BME: Body Modification Ezine

A tattooed person suspends from hooks, laying flat, one leg higher than the other. Their head is back, and they seem to be smiling, dark hair dangling like an anime character.

Celebrating body modification culture since 1994.

Tag: Body Modification

  • Community.

    Written by

    Shannon Larratt

    Hurricane Katrina has devastated the Gulf Coast of the United States. Affected areas included Mississippi, Louisiana, and Alabama.

    Air America Radio’s Public Voicemail is a way for disconnected people to communicate in the wake of Katrina. The United States Department of Labor is offering Hurricane Recovery Assistance. FirstGov.Gov can assist in finding one’s loved ones. Donations are being accepted by the American Red Cross, Network for Good, Habitat for Humanity, the SPCA of Texas (who helped with the overflow of animals once the Louisiana SPCA was overfilled), and the Salvation Army. HoustonPBS has information about non-monetary donations.

    Needled.com is aware — very aware — that there are body modification professionals who have lost their livelihood. Their statement:

    Needled has a group of tattooists who are willing to donate their used tattoo machines and supplies for those artists who were affected. Please contact us if you need this help.

    There were dozens of IAM members within 150 km of Biloxi, MS, who were affected by this natural disaster; as their status is learned, it’s been updated. Our friend Matt Gone (IAM: Matt Gone) lost just about everything but his body suit; he’s being sponsored by various members of our community. Assistance has been offered in the forms of pet cages, baby clothing, housing, and, of course, money.

    Of course, you already knew most, if not all, of this information if you were logged into IAM this week.

    The international community of body modification enthusiasts and professionals has stepped up to help friends and strangers alike, not only with cash and goods, but with information. It’s not an overstatement to declare that this community has made a difference.

    I’m proud to be a member of this community.

  • Tattoo Miscellany

    Written by

    Shannon Larratt

    Since I’m going to be mostly offline for a couple days (as will Jordan who will be covering the Guadalajara convention with Rafael), I thought I’d post a little more to keep you occupied. First, if the entry about Craig tattooing his dog upset you, let me offer you this more easy-to-digest dog tattoo by Matt Lautar at Great Southern Tattoo in College Park, Maryland.

    I recently mentioned “finger mustache” tattoos. Well, I’ve been seeing them more and more. Here’s one on Embot (by Jason Bradshaw at Custom Ink in Isla Vista, CA), and another on El Pulpo in Germany.

    I also recently mentioned My Little Pony tattoos so I thought I ought to showcase the fabulous My Little Pony sleeve that Venus Pink had done by Kim Durham at Brewery Ink in Los Angeles.

    And, finally, if you’re having a downer day, maybe you’ll like this combination piercing and stapling by Anders the Piercing Guy down in Brisbane, Australia.

    See you in Amsterdam!

  • Dog Tattoos

    Written by

    Shannon Larratt

    So in something that I suspect could generate a bit of a furor, Craig Driscoll, a great Canadian tattooist working in Edmonton (and elsewhere) took his puppy Chico in to the vet, had him sedated, and tattooed him. Now, before you go calling the Edmonton Humane Society and telling them to raid DragonFX or something (where he was guest-spotting at the time of this entry), realize that dogs get tattooed all the time and it’s perfectly legal — and as Craig points out, it’s not as bad as cutting the tails off boxers and Rottweilers (or cutting the foreskin off baby humans I guess).

    That said, if you’ve got an opinion on the matter, here’s his comment forum. Personally while I’ve got enormous respect for Craig’s artwork, and I’m sure that he loves his dog, I’m really not down with tattooing animals myself.

  • You need a reason?

    Written by

    Shannon Larratt

    Razorwrists writes, ‘If you’ve ever asked “Why?”, here is your answer.’

  • Sweet!

    Written by

    Shannon Larratt

    I just got this from Matt Bruce who’s currently doing a guest spot over at Wingnut in Minnesota (who are all great BME contributors), and I just had to share it here:

    This guy walked into the shop asking if we do cover ups, I say “of course,” and then he tells me I’m gonna laugh at the placement. I said “I doubt it,” but boy was I wrong!

