Have Mursi! Lip Plates Have Reached the West

“I may not have gone where I intended to go, but I think I have ended up where I needed to be.”
– Douglas Adams, The Long Dark Tea-Time Of The Soul

Things have a funny way of inserting themselves into our culture. Ideas, ways of doing things, processes that might have seemed foreign, bizarre, or implausible at one point in history invariably find their ways into our lives; it happens every day. Vaccinations. Hot dogs. Guitars with distortion. Reality Television.

But hey, we adapt. We evolve. We roll with the punches.

Hell, google is a verb now. A verb! Those are important!

But we’re speaking on too grand a scale. Before global change takes place, these little steps occur within each one of us on a microcosmic level. We take our observations, we draw our conclusions, and we make our decisions — though sometimes, not even consciously.

“I had no idea that I ever would have taken my lip this far,” says Jesse. “My parents weren’t too fond of piercings, but I remember saying a long time ago, when my brother first started stretching his ears, that the first piercing they let me have I would stretch it so big that I could stick my fingers through it — and possibly my fist! I didn’t even know that was possible back then!” Things have a way of working out. While a fist-sized hole may be a ways off yet, he’s currently sporting an impressive 3/4″ labret with custom-made Teflon jewelry by Karl Lorenz.

Jesse goes on: “I figured stretching my lip wouldn’t be that bad; one day in class I went from 14 gauge to 8 gauge [with a taper] and then a 6 gauge. It didn’t feel too great, but that was the first time.” Since then, he has abandoned tapers (“I didn’t like the feeling or the weight,” he says) and now relies on good old-fashioned lube and elbow grease for stretching purposes. What’s remarkable about Jesse’s lip is not the size, though — while large, there are certainly bigger ones in the community — but rather the manner in which he presents it: He is among the first in Western culture to wear his lip piercing down, in much the same way that tribal peoples out of Africa and South America have done — in other words, as a lip plate.


Upsy

Downsy

The current applications of this style are more an amalgam of several tribal styles than anything else; the hugely-stretched lips of Ethiopia’s Mursi tribe and the outwardly-projected piercings of Brazil’s Suya are often combined. However, due to the similarities in the original styles it’s near-impossible to narrow down the tribe that these Western examples have most fashioned themselves after.

“The Suya/Mursi thing isn’t all that important,” explains Swirly (and yes, that is his real name), “Loads of African [and other] tribes wear big lip plates — those are just the prime examples, the most recognized if you will.”

With a labret at just under one inch in diameter, Swirly has one of the larger lips out there — the product of 30 months of persistent stretching — and, as with Jesse, this gives him the ability to wear the jewelry in it down. It’s not something that’s done all the time, though; Swirly maintains that he likes to constantly alternate his jewelry but that his lip will usually flop down on its own when relaxed, while Jesse explains that he’ll wear his lip down on occasion to ease the muscles in the area and to give his teeth and gums a break from the pressure of the jewelry. Both agree that the lip plate style is more soothing, and it certainly seems that when lip piercings get to a certain point, it’s almost the more natural choice.

However, there’s no such thing as a free lunch, and a large, heavy piercing in the middle of one’s face is, of course, not without its drawbacks and challenges. The problems Swirly has encountered, he says, have much to do with the weight: “Running up and down stairs is quite hazardous. Speaking takes some getting used to at first. Drinking leaves you rather moist for a while until you learn to drink past your plug. That sort of thing.” Beyond everyday hurdles though, he has also experienced physical issues related to the stretching, including his lower jaw actually changing shape and his teeth beginning to arch backwards as opposed to the normal “U”-shape of the lower jaw.


Swirly’s Teeth Begin To Arch Backwards As His Jaw Changes Shape

In a culture where the mainstream is still in its infancy as far as its support and acceptance of more heavily and visibly modified people, when the envelope is pushed as it is being pushed right now, it can seem that there’s almost a “one step forward, two steps back” effect taking place. Forging ahead and breaking new ground before the current path has been steadied and secured will almost invariably result in backlash of some sort, but at the same time — it’s also almost always worth it. It’s obviously not always the case, but hard and heavy can be far more effective than passivity and subtlety on occasion, and if bludgeoning the public for the sake of progress is the only recourse, so be it. “The public’s response to my lip is generally a long stream of profanity.” Swirly claims. “So what do I do? I pop out the plug and stick my split tongue through the hole to add to the shock! And then I’ll get ‘There’s something very wrong with you’ or ‘Why would you do that?’ But really, my response is if you don’t like it, don’t look at it.”

“Everyone stares,” Jesse adds. “It’s not something you see every day. Few actually build up the courage to ask about it though, except for ‘Is it really that big?’ or ‘Did that hurt?’, but I do get compliments now and then — usually from the older crowd! My dad always tells them to stop encouraging me though, and we all laugh about it. But definitely more stares than comments for me.”


Bart Gets His Lip “Disked” In Africa

Regardless of acceptance, the public’s interest has been piqued, and that of course is the first step. “There’s no telling what the next generation will do,” says Jesse. “A lot of younger people have confronted me about my lip, and I’ve helped lots of people with questions about lip stretching — a lot of them say they would do it if they could, but it’s a small case of fear holding them back, which is understandable.” But will hugely stretched lips, especially in this style, reach the popularity and acceptance level of, say, stretched ears?

