension mind you, the suspension that the Sinner Team has put on the map, the free fall suspension.  So far most of the photos we’ve seen of their free falls have been from the ground, so it’s been hard to get a good idea of just how high up they’re jumping from.  Well, here’s a couple of photos that might put a knot in your gut.

    And as a little bonus, here’s the latest trailer for their Free Fall Suspension film.

  • Pink spots

    Written by

    Rob

    This young lady is PiercedNymphaea, and she’s showing off not only her piercings, but also the healed leopard spots on the side of her head.  I like that her hair, make-up, jewelry and tattoos all match up.  Although I’d imagine if she wanted to change up her color scheme she’d need to take quite a bit of time changing her jewelry and re-dyeing her hair.  In any case, she’s looking good, and wearing her spots proudly.

  • Meditation in Red

    Written by

    Rob

    I wanted to quickly thank Arseniy for giving his photos such great titles, it makes my job so much easier.  As you can guess, this lotus suspension was sent in by Arseniy and the rest of the #Leeds Airlines team.  If you’re not familiar with the #Leeds team, they’re a St.Petersburg, Russia team that specializes in suspension photo shoots and performances.

  • ,

    IAM launch delays and ETA…

    Written by

    Rob

    Hey everyone, we just wanted to let you know what’s been happening with IAM over the weekend.  On Friday the site went live, however there were a couple of major issues that users found and it was taken down immediately.  Over the weekend Rachel has been working around the clock with the website guys to get the site up and running.  Yesterday the site was almost ready to go, however there were a couple of problems that needed to be dealt with.

    We’re sorry for the lack of updates, but everyone has been working hard on getting it up and running and we haven’t had time to sit down to announce anything.  We’re hoping to have IAM up and running by later today, as we’re in the final stages of testing some of the new features now that the former problems have been fixed.  As it stands now, the site will either go up today with some of those features being added over the course of the week if the site is stable or we’ll have it up by Thursday with the features in place.  It all depends on what the developers can do with the site while it’s live.  I’ve been as anxious as everyone else to get back onto IAM, and Jen or I will try to get more updates for you over the course of the day.

    I know it’s been a long wait, but from what I’ve seen it’s definitely worth it.

    Again, we apologize for the delays in the launch, and we hope to have everything up and running within the next day.  Keep an eye on ModBlog for any further updates.

    Oh, and here’s a fresh BME Logo tattoo that was sent in by Dspiercing.

    EDIT: If you are having problems logging in please email [email protected]. Please note that you log in to IAM via the main page on BME, so if you visit an old IAM link and it redirects you to BME, that’s actually the right place. You need to log in there using your email address and password. Again, if you are having problems email [email protected] and please include your IAM name. Thanks! Jen

  • Wings in the Wild

    Written by

    Rob

    If you haven’t yet signed up for your free BME account, today is the day to do it.  In the ritual and play piercing gallery is a series of photos sent in by Sara Body Art from Freak Shop in Portugal.  Below are just a couple of this set that captures a man in the forest, pierced with feathers as he explores the wilderness.  The photography is great and the piercings look fantastic.  It’s definitely worth a trip over to the gallery to see the rest.

  • The Cursed Seal

    Written by

    Rob

    After talking to Richard Effin Ivey about this scar he did I learned a few things.  First, that this is the symbol for Sasuke’s cursed seal from Naruto, and second that the script around the seal spells out the name of his dog.  Keep in mind that this photo was taken before the clean up, so there’s a bit of excess blood scattered around.

  • The Buddha’s Paw

    Written by

    Rob

    Warning:  If you are a diabetic, this post may be too much for you to handle.  The cuteness factor is dialed up to well past 11.

    This wonderful portrait of Kkathrynn’s cat Buddha was done by Kelly Doty, from Off the Map Tattoo in Easthampton, MA.  I found it in one of the newer galleries that has been added recently, the pet portrait tattoo gallery.