I think there are very few people who worked in a piercing or tattoo studio in the late 1990s that don’t remember chatting with their coworkers at the beginning of the summer season and saying something to the effect of, “well, this is going to be the last big summer.” Piercings and tattoos were so unbelievably popular that it was impossible to believe that the “fad” couldn’t possibly last any longer. Almost all of us thought that one year soon we’d be remembering the nineties as “the good old days” back when mods were still popular.
I was watching Star Trek: Deep Space Nine today and was reminded of those days because of a funny scene that takes place in the episode “Past Tense” (season three, episode eleven) when some of the characters time travel back to the San Francisco of 2024. One of the people who travels back is Jadzia Dax, a trill, who like all trill has characteristic leopard-like spots running down each side of her body from head to toe.
In 2024, humans did not yet know about non-terran civilizations, so Jadzia had to come up with an excuse for her spots. The scene between her and a human she’d met that was helping her out (Christopher Brynner), was quite amusing –
Christopher Brynner: You know, those are very unusual.
Jadzia Dax: Oh, you mean my tattoos?
Chris: It is amazing work! Where did you have them done? Japan?
Jadzia: How did you guess?
Chris: Well, I used to have one myself… A Maori tribal pattern — used to go all the way down my arm. I got it in highschool, back in the 90s, just like everybody else. Of course I had to have it removed. Well… you know how it is. To get the government contracts, you have to look like all the rest of the drones. So I guess that makes me a sellout.
Because I’ve made it my mission to binge watch every Star Trek episode of every series, I’ve been enjoying the body modification references, both direct references like the one above, and indirect ones like all the different characters and races with tattoos — I thought about making a post cataloging it or adding it to the BME encyclopedia, but then had a bit of a reality check and realized it would be of interest to me and maybe… three other readers.
Last time I posted Diego it was just for fun, so let me include some info this time. Diego had his nostrils pierced in the normal small gauge way — they weren’t dermal punched — but after seeing Pauly Unstoppable (who has inspired more people to stretch their nostrils than anyone out there — I’d argue he is the progenitor of this look in modern times) and then being further inspired by the giant nostril plugs of the Apatani people decided he wanted to stretch his as well. Since then he’s reached 24mm (1″), which is currently quite loose so it’ll be larger soon, with a goal of 30mm or perhaps larger. I just love this picture of him!
As you can see he also has his eyeballs tattooed as well, and he was just telling me about a secret project he’s considering, so I’m looking forward to seeing him evolve as the future unfolds!
Edit: It’s been pointed out that Pat Tidwell’s large stretched nostril piercings predated Pauly’s, although they didn’t have the same insane level of media penetration that Pauly’s had. I asked Pauly about who inspired him, and he told me,
“My first exposure of nostril stretching was from the Apatani tribe and a tribe in New Guinea where the males stretch there nostrils and septum very large. It wasn’t till after I found BME and saw Pat Tidwell’s nostrils that I understood that I could also stretch my nostrils. I would say it was a bit of both for me. I had wanted to do it since seeing the tribes in India but at the time didn’t think I could do it till I saw other Westerners on BME that had them done.”
I’ve posted about Daniel Rutt’s amazing piercings elsewhere (and Rob featured them ages ago in a “guess what” post), but I thought ModBlog deserved me taking the time to talk to him about them in detail. The story begins just over two years ago when, a week before Christmas 2010, Daniel had Patrick Kielty (of Body Alter in Worksop, England) do the pair of deep achilles piercings using 1.6mm (14ga) PTFE flexible rods, prescribing the normal simple aftercare of using salt water solution to keep them clean.
Before I talk more about Daniel’s life after leaving the studio, I want to quickly share what Patrick told me about doing the piercing. First he did lots of anatomical study, which lead him to decide that if when he felt for the “sweet spot” he would only continue with the piercing if the tissue was minimal an he was quite certain he wasn’t going to be hitting anything he shouldn’t. Luckily in Dan’s case he could “practically feel [his] thumb and finger touch”, so they went ahead with the calculated risk of skewering him with a needle running between the achilles tendon and the bones of his leg and ankle. From the piercer’s point of view, Patrick described it as something akin to a scaled up handweb, and quite soft to get through.
As you can see, it’s a lot bigger than 14ga now, because every few months he’s stretched it up (much to Patrick’s surprise incidentally). Initially he did this by using different sized PTFE rods, which he found extremely painful due to the rods jumping up in size 2mm at a time — squeezing them through the piercings was difficult and uncomfortable. Once Daniel reached 6mm (about 2ga), he gave up on this method and switched to packing the piercing with a whole bunch of small 1mm (18ga) PTFE rods. Every time he felt ready to stretch he would push another small rod into the middle (or sometimes two, but never more). It was still slightly uncomfortable, but overall the method worked well and in any case was a big improvement over the larger steps in his initial method. Because of the smaller increases, he spaced them just under a month apart.