    As he takes off his hat, he reveals a large horrible forehead tattoo that reads “DUDE”. I just stood there amazed and said, “I gotta get my camera.” Apparently he was mouthing off at a party, passed out and woke up with this masterpiece. So I guess the urban legend is true… I am amazed he didn’t wake up in the middle of it.

    He wanted to originally cover it up with the Miami Dolphins logo (apparently he doesn’t learn). He doesn’t want to pay the quote he got for removal for it, so he is gonna get a bit of light branding to lighten it up so it will be easier to cover. I can’t imagine why he just wont suck it up and pay for the removal but I guess this guy isn’t known for his good choices.

  • Start of a Guarani Tattoo Resurgence?

    Written by

    Shannon Larratt

    I just got this picture and email. I think maybe it is a sign that at least in little ways the world is becoming a better place, even if just one person at a time?

    This is me at Mahatma Tattoo studio, Rio de Janeiro-Brazil. This facial tattoo represents my Guarani heritage.

    I’d read that Maori tattoos were making a comeback among current generations in New Zealand, so I asked Robson whether his tattoo was part of a larger trend or not.

    No man, only me, I guess. All the guys were doing facial old school daggers or something... We do have a lot of people of indigenous descent here in Brazil, but the media doesn't show anything about our culture.

    These kids that are like, five, ten, fourteen years old, they stop me and ask "wow! are you an indian?" and I reply, "sure, just like you!" Most people here, especially in Rio, are a mix of Portuguese, Indian, and Black... and the Indian side I think is pretty cool.

  • Tattoo commentary

    Written by

    Shannon Larratt

    Tattoos are — when they’re done right, in my opinion — an integral part of people’s lives, and have a meaning that’s tied to their self-chosen destiny.

    [This is] a tattoo in the honor of an album I heard a few years ago, called "The Ugly Organ." I took the album art, in this case, the jagged piano design, and pretty much photocopied it. The design credits go to Cursive. The album changed the way I heard music, and more importantly, changed the way I write music.

    I now run a record label, play in several bands and just released my tenth album. None of this would have been possible if I hadn't had heard "The Ugly Organ." The combination of dischord and cacophony along with melody and tender moments struck me in a special way. The lyrics, predominantly about the paradox that successful writers constantly must seek out pain in order to write about to continue to be successful writers, was a concept that I had been battling myself before I had heard the album.

    I devoted about 14 inches of my chest to this album, this work of art. It took about 5 hours, with four breaks, and the Subway I ate afterwards was the best in my life, if for no reason than I was no longer being tattooed across my chest. Those with chest work understand the pain, I'm sure. But, It was totally worth it. Tattooed by Matt at Evolved.

    - Evan

  • Blair at Pure

    Written by

    Shannon Larratt

    It’s my old friend Blair‘s birthday and he’s decided to take a week or two off of busy life in Toronto and relax in the slow moving city of New York, New York. While he’s there, he’ll be doing some guest work at Brian‘s PURE Body Arts in Brooklyn.

    If you don’t already know his name, Blair is not only a generally talented body piercer, scarification, and body modification practitioner, but he’s also one of the best traditional strike branding artists in the world with about a decade of experience in the medium… So if you’re in NYC and strike branding is something you’ve been looking fore, considering contacting him. He’s only there for the next week or so!

    You can see some more of his work at his website, byblair.com.

  • What’s cooler than being cool?

    Written by

    Shannon Larratt

    Friends don’t let friends choose their own nicknames.

    [LINK via IAM:Mikesch.]

  • It does look cool…

    Written by

    Shannon Larratt

    BE (UK suspension team) has been playing with a new ultra-simple “hook/rig” design, with Wormy modeling it below. It looks super cool, but my take on it is that if you had any amount of motion (swinging around for example), it could shift out of place or perhaps even catastrophically slide entirely out as more weight is on one side than the other?

    I suppose some kind of safety knobs could be put in place on each side of the flesh penetration, but at that point you’d lose the visual simplicity. Seeing this picture has me thinking about a photoshoot in which the suspendee is “skewered” on rebar sticking horizontally out of a concrete wall… Someone please shoot it, I need that poster!

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