“The difference between big ears and big lips is the fact that big ears don’t really affect everyday activities like eating, drinking, speaking, and so on,” Swirly offers. And that is important to consider; while stretched ears may have seemed too freaky for anybody’s good at one point, having exposed “wet” tissue is entirely different than large dangling lobes. But people love to complain, and often find something not to like about things that they either don’t understand or feel a warped sense of ownership about, such as a small contingent’s claims of cultural misappropriation against Western suspension practices and really, much of body modification in general. Though, because this “new” lip plating is so directly inspired by tribal and indigenous practices, will accusations of cultural misappropriation and theft be a concern?

“I’d turn around and ask them why stretching my lip is any different from the small tattoo they have — you know, ‘because it’s cool’,” says Swirly. “Because tattooing wasn’t originally a Western ‘thing’ either, so surely tattooing anything non-tribal oriented in the true sense of the word is also ‘cultural misappropriation’, and the same goes for piercing. There’s barely anything we do these days [regarding body modification] that hasn’t been done before by tribesmen, and it has all become progressively more acceptable, so why should my lip be any different?”

Jesse isn’t phased by naysayers. For him, the entire process has been a tremendous learning experience. “You could consider it a rite of passage,” he says, “considering that I made it through high school with my lip stretched and passed all of the judgment — I mean, when it came down to it, all I really had for a while was myself. People are forced to mature when put in high-pressure positions from others.”

Jesse, Swirly, and a few others have truly taken the next step. It is people such as them that add creativity into the body modification equation; anybody can jab him — or herself with a needle, but that doesn’t make it art. At a time when piercing seemed to be at a lull of sorts while scarification and implant technology flourished, a movement like this truly brands those involved as pioneers. Did they invent the idea? Hardly. That’s not what this is about. The gravity of the situation lies in the fact that this form of body decoration may be among the first of its kind in Western civilization, and this is very important to acknowledge. It’s this kind of lateral thinking and willingness to experiment and branch out that, in the end, will make all of us look good. Will the anthropology and sociology textbooks 200 years from now be more concerned with the impact that Nick and Jessica’s Variety Hour had on society, or will they be examining the major paradigm shifts and cultural revolutions that came out of communities such as ours?

There was a time when an eyebrow piercing was about as edgy as one could get. There was a time when people in this community could not get behind large-gauge lobe piercings. This may seem very different right now, but things have a way of reaching a sense of normalcy and acceptance.

Now that I think about it, maybe the future generations won’t read about things like this in textbooks; they’ll just google it instead.

Now that still sounds weird to me.

Please consider buying a membership to BME so we can continue bringing you articles like this one.



Neil and Muga’s Mega-Lip Piercings

Even though numerous people outside of indigenous cultures have been wearing lip plates for at least a decade, it’s still a misunderstood and often maligned modification. I had a chance to talk to Neil Thomas about his lip plate, which began its life as a simple and unassuming 14ga labret seven years ago, and a lot of vinyl tape wrapping later, is now about 35mm (1 3/8″), just shy of his end goal of 45mm, where he plans on staying for a while. Because of the weight (and size) of the jewelry, he wears the plate down all the time, other than taking out a few hours a night and oiling the area, and to clean it with unscented anti-bacterial soap.

You may be surprised to hear that in addition to his “Scratch1000″ eBay store, Neil works with the public as a barber-stylist and a musician/promoter. His bosses have been supportive over the years, and the public has a broad range of responses — some people are curious with the typical “does that hurt”, others have no opinion, others think it’s cool, and of course there are those that think it’s gross. He says, “Treat people the way you would want to be treated and I believe people will be more understanding towards you. Most people close to me accept me for who I am and what I do. I’ve always just went for what I wanted to do. I still respect the few that are against it. If that’s the way they are, so be it.”

Neil adds, “I always figured if I could get away with it I would just keep going. I have always been a fan of culture and uniqueness. I’ve always been just me, in the punk scene or the Jamaican music scene. Two things that that keep me going.”

He also tells me that he’s always loved the way it looked on all kinds of different people, so let me also share a picture of the amazing Muga Suástica of Marcolino Moura in Bahia, Brazil. His lip is 50mm (2″) in this photo, but he tells me he doesn’t plan on stopping any time soon.

Meet Marcus “The Creature” Boykin from AMC’s Freakshow Reality TV Show

Tonight (February 14, 2013) AMC will be airing a new reality TV show called “Freakshow”, all about the Venice Beach Freakshow. The cast member who may be of most interest to ModBlog readers is Marcus “The Creature” Boykin, tattooed head to toe and wearing a face-full of self-pierced metal. The name “Creature” comes with a double meaning — he’s not just a creature in the monstrous sense, but also “create-ure” in the sense of creating himself as an artistic invention, a body that is “all original, unlike anyone else’s”, in the hope that he’d be able to not just entertain, but inspire and let people know that no matter how impossible something seems, you can do it.