I asked Daniel if he’d do it the same way if he were to do it again, and he said that in hindsight it might have been better to use the tape method — that is, using tape wrapped around a PTFE rod core to very gradually increase the size — with the hope that it would be even less strenuous. He also advises anyone who’s considering this piercing — who really, really wants it — to not stretch too quickly, and not to goo too big with it.
Daniel got his achilles piercings up to 16mm (5/8″), but felt that he’d hit a limit and downsized to 15mm. He explains, “I can’t ever see this kind of mod going any bigger than 15mm without causing serious risk, involving lack or loss of walking and movement.”
Another problem with this piercing — and deep piercings in general — is that they take forever to heal, long enough that it’s easy to believe that they never truly heal. Until someone figures out a surgical way of doing them that’s akin to a stitched transscrotal (and I’m not sure this could be safely done outside of a proper operating room), this is a piercing that one can expect to look red, irritated, and swollen for several years! And by “several years”, I may mean over a decade — you might recall Mr. Tetanus’s, whose are still a “tolerated wound” after twelve years. Daniel’s are admittedly a little scary looking, especially to those not particularly friendly or comfortable with piercings in general, as Daniel learned one trippy evening that saw him brought into the hospital in a… shall we say… somewhat “mentally incapacitated” state. Upon seeing it, the doctor removed the jewelry, and, unable to stop him at the time, Daniel had to wait until being discharged to put it back in — since that experience he’s avoided showing it to doctors!
As I said, Daniel’s are over two years old now and are still healing — hopefully the downsizing will help them settle down. This is a piercing that takes real commitment to keep, and Daniel warns that he’s “had quite a lot of complications with it, like pain when I walk, and my legs aching when I’m on my feet for too long, although since reducing to 15mm it seems improved.” The more serious disabilities brought on by the piercing seem to be most pronounced after stretching, which sometimes reduced Daniel to limping, but with the downsize he says that he feels “more agile and less fragile”.
Daniel is currently waiting for some new winged jewelry — what a great idea by the way — so hopefully I’ll post a follow-up with those. The images in this post are from various stages in the piercings’ life. I really want to emphasize — and I hope that some of the troubles Daniel describes help underscore this — that this is not a piercing that most people should attempt. It’s got a high potential of crippling you, and requires constant attention and a good understanding and awareness of the body. In addition to his achilles piercings, Daniel has had multiple uvula piercings and wears subclavicals, so he’s definitely no beginner.
Canada, like many countries, is constantly releasing new variations on its coins (maybe because it feels guilty for getting rid of the penny). One of the recent ones is a quarter depicting Shawnee Chief Tecumseh, a hero of the War of 1812 who allied with the British, successfully helping defend Canada against American invasion (successful for Canada, but not for Tecumseh, who died in battle). Caitlin got one of these coins at the grocery store today and showed it to me, and the first thing I noticed was that Tecumseh is wearing a big septum ring (as well as earrings) in his portrait, which I think is the first case of a non-ear piercing appearing on a Canadian coin (and probably the United States as well). Sorry it’s sort of a weird photo — this is the best I could do with my phone.
Last February Brian Decker (purebodyarts.com) cut this amazing piece of scart (hmm… that doesn’t sound appealing… I need a better term), and now a year later it’s beautifully healed. What can I say about it? It’s stunning, one of my favorite pieces in some time.
Recently a friend forwarded me a video of an art opening — the one I’ve included below — asking me if I recognized anyone. I watched the video with curiosity, and yes, I did recognize someone, seeing my friend Kala Kaiwi (who was just featured in part III of the “Evolution” series) and a number of other modified and atypical models immortalized in paint. The artwork turned out to be that of Hawaiian artist Rose Adare, who I tracked down and interviewed about her current Restraint & Revolution gallery show.
“I set out to paint nontraditional people in a traditional medium.”
I should also mention that you can find out more about Rose and her art at her website RoseAdare.com, where you can also get in touch with her about both originals and prints (which are very reasonably priced by the way, starting at $20). Her current show will be at Holualoa’s J+ Gallery until March 10, 2013.
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* Are you a modified person yourself, or more of a fan?
I don’t have any hardcore bodymods yet, though I do have a fiery tattoo on my lower back I drew while learning to fire spin in Ireland, and I have four spike piercings crowning the top of my ear. All of my piercings were done by Kala Kaiwi, our resident specialist on the Big Island of Hawaii — he’s also the model in Primal Buddha.
