BME: Body Modification Ezine

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Celebrating body modification culture since 1994.

Tag: Extreme

  • Ear pointing pictures; before and after

    Written by

    Shannon Larratt

     

    While it was originally pioneered by Steve Haworth, a number of artists have worked hard to push ear shaping procedures in more radical directions. I’ve mentioned here in the past the work of the Finnish artist Samppa and nomadic Howie, but I felt that the procedures of South American (BS AS; Rata-Bodyart) artist Matias Tafel should be shown as well — here’s some before-and-after pictures of his work on Bubu.

    I see a lot of nice work coming out of South America, both in terms of tattoos, piercings, and heavy modifications, and in terms of the body modification media as well. 

  • Implant Removal Photos

    Written by

    Shannon Larratt

    The last cover article posted to BME, Non-Medical Silicone Implants For Dummies v1.0, discusses the pros and cons of silicone, including some of the issues in its removal when things go wrong. I thought I ought to emphasize how serious removal is with a few gory photos — the more difficult a modification is to reverse, the more seriously it should be debated prior to getting it done!

           

    With as many as 10% of people estimated to eventually remove their implant (and that number may well rise in the future), be prepared to go through a removal that, as with tattoos, can be more of an ordeal than getting it in the first place. Live for today but plan for tomorrow, right?

  • “Eye Boogie”

    Written by

    Shannon Larratt

    It’s not often these days that I get to post what I consider to be an entirely “new” piercing, but thanks to Ben Trigg at House of Color in Colorado Springs, I’ve got one for you today. I’ll post more on it later, but here’s what he calls an “eye boogie” (if I’m reading what I’m seeing right, it’s closer to a single-point pocketing or a transdermal than an eyelid piercing by the way)…

  • Take one for the team.

    Written by

    Shannon Larratt

    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.)

  • Radical ear work

    Written by

    Shannon Larratt

    Last month we mentioned the new ear sculpting and reconstruction work being done by Sampaa in the UK, but I thought that I should also showcase some of the radical work being done by another mad scientist of the underground mod world, IAM:Howie of Luna Cobra. Here’s one of his extreme ear pieces that he did on his recent (and continuing) world tour:

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