The Modern Primitives

In his essay, John Leo touches on the ever-growing subculture of body modification. It is undeniable that piercings and tattoos have become less taboo over the past few generations. There was a time in America when only sailors proudly flaunted their blurry, poorly executed tattoos that were barely above prison tattoo standards. Now, however, men and women alike (all hailing from different professions and walks of life) brandish elaborate works of art on the outer layers of their skin. Entire limbs are often adorned with dazzling illustrations that may represent significant periods in a person's life (such as symbols representing a person's inner-most emotions, the names of children or loved ones, or entire pieces dedicated to the passing of an individual). Other times, a person bears no greater explanation than “I like the way it looks”. Whether the reason for getting tattooed is deep-seated and meaningful, or simple and straightforward, this form of modification is perhaps the most popular. In addition to the increased demand for tattoos, the skill that goes into many of these pieces is astonishing. Some works are so realistic that one would think that the image could either walk straight off the skin, or that one could touch the image and feel the texture so perfectly depicted.

http://emgn.com/entertainment/22-amazing-realistic-tattoos/2/

In addition to tattoos, many people take part in body piecing. Leo starts his article by declaring, “The days when body piercers could draw stares by wearing multiple earrings and a nose stud are long gone”. His statement holds more and more true as time goes by. In the nineties, it was a rarity to see a person with one visible piercing. Currently, it is fairly common practice to display a number piercings in plain sight. It is also frequent to see a vast array of studs, barbells, balls, hooks, loops, trans-dermal implants, surface piercings, as well as more complex piercings, such as the corset piercing.

http://www.piercingtime.com/belly-piercing-and-corset-piercing-for-girls/

Unlike tattoos, which often times can be perceived as poetically justified, piercings seem to embody a primitive, almost animal-like attitude (perhaps because of the existence of tribes that have been known to insert metal and other materials into their bodies in order to stretch their lips, ears, or even necks). Leo refers to piercing as “part of the broader body modification movement”. It is possible that he meant that piercings are influencing new methods of body modification.

Practices other than tattooing and piercing exist and are becoming easier and easier to both observe and obtain. Scarification is one such practice. This process originated in many tribes in Africa as well as South America, where the process was and still is a right of passage. Leo references an article in Spin magazine where one individual claims that scarification
Creates intimacy”. They go on to say that “My scars are emotional centers, signs of a life lived”.

http://www.body-modification.org/index.php?seite=cutting

Other less well-known methods of body modification include tongue splitting, tattooing of the eyeballs, branding, sharpening of the teeth, and even temporarily inserting a saline drip into the forehead to create the infamous “bagel head”.

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/world/bagel-head-saline-injections-new-body-art-fad-article-1.1168711