* How did you get into piercing and tattoos?
A lot of things drew me to bodymod. I was a San Francisco goth while studying at the Academy of Art University — another shadow in the Deathguild scene, dancing on coffins at Spike’s Vampire Bar at Burning Man! In 2005 I was in a collision with a municipal train and wound up in ten body braces. With the overall body-pain I had to escape the cold of San Francisco so I moved to Hawaii. I wound up living with the wonderful John Corbin — R.I.P., fondly remembered as Burning Man’s flaming bagpipes. He used to have a flamethrower which would set off a huge jet of fire when he wailed! His house was covered in surreal murals, and my room was a bright pink girly-girl room with a mural of Pudge the Fish (the sandwich eating fish from Lilo and Stitch). Here’s me, lying in black, in a bright pink room with Pudge the Fish. Aloha!
Years later my partner, Alex Stitt, the fire dancer in Pyro Paramour, moved into a new place with Robert Bennett, the model in the painting Ardens. I adore Robert. He’s family, and the one who painted all the murals in my old house. He’s one of the best tattoo artists on the Big Island, and unlike many tattoo artists he’s also a painter, which gives him an eye for detail and form, and his professionalism is next to known.
* What were you “trying to say” with this series of paintings?
When I was dreaming of Restraint & Revolution I was imagining all the different kinds of corsetry. The painting series is about how people push social boundaries, and corsets are amazing because they have transformed from a symbol of chastity worn under the clothes, to sexy, naughty lingerie worn over top. A complete 180! Everyone in the series pushes those boundaries. Kimberly Dark (Mysterium) is one of the top six LGBT speakers in the country, Carol Queen (Queen 2B4) founded GAYouth and the Center For Sex and Culture — the woman added words to the sexual dictionary! — Jason Webley (Eleventh Hour) is an underground musical genius, Buffy Saint-Marie (Sky Dance) is a Native American musical powerhouse, Ariellah Darker Still (Bring Me My Ghosts) created Dark Fusion belly dance, and Master Obsidian and slave Namaste (Genuflect) are award-winning sex positive role models. They’re all amazing because they change the world by expressing who they are. I mean, if we’re talking about body-mods and self actualization, let’s talk about Billy Castro (Bonnie is Clyde). He’s a transgender porn star. He even spoke at Stanford at the Clayman Institute for Gender Research.
* But beyond corsets of the traditional body-reshaping clothing type, you’ve also painted the play piercing sort?
Naturally, I wanted to paint a corset piercing. At the time Robert was dating the fetish model Stembot (who’s in the painting Acceptance). She leapt off the couch and said “Let’s do it!” Next thing I know, we’re at Kala Kaiwi’s mod-shop lancing eighteen hoops into her back. That’s how I met Kala. His work is brilliant. Scarification, implants, subdermals — he can do it all and he has it all. Implants in his forehead, spikes drilled into the top of his head, tattooed eyes, knotwork patterns in his skin. Everything. About a year later Stembot moved back to the mainland and Robert met Jesi Collins (Venus Unbound). She’s also an amazing tattoo artist and a wonderful mom (Robert tattooed a lot of the work on her left leg). She and her daughter came to live with us. She has a starfish implant in the back of her hand (which you can’t see in the painting because of her pose), as well as a magnet embedded in her finger to perform magic tricks like picking up paper clips and making them spin on tables. She also has a puffer-fish tattooed on her right leg so when she bends her knee it puffs up! I guess we were one fantastic, freaky family after that. We used to go down to the cliffs in the jungle and Kala would pierce Jesi’s back with these huge meat hooks then Robert would suspend her from a tree and swing her out across the water.
* How literal are you with your portraits?
I paint people as they are — though Koyote (in the painting Koyote) is wearing costume horns because he’s a fire performer, and I think they suit him. Sexy devil! However, people are motion, and paintings are still. What I mean by that is people, in life, transform from second to second. Every smile and frown and twitch creases the face, so the idea you have of them is an amalgam of these images — the serene, the troubled, the beautiful, the fear; all mashed together. A painting is like picking one character out of the play that is you. My painting of Kala, for example, is undoubtedly him, though only one or two aspects. Unlike photographs, paintings are more than a mere snapshot. They’re archetypes, like streamlined forms of self.
* What about with their body art? For example, do you try and be literal with their tattoos, or do you take liberties to make their tattoos match your artistic style or commentary?
I love painting tattoos because they are the literal meaning of organic art. When it comes to painting in general, I use sacred geometry like the vesica piscis or the nautilus spiral, blending and softening around the edges before bringing it in for detail. This means that certain tattoos come into focus, just as your eye would focus, while others phase out into basic shapes and color. People can’t see everything simultaneously, and that’s important to remember in portraiture. It’s one of the key differences between Classical Realism and Photo realism. An excellent tattoo painter is Shawn Barber. He focuses on the detail of tattoos.
