Celebrating body modification culture since 1994.
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I’ve giggled here previously about finger mustache tattoos (one, two), so I thought I ought to mention the equally clever silly finger teardrop tattoos. These two examples are on IAM:BruisedandBroken and IAM:Aretha who got them done at the Boston Tattoo Convention.
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Hey! Brandon Swartz of Inflictions in Covina, California, you owe Tim Kern (and Amina Munster) a serious apology. If this was 1989, your shop would be burned to the ground. Lucky for you, it’s 2005, and all you’ve lost is the respect of your peers.
 Original by Tim Kern |
 Copy by Brandon Swartz |
Seriously, taking someone’s custom tattoo and copying it isn’t a compliment. It’s theft and abuse of something really personal, a kind of emotional rape that’s utterly unacceptable. Not cool at all.
Previously: Pirate Tattoos
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If there’s one practice associated with the body modification community that enrages and disgusts the general publicand truthfully, many within the community itself it’s voluntary amputation.
To be wary of it is one thing: Amputation certainly carries with it not only a sense of permanence far surpassing many other modifications, but also generally causes a major upheaval in the way one will live his or her life from that point on, with most people on the sidelines assuming the life of the amputee will be far more difficult and unhappyno matter how many stories there are to the contrary [MORE, MORE, MORE].
While many find it comfortable to write off those with these desires as lunatics who just havent found the right cocktail of medication to correct whatever mental illness is plaguing them, the psychological conditions that may cause such desiressuch as Body Integrity Identity Disorder and Apotemnophiliaare absolutely real and based solidly in fact. These conditions even made it to prime time last year when a story of voluntary amputation became the premise of a very special episode of CSI: New York.
As with most things though, peoples opinions tend to shift dramatically when the reasoning behind the act becomes something that is more favorable to the public at large.
Be it for love:
For God:
Or in this case, for the love of the game:
Brent Blackwell, an Australian rugby player who had broken his finger three years ago and has felt considerable pain ever since, was given two options: Fuse the bones together and give up his sporting livelihood to allow for proper healing, or lop the bastard off and continue playing.
Normally the sort of situation where a coach may ask a player to just sit this one out, Blackwell went the amputation route, losing the ring finger on his left hand, and resumed his professional career no worse for wear.
Admitting that it was a bit drastic, he added: I love my footy and love playing sport and if that’s going to help me to succeed at this level then it’s something you’ve just got to do.
This scenario is not unheard of though: In the final game of the 1985 season for the NFLs San Francisco 49ers, safety Ronnie Lott got his pinky finger stuck in the facemask of an opposing player. Forced to sit out the rest of the game, he was given the similar options of reconstructive surgery and a term on the disabled list or amputation of the top segment of his finger, chose the latter option, and was back with his team in time for the playoffs.
For these two athletes, amputation was nothing short of a heroic move. I guess its not gross if its good game.
(Blackwell and Lott links via BoingBoing.)
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I was going to write a nice long entry about how SuicideGirl and IAM member Amina Munster is going to be on tonight’s episode of Inked on A&E but Marisa over at Needled beat me to it. Click the photo below (by Steve Prue of TeamRonin) for more information:
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If you are going to submit your tattoo photo to BME in trade for membership, please make the photo as suggestive and subtly pornographic as possible. It is appreciated.
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What happens when you fill a room with women aged 18 to 35, who don’t know each other? They’re from various countries and even more varied backgrounds. You might expect cliques. You might expect gossip. Maybe even a catfight? You’d be mistaken if you had these expectations at the All Grrl Suscon.
This all-female event was planned by Rachel (iam:tigertante) and Jill (iam:feisty) and was held in Toronto, Ontario, in Canada. I am occasionally asked to lend a hand at suspension conventions (I can fetch juice or water when needed, and the Jewish Mother in me really likes to help out). I drove 350 miles to get to my carpool, driven by Sarah (iam:Hehaditcomin). Joy (iam:the milkmaid) and Bumble (iam:BgirlyPrincapessa) drove thirteen hours one way. Angela (iam:AuntiePandora) traveled farther still, but she took the easy way, and flew in.
