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.

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Tag: Suspension

  • Held by Hooks, and Each Other

    Written by

    Jonathon

    Facilitators and practitioners — the very people who bring so many suspensions to life — often pour their energy into others, quietly setting aside their own opportunities. Brenton and Brittany are one such example. Traveling all the way from Houston, TX, they came to the Ontario Suspension Convention not just to support, but to reconnect and release. In a rare and intimate moment, the two shared a couples suspension that allowed them to step out of their roles as caregivers and into a vulnerable space made just for them. Held aloft — inseparable — floating in the moment.

    This was my favorite suspension I’ve done to date. I’ve done well over 100 suspensions at this point in time. I wish I had kept count over the past 16 years. This one was very special. My partner and I both went through some traumatic experiences before finding each other in this capacity. We’ve known each other for over 10 years though. And now together we feel like we can finally breathe and just live our lives. As facilitators we don’t often get the opportunity to let go and have others care for us. I feel like we grew together in that moment and bonded even deeper than we already were. It was like time stopped and everyone and everything around us disappeared and only we existed on those hooks together. I wish we could have stayed in that moment forever.

    -Brenton @freak.show333

    Brenton and Brittany have a combined suspension experience of over 25 years and specialize in facilitating private events and suspension practices (LTBQ+ friendly and inclusive, of course). If you are in the Houston, TX area and are looking for a suspension experience definitely check them out!

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  • Suspended, Not Silenced

    Written by

    Jonathon

    There’s something undeniably powerful about watching someone working through the stages of suspension. We all build up ideas about ourselves—what we’re allowed to feel, how much we’re allowed to express, when it’s okay to break. For some, suspension is not about pushing physical limits its about giving you a reason to let yourself overflow uninhibited. Once there you can rage, cry, scream and its not too much. It’s exactly enough.

    My feelings have always been big. So big they can be scary. Suspension gives me an outlet for my big feelings in a safe way. It’s a place where I can let those feelings out without feeling like I’m being too much. I can scream and cry and curse people out and it’s okay because I’m literally getting strung up by hooks in my skin. Suspension helps me confront the parts of myself I try to avoid. It helps me make peace with myself.

    @flighty.wren

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  • A Nightbird’s Passage

    Written by

    Jonathon

    Some stories take their time, unfolding over decades, through life’s long detours and diversions. But dreams never rest until they’re fully realized. Even after 15 years, Robb knew there was still a suspension experience waiting for him. Something left unfinished, something essential. At the Ontario Suspension Convention this March, he may have finally found what he’s been seeking.

    I never intentionally left the suspension scene but also, I was never really in it. All of my suspensions were private. I had never seen another person suspend in real life. Plenty of pictures of people I didn’t know. But I was the only person I knew personally who was into it. Over the years, I thought about suspension often and kept meaning to schedule another but it simply never happened.

    My first suspension in 15 years was not exactly how I remembered. It was better. Far less painful than I remembered. Way more euphoric and mind altering. It was such pure bliss to return to something that’s always meant so much to me.

    Nothing specific brought me back more than just having the opportunity. How long before my next one? I doubt it’ll be more than a year. I’d love to go up tomorrow! I’ve got a lot on my plate right now but suspension will be staying high on the priority list from here on.

    –Robb Raven

    Though Robb’s presence in the suspension community has been quiet until now, it feels safe to say we’ll be seeing much more of him in the future. His full reflection on the experience is up on Instagram (@RavenThePiercer), and it’s worth a watch.

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  • What Lifts the Body, Shifts the Soul

    Written by

    Jonathon

    First suspensions are rarely just about the body—they’re a meeting point between the physical and the deeply personal. Stepping into this experience isn’t simply about trying something new, but about stepping outside yourself to a version you had always sensed was waiting.

    I’ve had a complicated, on-and-off relationship with intentional, physical pain, and I was very interested in finding a way to enter into that space with it intentionally in a healing way. I also admit I really wanted the community associated with it. In those regards—the release, the enjoyment, and the community, I definitely got everything I’d wanted and more. The release was exactly what I’d hoped for. There was a wall between parts of my inner self that I felt was breached while I was up there. And beyond just enjoying it, I had fun while up there! I loved being swung around by my mentor, Josh, and by Mike. I never wanted to come down! The community was also incredible, and I feel lucky I got to be first exposed to it in a space like Ontario Suscon. I barely knew anybody there, but I felt a close connection of love and camaraderie I felt with everybody in the space was almost instant. It’s an amazing experience to be in a space where everyone has come together and decided to be vulnerable in a shared space, and inherently trust over a hundred people to take care and respect their bodies and experiences. Especially as someone that was just learning to facilitate suspension as well, the number of people that were excited to let me throw a hook for the first time, or run their bio for them when I’d never done it before, was nothing short of amazing.

    —Tobias

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  • Skin and Strings: The Art of Human Puppetry

    Written by

    Jonathon

    One of the most powerful things about being at a convention like OSC is the sheer concentration of experience, creativity, and capability in one place. When you’re surrounded by people who not only understand the technical complexities of suspension but are excited by the challenge of something new, ideas can move quickly from imagination to reality. This puppet suspension was one of those ideas—strange, evocative, and technically demanding. But with the right inspiration, the right rigging minds, and a performer willing to give themselves to the vision, it can become something unforgettable.

    A person suspends off the ground, from several hooks on a large metal rig, with a group of people around them, watching.

    I was drawn to puppet suspension after hearing about it from Kevin Donaghy when the OSC was having a meet for our Halloween performance, which had my mind wondering how the rigging could work and how could we make it happen, once I saw who all was going to be at suscon I knew I had to do and see what other creative minds could come up with and loved the idea of other OSC members and friends being puppeteers. 

    The suspension was everything I wanted and more. Already have the gear turning to take this idea to another level hopefully in the near future.

    -Kyle (@big_ears.bauer_north)

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