* What sort of response have you gotten to this series?
The response to my art has been nothing but excellent. Restraint & Revolution will be visiting the mainland U.S. within the next year before moving on to Europe. Yet we were careful about starting in Hawaii. Hawaii’s art is Hawaiiana. Dolphins and orchids and sunset “plein air” landscapes. Hawaii is so vibrant and colorful artists have to compete with nature herself to capture anything half as brilliant. My art, because it evolves out of Classical Realism, takes on more somber tones, and there’s nothing quite like these portraits out here. Our opening at the East Hawaii Cultural Center drew more people than they’d ever had at a single event! People came out in droves, and it was a mixed house. The classic Hawiianna art scene, the local island vibe, the hippies from the jungle, the fetishists from the off grid dungeons, the college students from UH Hilo, the vacationers fresh off the cruise ship — everyone wanted to see! And the truth is, people are often afraid to ask, especially about bodymods. They want to know “does it hurt?” or “why did you do that?’ or “how does that work?” or “is her hand really magnetic?” But at the same time that little voice says “don’t stare, don’t be rude.” At the art show we posted bios of each model so people could read all about these different intersecting, counterculture, underground, subculture lifestyles.
* Beyond capturing a sense of breaking sociopersonal boundaries, is there any other theme to your artwork?
I set out to paint nontraditional people in a traditional medium. Fine art can be so stiff and traditional. Masterfully skilled but thematic. Contemporary art, especially abstract art, can be so expressive that in the end there’s more message than talent or skill. I love the traditionalists, but we can’t all be Da Vinci. I love the innovators, but we can’t all be Duchamp. Fine art needs to evolve, in the same way that the Pre-Raphaelite brotherhood broke the mold, and the Impressionists blurred the boundaries, and the Surrealists escaped reality. But there is a magic to fine art, an alchemy in oil paint, and a soul in composition that we’re losing to Photoshop and instantaneous art. Each portrait takes well over one hundred hours, and is infused with gold leaf, and santo paolo, and whiskey, and peyote — and in the portrait of Koyote even some of my own blood. Blood, sweat and tears. That’s Fine Art. Don’t get me wrong. I believe in instantaneous art, I believe in instantaneous expression, and I believe everyone is an artist, and everyone has a message, and that’s the truth. But which iconic images survive the test of time? Some changed the very way we saw the world. Look at Picasso and Georges Braque and Cubism. But others survived because they captured time and place. Toulouse-Lautrec immortalized Montmartre, as did Modigliani. I love to celebrate people. I love to celebrate our time, and the bodymod scene is a huge part of that. Blood, sweat and tears. That’s love. That’s dedication. And that’s art.
#6,312: use your children’s baby teeth as jewelry.
PS. But in all seriousness, one could put a tooth into a properly constructed implant and achieve this goal. People have encased loved one’s ashes and similar artifacts into silicone and metal implants and had them implanted close to their hearts.
Here’s part five in ModBlog’s ongoing series showing the personal evolution and transformation of people with significant facial body modifications, tracking them from before they were modified, to their current states, plus a few steps along the way. As I said, this is ongoing, so if you’d like to be involved (or know someone who should be included), get in touch with me via my facebook page or via email, including the relevant images. Thanks again to everyone who’s taken part — it’s been wonderful watching people take control of their biological destiny and set it on a new course that more closely matches their dreams.
As always click the “evolution” tag for the whole set!, and click the pictures to zoom in. Yesterday we made some changes to the way ModBlog displays pop-up images — they now no longer shrink to the size of your screen if they’re too big to fit, so I hope this will allow people without gargantuan monitors to properly view these very large images.
Seems silly pictures is the theme of the day, eh? I think I’m going to print this out and put it on business cards so that if any uninitiates on the street ask me how I got my stretched ears I can whip out the card. And if I ever see anyone actually trying them? I’m going to tickle them and see what part of their body breaks first.
I’ve mentioned before that when it comes to bridges piercings, Eric Stango is my hero, but he’s topped himself today by this awesome orbital. We’ve seen nasallang orbitals before, but Eric’s upped the ante with a full-nose orbital that passes through a pair of nostrils and a septum (ie. nasallang) as well as through his massive bridge piercing. I’m quite certain that this is a first, so for now I dub this THE STANGO. There’s not much to see, but if you’re curious click here for an up-nose shot (he warns, “sorry about the copius amounts of nose hair… I’m Italian!”).