Several dozen women attended. Over a dozen women suspended. The room was so emotion- and endorphin-charged that we joked that, when the tenant returned to his office on Monday, he’d probably get his period. I only cried a few times, I think. I think. My friend Christine (iam:bonita80) went up for her second time, doing a “superwoman” for, from the moment the hooks started until she came down, about an hour and twenty minutes. I’d told her I’d hold her hand, but I don’t think she needed it. Just as well; I was crying and therefore pretty useless.
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| The setup for Christine's suspension |
Christine flew |
If you ever get the opportunity to attend an event like this, note the attention to sanitation and detail. The crews work at almost a surgical level. Because people who hang their friends from hooks must be stupid, dirty freaks, we tend to hold ourselves to a higher standard. Seriously, the crews’ stations look cleaner than a lot of doctors’ offices I’ve been in. I am genuinely proud, knowing that my friends know how people look at them, and they exceed standards.
We stayed until 7:00 p.m., but the suspensions continued until well past 1:00 a.m.
Our hostess, Caryn (iam:Dyzcordia), Sarah, Angela, Brittney, and I went for well-deserved sushi after we left the space. We were all still high from the events of the day, bouncing around, looking in shop windows, and enjoying life and the company of each other. Then Caryn stopped and pointed at a figurine of an angel in one of the shops.
“That was me.”
Photos from the women who attended are being added to BME’s Suspension Teams photo section.
An old friend introduced me to suspension. He recently passed away. He was in my mind all day. I have no desire to suspend, but I go for the energy of the people who attend. I feel obliged to help out since I’m not an otherwise active participant. My friend’s showing me this world was a gift that I’ll never be able to repay.
I put myself into financial debt to attend. I have blisters and a twisted ankle. (Note to self: don’t get pedicures before working; you need those callouses if you’re going to be on your feet!) My arms ache from driving. My car is making a clicky noise.
I wouldn’t have missed it for the world.
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I think outsiders to body modification probably assume that scarification is a very masculine and “tough” or “brutal” artform, which is ironic given that in a historic context it often serves as a feminine form of expression. In any case, it’s come of age to the point here in the West that we’re able to see it fill that role. I wanted to show two pieces from Shawn Porter‘s ScarWars. The piece on the left is by IAM:vampy on IAM:square, and the piece on the right is a “scar fusion” piece by Brian and Jesse Villemaire on IAM:amnesiac. Both are between two and three months old in these pictures.
ScarWars II is tentatively scheduled for February 2006 in Los Angeles (but don’t quote me on that). Keep an eye on the SW website for more info.
Sorry about that, I had to correct the gender imbalance in this entry.
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BMEvideo, BME’s ultragonzo superhardcore video site for BME/extreme and BME/HARD enthusiasts launched today, although it’s currently only available to contributors (although there are mail-in subscription options there’s not currently online billing). Click the link for a trailer and more information.
Anyway, if visiting the body modification video site isn’t your thing, or somehow scars you, you could can look at the picture below instead to swing your sexual barometer back to something safe and mundane and unthreatening… a picture of a friend of mine in the USA.
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Congratulations to Danny from Wakantanka here in Mexico (so far the only APP studio in the nation) for having one of his customers (and piercings) featured in PLAYBOY magazine this month. Here’s one of the photos (click for an uncensored version); pick up the (Mexican edition of the) magazine for the rest.
If you’re ever in Mexico City, Danny’s studio is definitely worth a visit if you’re looking for a safe and experienced place to get work done.
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Here’s a few pictures of Vixen aka Melanie Brink (visit her on IAM or myspace). The custom tattoo work she’s got is by Ryan Brink of Good Neighbor Tattoo in Escondio, California. The photos here are from a recent shoot she did with Dawn Earles, and you may also recognize her as the lead singer of Superna.