Here’s the official video profile of Creature from AMC. Following that is a brief chat that we had yesterday letting you know a little bit more about what makes Creature tick — but if you really want to see what he and the rest of Venice Beach Freakshow are all about, don’t miss the show, which begins tonight on AMC at 9:30, 8:30 CST.

** What made you want to move from being a kid into piercings to someone at the “freak end of the scale” — and how did your family react?

My family are hard core Christians, and my mom is still in disbelief, but my dad supports me to the fullest in the craze of body art and piercings. My inspiration came from historical pictures like the Great Omi… warriors receiving scarification, like the great Shaka Zulu, and slaves chastisement as they got whipped and scarred and burned — also Jesus Christ himself suffered out of this world piercings and was scarred beyond any recognition — it goes reallly deeeep…

creature1

** How did you get into the industry professionally?

When I was a kid I always was attracted to the arts, and now consider myself a multi-disciplinary artist. I was someone who was always into creatures — that’s why my name fits so well. I first got educated on the industry by going to the store and grabbing ink magazines. I saw the abnormal things featured in magazines like Tattoo Savage, and these influenced my young mind. Even as a kid, I always wanted to entertain, from the art of popping, locking, and breakdancing, and being a creature known as Gizmo and Raver Dayn, as Yoshi, and rebel dancing as him toooooo… I’ve always been into the strange and unusual, so I’m not surprised by my profession. I believe I didn’t choose it — it chose me.

creature2

** Why do you have so many piercings specifically on your face? Do you have issues with rejection?

I have a lot of piercings on my face because I want to fill it completely with surface piercings. Ear stretchings, lips, nipples… a lot of the mods just takes time. Of course I suffer rejection but that’s just a part of the game. I’ve been piercing my own face and tattooing it for years now, and things just keep on improving in the industry so there are endless possibilities. The future holds many new creations in my body mods. It won’t be done until I am dead.

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Creature with one of his many young fans

** What are your future body modification plans? Are you interested in going for one of the “most piercings” type records?

As my mods go, I am still adding more and want to continue to lead African Americans in this art form and represent the endless possibilities of our body. That’s very important to me, and in addition to my facial work, I want piercings over my entire body surface. I already hold the record as the most tattooed and modified man in America thanks to my layers of ink, mods, piercings, and stretchings but I’m going for more — of course I will keep delivering the blow! Art has endless possibilities, and I express that through the body as the Creature.

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** What can we expect from you on the show?

Before I started body mod I did body balance circus tricks and planking, part of a world-wide crew I started called “The Freakshow”, and advancing to the world famous LA Breakers, tattooing and evolving my skills and receiving mod work to advance my power. Now as a tattooed man, following in the footsteps of the Great Omi, famous in the sideshow, I love what I do because of the influence I can have on children, telling them to be themselves — that’s what’s it all about.

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** Have is been difficult walking this path due to your ethnicity?

Yes. I believe there is a big separation in piercing for minorities versus whites. Blacks in particular, because in modern times they don’t generally do these things, is why I felt I had to lead and do it personally. I believe we as African Americans come from the first culture to do these things historically, especially in the extreme categories like head shaping, lip plates, septum expansions, plugs in ears, lips, upper lips, nose, and of course also scarification and branding… As Americans, blacks have had to walk a straight edge to get jobs, so mods are uncommon. We are forced to look acceptable to work…

** Have there been positive aspects as well?

All the movies I watched growing up were about being black and proud, and I want to express that through my ink. Like everyone, I have an inner warrior, and I found mine through needles of ink and piercing, as well as through modifying my hair… I had my face fully tattooed at age twenty-three. My race helps me with this struggle because there is no one leading in the mod world as a black male, and I wanted to be the real first extreme real black make in the body mod community.

creature6
In addition to being in the sideshow and inking himself, Marcus has also worked as a tattoo artist in a classic urban LA style. Here’s a collection of the ink he’s put on others — click to zoom in for a closer look. Don’t miss the cartoon in the bottom right which wears the same nose jewelry as Creature!

Bubbles and Blindfolds

It’s the weekend — and a long weekend here in Canada — so I hope you can permit me to post a couple of silly YouTube videos. The first one I want to share with you is of our old friend Rafa Mendes, who you probably know has a ginormous lip plate. If you’ve ever watched videos of indigenous cultures that wear large lip plates eating and drinking, you know that they sometimes integrate their lip discs into the activity, using them as bowls and such from time to time. Rafa takes a trip down that road and uses his to blow soap bubbles in this clip.

I’ve got to post a thumbnail of that as well because it’s just so charming. The size of your lip disc may not determine the size of your wedding dowry any more, but it does at least determine how much fun you’re going to have entertaining the little kids at the the wedding you’re invited to!

The other video is maybe a bit more controversial, and for the obvious reasons you’d assume when I tell you it’s filed in the “Dildo” category. That’s because it’s my friend from Dildo Tattoo Studio (dildostudio.gr) in Greece having some maniacal fun doing a “piercer challenge” at the shop to test their piercing kung fu… That’s right… BLINDFOLDED PIERCING. They tell me that the next challenge is a blindfolded eyebrow piercing. I hope they’re kidding — the only time I want to see a needle in the eyeball is when it’s injecting ink.

Ok, I mostly hope they’re kidding.

And before you get all stick-up-your-ass cranky about this, these are all friends just goofing around together. It’s harmless fun. Or I should say “low harm fun”. Either way, it makes me happy to see people having fun.

Apatani: Beautiful or Hideous Origin?

As I’m sure you’ve seen before, the women of the Apatani (or Tani) Tribe who live an agricultural life in the Ziro valley of India wear massive nose jewelry of the sort championed more recently by bodmod celebrities like Pauly Unstoppable. They have only an oral history, with no written records, but legend holds that the nose jewelry has a dark history. The Apatani women were said to be the most beautiful of the region, and as a result their villages were constantly raided by neighboring tribes seeking to kidnap women to possess and rape. To defend themselves, the women began stretching the jewelry in their nostrils, tattooing a line down the centre of their face and then five lines on their chin. This was said to look so hideous to the raiders that they stopped stealing women, and the custom persisted until recently, but the youngest woman still wearing the style is currently forty-two years old.

With only an oral history, there is no way to know for sure whether this story is true, but I very strongly dispute this history. First of all, the tattooing is symmetrical in a way that accentuates beauty rather than disrupting it. A tattoo of this type draws attention to beauty. I do not believe it is the act of someone trying to damage beauty. The nostril stretchings as well, while highly unusual, are also symmetrical. Not only that, but they are a natural extension of body modification trends that were common in the area, and are consistent from person to person, thus becoming an aesthetic standard, rather than a disruption thereof. Are we really do believe that a hundred thousand people are going to go out overnight and mar their faces identically to spite raiding parties? It’s patently ridiculous. Especially when you consider — and our own culture is proof of this, with stretched ears going from disgusting to normal in a decade — that after half a generation of all women doing this that it would be considered a normal sign of an attractive woman.

The same ridiculous lie is often told of lip plates, but I think it is far, far, far more likely that this is a case of Victorian anthropologists being disgusted by it and not being able to wrap their head around this being beautiful to these people. So after ten years of these “experts” writing and repeating the story that it was a mark of ugliness, even the tribe started to believe it. After all, with only an oral history, it’s impossible to prove it one way or the other… and while that means we’ll never know for sure, every bit of my logic and experience tells me that this was done for beauty, not for ugliness.

apatani

The Platypus speaks

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Jenya is no stranger to Modblog. In fact long term readers have watched him evolve into the modern modded man he is today. Fortunately, he was nice enough to chat with me on Skype a while back to answer some questions about him and his mods. His native tongue is Russian, so I had to clean up the grammar on his answers a bit to make it easily understandable, but I did my best not to change the context whatsoever.

For the interview and a few pictures documenting his evolution, keep on keeping on.

Sean Philips: So why don’t you give me some basic info to start; age, sexual preference, location and career.

Jenya: My name is Jenya. I am russian, 23 year old on the 28 january will be 24 years old. I am heterosexual. I was born in and live in Perm city, but I to want live in St. Petersburg and  in the spring I’m going to leave this city (Perm). I make teflon body jewelry (in white, black and blue colors).
Sean Philips: Wow, only 23, you have quite the collections of body mods for such a young guy. How did you get started on that path?
Jenya: I was 18 when I pierced my lobes for their further stretching.

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Sean Philips: So right off the bat you knew you wanted stretched lobes, what lead to that decision?

Jenya: In the past I have seen many pictures on BMEzine. I was delighted by such body modification and I really wanted to do the same. I wanted something  that I could see in real life when I looked  in the mirror and something I could experience for myself.
Sean Philips: Very cool. So what inspired you to start stretching your lip piercing for the lip plate?
Jenya: I saw it on BMEzine as well. I saw it on a few IAM members; Raur,  pharmacist and some other people as well. I really wanted to try it. I like how it looks, but when I increased the size of the hole in my lip, then I wanted more and more. My motivation came primarily from MobyK. He helped me to understand that the more – the better. When I saw pictures of different tribes people with large lip plates I would wonder as to how much is practical? How do they eat, communicate, and  live with such large lips?  I wanted to find the answer to these questions within myself. Many of these questions I have since found answers to through the stages of my lip getting bigger. Now I’m wondering how it will be to have a  50mm or 100mm medusa and if I can live with a 200 x 100 mm lip plate.

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Jenya: Sorry for my english 🙂

Sean Philips: No problem it’s far better than my Russian.

Jenya: (hehe)
Sean Philips: So how is it living with the lip plate in your daily life?
Jenya: This is very interesting. Before I asked the same question, but now I can honestly  say I love eating with my big lips. This modification did not cause any inconvenience to my regular activities. I still eat, drink, sleep, talk. I also really love this big smile. When I smile looking in the mirror, it improves mood, I get a positive on the whole day! I have only positive thoughts. thereby I attract only good things in my way.
Sean Philips: That’s an awesome outlook, I like that a lot.  So you love your mods, but how does the general public deal with your mods, I am sure you get a lot of attention? Also, what about your family, do they support your choices?
Jenya: Yes, I get A LOT of attention. The reactions are  always different. When I am walking down the street with an open face, I notice some people’s  reaction. I often can hear the enthusiasm or hatred directed at me. I can see through to almost everyone. From how they treat me I can assume how they were brought up. I do love it when people like how I look. I give them my smile and they return a smile for me. I think it’s great. When I encounter  people who scream negative things at me, I do not pay attention to it, I move on. I think they are just uneducated people. To me they are very sad. My family is very fond of me, despite my appearance. My mom does not like how I look, but she does not tell me this, so I think all is well!
Sean Philips:That’s great. We can’t expect everyone to love our decisions but so long as they can love us in spite of them, it’s a good thing. So what’s next? Any major mod plans lie ahead for you?
Jenya: I really want to stretch my lips bigger.  I don’t know how practical it will be, but I love the look of them at the size of 200 by 100mm. I also love big septums. I really want to have a really big septum, but it is very difficult for me, because sometimes I have problems with keloids.
Sean Philips: 200×100mm, that is certainly ambitious as far as lip stretching goes, I hope it goes well for you. So the human platypus thing, could you explain that?

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Jenya: The platypus has a large bill which is very similar in appearance to the large stretched lips for human. Also, I really like the sound of the word “platypus” in English.

Sean Philips: Is this a theme you plan to carryon further, like how the Lizardman  transforms himself more and more to continue the lizard theme, or is this more of a nickname?
Jenya: It’s more of a nickname, I think the name “platypus” may be suitable for all people with big lips.
Sean Philips: Fair enough. So to anyone planning who may plan on taking their mods to the same extreme as you, do you have any words of wisdom to share?
Jenya: For these people? Yes. Never be in a hurry for a stretch. If you want big lips – you’ll have it, but after some time. The slower you go the bigger you can get…………..and good luck!

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So what do you guys think, could these two be brothers or what?

The Noble Platypus

It’s been a little while since we last checked in with IAM’s resident human platypus Jenya.  Aside from his fantastic mods, he also exudes so much joy.  When he e-mailed me a little while back with these photos he had mentioned that because of some health problems he had to reduce the size of his lip plates to a 32mm medusa and 58mm labret, but he’s doing better and is back on track to reaching his goal of a 100mm medusa and 200mm labret.  I really love that when he was telling me the size of his lips in the photo he was saying that they’re small.  I guess size is relative.  Either way, this human platypus and his impressive collection of modifications is always a treat to post.

Spiritual transformation

“It is very good to recite the mantra Om mani padme hum, but while you are doing it, you should be thinking on its meaning, for the meaning of the six syllables is great and vast… The first, Om […] symbolizes the practitioner’s impure body, speech, and mind; it also symbolizes the pure exalted body, speech, and mind of a Buddha[…]”

“The path is indicated by the next four syllables. Mani, meaning jewel, symbolizes the factors of method: (the) altruistic intention to become enlightened, compassion, and love.[…]”

“The two syllables, padme, meaning lotus, symbolize wisdom[…]”

“Purity must be achieved by an indivisible unity of method and wisdom, symbolized by the final syllable hum, which indicates indivisibility[…]”

“Thus the six syllables, om mani padme hum, mean that in dependence on the practice of a path which is an indivisible union of method and wisdom, you can transform your impure body, speech, and mind into the pure exalted body, speech, and mind of a Buddha[…]”

– H.H. Tenzin Gyatso, 14th Dalai Lama, “Om Mani Padme Hum”

Spirituality and modifications have been linked together since the beginning of documented history.  Be it through rites of passage, or devotional modifications, the concept of altering ones body to attain a higher form of spirituality isn’t new.  As times changed, practices faded into obscurity, to the point where some are no longer even practiced at all.  Thankfully the modification community has arisen to resurrect these forgotten rituals.  Today these modifications are performed all over the world, and many for different reasons other than the original intentions.  The practices are also much safer, as we have learned how to adapt them to the modern equipment that we have available.  That isn’t to say that these rituals aren’t being performed in traditional ways as well, as they are very much alive and well all over.

One of unique abilities we have living when we do now, is that we have access to the knowledge from cultures and civilizations from around the globe.  We can now blend together practices that possibly would never have encountered each other historically.   Go to any Suscon and you’ll see any number of people sporting modifications from multiple cultures, while being suspended from hooks, another ritual that has carried on to modern times.

So where does that leave us now?  Simply put, in a great place.  We have this knowledge that has been amassed for centuries and are able to apply it to ourselves as we see fit.  So while centuries ago a culture would expect its people to all have facial tattoos, and another would incorporate large lip plates, now a person can have both without even being part of the original culture.  We have the freedom to do with our bodies as we see fit, for whatever reason we determine.  Which brings me to the following photo from our cutting gallery.

Johnkid created this image of a lotus with the om mani padme hum mantra.  While this may not be the first such scar featured on ModBlog, it is worthwhile to note that as a form of meditation, Buddhists will spend time carving mantras into stone or other objects.  What the recipient as done is taken two aspects of of their beliefs and merged them into something for themselves.

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Do you have any modifications that have a spiritual connection to yourself?  Or is the process of getting modified a way for you to get in touch with some deeper meaning in your life?

Evolution is Beautiful — BME/News [Publisher’s Ring]

Evolution is a Beautiful Thing

Success means having the courage, the determination, and the will to become the person you believe you were meant to be.

– George Sheehan

 

G.C.

Like Toph who I also recently interviewed, G.C. (iam:G.C.) is one of a growing handful of people choosing to stretch their lip piercings out to dramatic sizes, defining an entirely new aesthetic code, unique in Western history. As well as other stretched piercings, he currently wears a 41.5mm plate in his lip, and took some time out to talk to us about his successul life — which you may be surprised to hear is full of fishing trips and a cadre of unpierced friends.

BME: How old are you and what do you do for a living?

G.C.: I’m 23 and I work in a foundry. I mix the alloys, and transfer and pour the molten iron — it’s not your everyday job but it more than pays the bills and allows me to live the life that I love. I just want to enjoy life to the fullest, with no regrets. My dad always told me to work to live, not to live to work — I think that’s sound advice.

I love to fish, which is when I do my best soul searching — if I catch a fish it’s a bonus. I just love being outside with nature, which leads me on to survival camping, playing Frisbee down the beach, and music is a big part of my life… I couldn’t live without that. It could be said that I like to party a lot, although I’m down to one night a week now… That’s a whole ’nother story. My friends and family are very important to me.

BME: Did you have this job when you started stretching, or did you get it with the piercing in place?

When I started the job, if I remember right, my lip was at 15mm. I suppose I did most of the stretching while I’ve been working there. My employer obviously thinks I look weird and was a bit of a risk to employ but gave me a chance and has since said that I have proved him wrong. Thankfully now they judge me on my work and have said I have a job for life if I want it. I think if I did have to find new work it will hinder me somewhat, but I’d hope from the reference I would get from my current employer it shouldn’t be too difficult to find more work. I have good experience in the industrial trade, plus multiple fork truck licenses.

BME: What got you interested in body modification in the first place?

Probably like most people, the old National Geographic magazines. When I was a kid my dad had a subscription, and since then I’ve always been more interested in tribal culture than just seeing modified people around town.

BME: What made you decide to start pushing your modifications past most people’s borders?

When I was twenty I got offered a well paid job as an engineer for Honda, but I would have had to move and take out all of my piercings. I didn’t want to, but it was such a good opportunity that I did it… I just felt like there was a part of me missing, like I was living a lie. I was incomplete. This might sound sad to some people, but although my mods don’t define me, they are a big part of who I am. I made the decision to stay true to myself, and that has included “going extreme”.

BME: How do most people respond?

My family doesn’t really like it, but they accept it, which is all I ask. Some of my friends think I’ve gone too far, but the outcome is the same — at the end of the day, when they look at me, all they see is Chris. You can tell this when they look you in the eye when they talking. I’ve gone out with mates from work, and someone will come up and ask a question, and afterwards my mate — who isn’t into piercings or tattoos at all — will say, “I forgot that you’ve got all that in your face… I see you every day and you’re just Chris to me.” When someone spends the time to get to know you they realize you ain’t weird at all — strangers can be abusive, but I take that in stride.

BME: What did they think about you in Africa?

A pretty good one really. I was on the west coast in southern Gambia where they don’t and never have, as far as I know, modified themselves, but most didn’t even bat an eyelid. Just instant acceptance — it was really refreshing.

BME: Does the radical stretching affect your dating life?

Not a lot. I still live in my hometown with a big alternative scene, but my last girlfriend didn’t even have a single piercing or tattoo… I’d like to think being a fun person and not being above making a fool out of yourself helps.

BME: How did you do your lip stretching?

It’s been a long time, so hopefully I remember everything right… I got my lip pierced by Sarge at 1.6mm (14 gauge) about six years ago. It healed in a couple months and then I just started to play around with it — just pulling on the labret, really… After four months I went up to 2.4mm, and had loads of room to spare so I went straight up to 3.4mm, then 4mm the next week which finally filled the gap. I think I stayed at this size for about four months — this was also the last size at which I wore jewelry made specifically for a lip until I reached 24mm (1”) some years later. I didn’t get on the Internet at all until I reached 2ga, so I didn’t even know that people made large gauge lip jewelry and just made do with what I could get.

I got a 5mm bullet retainer and just pushed it in — I didn’t use any tapers. It bitched a bit, with a little swelling, but after a week it was fine. I won’t lie though, it was an uncomfortable week. After another week it was looking good so I put in a 6mm tunnel that I blocked with wax and left it in for six months. Then I started stretching again, going up 1mm every two weeks until I was at 15mm. By this time I was using acrylic plugs and cutting a groove around one end for an o-ring to sit in so it didn’t come off all the time. I must have stayed at this size for over a year while I got used to it and before I went past the “point of no return” where I couldn’t downsize any more.

I obviously decided this was for me, and bought a 16mm plug and upsized 1mm every two weeks until I reached 21mm where I stayed, again, for over a year. This was mostly because I couldn’t find suitable jewelry as my lip was getting fatter and the plugs I was using did not have enough wearing surface on them. Then I discovered BME through friends who were already here and I met Karl (iam:MobyK), told him about my plight, and he said he could help and sent me three plates — 22mm, 24mm, and 26mm. I went straight to 24mm, with Diddy’s help who scalpelled it for me. That took a month to heal and I put the 26mm in with ease, and within six months I was at 32mm and left it there while I went to Africa.

When I got back from Africa I put in the 34mm, and then Karl sent me a 36mm, 39mm, and 41.5mm. I put the 36mm in for a month, and then taped it up to 39mm over about a week, which I kept for about eight months, and finally, taped up to the 41.5mm plate which I am wearing now!

G.C. fishing in Africa, and being explored by his snake.

BME: How do you normally wear the piercing?

I wear the plate every day with the lip permanently down. It’s where it is most natural — if I lift my lip up, it hits my nose and I cant close my mouth, hahaha!

BME: How did you stretch your other piercings?

My lobes I did over a period of about two years stretching 1mm at a time. I was very cautious as I snapped my left lobe previously by — to be honest — stretching too quickly. Diddy dermal punched my conches at 5mm where I’ve left them. He did the same with my flats at 8mm, but I’ve stretched the left to 13mm and the right to 17mm, I’ve since downsized to 16mm because I kept losing the plug. I did this stretch over two and a half years. My septum I stretched up 1mm every two to four weeks, up until about 5mm. I left it there for about a year, and then up to 6mm for six months, and then up to 7mm where it’s been for the last year and a half. My nostrils were punched at 8mm and then stretched to 9mm.

BME: Are the different piercings different to stretch?

I would say just different types of pain really, but you come to know them all as old friends… I’ve tried to apply the same stretching ethics to them all — “if it ain’t ready, don’t put it in there, and if it is, woo hoo!”

I would also like to say that after about 20mm or maybe sooner the lip becomes extremely stretchy — far more so than any other piercing, and you can stretch it very quickly if you want to.

BME: Tell me about how your wrecked your lobe?

I’ve had big time trouble with my lobes. I had quite small lobes to start with — non-lobes, really — so it was hard work from the start. It took me a long time to admit it to myself, but I stretched my left lobe too quickly, going from 25mm to 30mm in about a month. Unfortunately I was not blessed with the most stretchy of lobes and this was too much for me. I had a bad blow-out, and instead of removing the tunnel to heal I left it in the lobe, started to lose circulation, and before I knew it, it was too late, and it split. A rookie mistake, from a rookie at the time, but I quite like what I have done to it now and it taught me a valuable lesson: to listen to what my body is telling me! I have had no such problems since, and now I downsize at the first sign of danger.

BME: Any stretching issues with other piercings?

I only had minimal blowout with my lip — nothing more than a cat scratch with all the scarring on the inside of the hole. I had a bit of trouble with my septum. Stretching up to 7mm it kept tearing so I kept going back down to 6mm until it went in nice. It took about four goes but it’s a nice clean hole.

BME: How far will you continue the stretching?

I don’t really have an end goal size — I’ve moved those goal posts so many times. I once said that I was only gonna stretch my lip to 5mm. I don’t think I will know how far I’m gonna go until I get there. But saying that I have always said if one of my mods starts to become a hindrance then I would stop, but this has yet to happen — whether you believe it or not.

BME: Do you have plans for other modifications as well?

I have plans for more scarification in the near future, and have considered subdermal implants down the line and apart from a full tattoo suit, nothing more as yet — but never say never! Evolution is a beautiful thing.

BME: I hope you don’t mind this questions, but some people have suggested that there’s a line past which stretching is no longer visually appealing, and moves into freakish territory — what is your feeling on how aesthetics are interpreted at the borders of how humans express themselves?

I believe in the old saying, “beauty is in the eye of the beholder.”

What one person calls freakish is another person’s normal. I think if you read into it more than that you’re just pushing your beliefs onto someone else. People have to live their own life to be truly happy.

BME: What defines your own personal aesthetic? Is this something you find attractive in others?

I don’t know if I could define my aesthetic. I think its just something that’s evolved with me.

Of course I think women with lip plates of all sizes are very attractive, but it’s not important to me. As I said, my last girlfriend had no piercings or tattoos, but I think that did put a strain on the relationship as she was not used to all the attention. Like Toph had said, it would be easier to date someone with mods because they would be more used to the reactions.

BME: Do you have a reversal plan if you change your mind? I know Toph said he’d just let them close up if he wanted, but you’ve had yours a lot longer and I doubt they’d close.

I don’t think my lip will ever stretch back enough to do a decent repair job on it, although maybe I could with some of the other piercings. However, I am 100% positive that would never happen. This is the path that I have chosen and am most happy with. I did not take this decision lightly. I thought about it long and hard before going too far to turn back. Although my mods don’t define me they are how I feel most comfortable in life and worth all the sacrifice.

G.C. drinking and eating.

BME: Do you have to do things differently with the big lip plate?

When I kiss I take the plate out — I can leave it out for half of the day and have it go straight back in no problems. I drink using my tongue as a bottom lip… and if I’m going down on a girl I turn my head sideways and stick the plate right up there (oh no he ditant!!!). I eat with a knife and fork just the same as everyone else… honestly, there really isn’t a lot of stuff I can’t do now that I could before and my speech is still perfect.

BME: As it’s getting more common, what advice would you have to people considering doing this?

I don’t know how qualified I am at giving advice, but listen to your body and take things at your own pace. If people have questions they can write me.

BME: Thanks for chatting about this!

Thank you for taking the time to read my ramblings!


G.C. when I first met him,
before most of the stretching.


G.C.’s stretching begins.

Duff

In the time that I’ve known Duff (iam:Duff), she’s gone from a very traditionally and “mainstream” pretty Russian girl, to an absolutely striking woman that’s pushing the boundaries of aesthetics. Both her and her husband now wear lip discs — hers is at 32mm (approaching an inch and a half) — and, with the aid of translation software — my apologies for any errors that have crept in — we talked about her plate as she’s one of the few women in the Western world currently wearing one.

 

BME: How was your lip piercing made?

Duff: At the Moscow tattoo convention in August I decided to do this, and cut my lip up to 10mm and began stretching. I did the stretching gradually, in one or two millimeter increments, using tape to increase the size. Assisted by my husband (iam:pjevl), I stretched to 32mm over six months.

BME: Was it easy to stretch?

It was only difficult in the beginning. Once I passed 16mm, it went very easily.


Duff before the lip plate

BME: How far do you plan on stretching?

Oh, haha, I have already heard this question probably a million times! In all fairness, I don’t know. For now, it’s interesting and I like it and I don’t have any plans to stop. I keep stretching my lip, but it hasn’t torn yet!

BME: Do you have future body modification plans?

Yes, certainly! I want to continue stretching my lip and my nostrils, and I’d like to re-stretch my earlobes. I took the tunnels out because Moscow is very cold — it’s simply intolerable! Your ears freeze if you don’t wear a scarf and a hat.

I’d like to get more microdermals as well — I already have three in my breasts, but want more. I have many plans — but many are secrets! Definitely I want more tattoos. Ever since I was a child I’ve dreamt about being a mermaid, and I’ve been haunted by this dream until now. When a master tattoo artist that I’m waiting for arrives in Moscow we will begin on this project. Other than that, I also want to get a series of implants in my hands.

BME: What happens if you change your mind?

I am not going to change my outlook — never. I am very sure of it.

In Russia, a lot of people have pierced themselves, stretched very quickly, and are now taking those piercings out and sewing them up. For me it’s not so simple — for me this is my world, my culture, and my happiness. In the beginning, my family was against me doing this, but I’ve been modifying my body since I was very young. My parents never expected me to look like this — they thought up one life for me, but I ignored it and created my own life.

BME: What do you do for a living?

You may be surprised to find out that [I did this at] age sixteen! I study, but I don’t enjoy it. People are wild, and this is not a natural environment. In the spring or summer my husband and I are looking forward to moving to his hometown, far away from the noisy capital, where we plan to save up money so we can travel, which is a dream for both of us. We’d very much like to meet people from all over the planet.

BME: How did you become interested in body modification?

I have been interested in “updating myself” since early childhood. My parents lived in Africa for three years, and I, being a child, read all about this continent and learned everything I could. I saw many modified people, and it was so beautiful to me. My split tongue comes from my love of snakes — our neighbors had a pet snake, and I wanted to share something with it.

I remember when I was eleven years old I asked my mother whether I could pierce my eyebrow. After many arguments, I was allowed to go to a professional. I don’t consider piercings to be a political act — it’s simply pleasant to me, and I find it interesting that by piercing the body I can strongly change it and make it so much more beautiful.

BME: What made you go so extreme?

I do not think that it is so extreme! In addition to the images I saw as a child, my husband had a 32mm lip — I looked at it, and it was so beautiful and unusual that I wanted to have it as well.

BME: How do people in Russia respond to modifications like yours?

I think you’ll be very surprised — even though I live in Moscow, the capital, it feels like I like in a small village where the people are primitive and have never seen anything before. When I walk on the street I have to cover up, or everyone stares with such amazement that it becomes unpleasant. Many people shout at me, ask to take pictures, and treat me as a circus amusement.

BME: You’re one of the only women I know with a lip plate. Do you think it’s different for a woman to do this, moreso a man?

I don’t believe there is a difference. We are all flesh and blood. The main thing that’s important is that a person knows themselves, feels themselves on the inside, and understands whether these body modifications are right for them.

BME: So you find this beautiful, both in yourself and others?

Yes, certainly it is beautiful and attractive. Updating my body also changes my soul, making it brighter and more beautiful, and with every body modification I become happier and happier. I would love to meet more people, and I hope that when we begin to travel we’ll have the opportunity to meet people like Toph, Karl (iam:MobyK), Zack (iam:SoulOfACokeDealer), and many others. I only wish I knew English better!

BME: And I wish I spoke better Russian! Thank you for talking to me.


Duff with her 32mm disc


G.C. today, at 41.5mm


Shannon Larratt
BME.com