Body Art As Self Representation

Many children in various cultures had to undergo body modifications due to certain cultures and beliefs. “The feet of very young Chinese girls were bound and spliced, intentionally and irreversibly deforming them, because this was seen to guarantee the girls’ eventual amorous and matrimonial success.” (Borel,1994). In Polynesia, unless a girl was tattooed, she would not find a husband. An unornamented hand could not cook, nor dip into the communal food bowl (Borel,1994). It is as to say that “the fact that such motivations and pretexts depend on aesthetic, erotic, hygienic, or even medical considerations has no influence on the result, which is always in the direction of transforming the appearance of the body. Such a transformation is wished for, whether or not it is effective.”

Traditionally, tattoos were meant for sailors, soldiers, bikers and gangs. Along with several changes in the industrialized and technological society of the twenty-first century, the standard for getting body modifications have altered as well. Everyday, people are willing to get permanently marked as an individual choice rather than the customarily perception of belonging to a certain group. Tattoo and piercing shops are not seen as “the backstreet” of the commercial civilization today, it is somewhat an expected sight in all public places. Josie Appleton in “The Body

Body modifications have existed in our society for centuries and the way in which it is perceived has changed somewhat over the years. But certain stigmas still persists to this contemporary day. One such body modification is the act of inking or marking the skin: Tattooing. Like most body modifications, tattoos are an often misunderstood form of body modification. Despite the stigmas, tattoos have become a unique object of desire to diverse groups of people. But are the popular perceptions of tattoos out of synch with the true meaning behind them? This essay will explore the social and cultural practices of tattooing and the causal connection between the mind and the tattooed body. It will also explore why tattoos engender

What may be considered body deviance to some may be considered art or beauty to others. Body deviance can be either an “enlightening” experience or a failure. By having tattoos or participating in the “Carnival of the Grotesque” an individual may finally feel a part of something, or may have to deal with the consequences of being judged based on the decisions they have made by participating in body

Different fashions will come in and out of style but people want to be able to stand out in their own manner showing the world how they express themselves. A common form of self-expression is by getting a piercing or tattoo, something that can set a person apart from the majority. Body piercings and tattoos on women at one time were unacceptable and distasteful in the United States. However over time women having assorted types of body art has become more acceptable in society. Today young women at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, use piercings and tattoos as a form of self-expression that is vastly encouraged by peers and social media. Each woman has a different reason for why they personally want a piercing or a tattoo but are there some factors that have influenced the college community of women as a whole?

Next, the evolution of cosmetic surgery overtime has lead to present day uses. In the past, cosmetic surgery was used to help soldiers deformed by war. It was a method used to restore the veteran’s features, in order for them to feel comfortable again. The surgery was purely done to lessen the violent effects of trench warfare. However, overtime, the general public gained an interest in cosmetic surgery, ranging from a positive to a negative approach. This was partly due to increase in different ethnic backgrounds, which ultimately lead to “an emphasis on self -representation and made people feel they had to look a certain way to be ‘perfect’,”(Lieberman, 1998). This integration of different cultures created a drive towards looking one’s best, which caused the idea of cosmetic surgery to stray from a medical/restorative approach, to an opportunity for transformation.

“The colors and pictures we apply to our skin communicate our values and aspirations as well as our hopes and personal histories. Even when we adopt the “natural look” and don't adorn our skin at all, we are making a social statement. Our skin talks even when we don't; it is not a neutral canvas.” (Jablonski, 164) “Body art represents, among other things, a sustained effort to reverse the dematerialization of art by making the body matter.” (Taylor, 111)

Hollander discusses a new tradition of painting half-length portraits and first leads the reader through the gradual move to more erotic and sensual images portrayed in artworks. She presents works by Titian and Tintoretto and explains that artists of the period portrayed real people in exotic poses, sometimes with bare-chested men or semi-exposed women’s breasts, and titled their works as mythical characters. Throughout the chapter, the author leads the reader through a variety of images that show the gradual progression of exposed skin in artworks, from draped modern garments assuming folds of classical draperies, which revealed parts of the body, to works such as Caravaggio’s Boy Bitten by a Lizard (1571 – 1610) where the attention on the

The human body is a significant object in the art of all the periods of human life. Since the time when people started to use tools and made first steps in the art they always tried to depict human body. The human figure has been represented in various forms such as sculptures and paintings (Morphy, 2014). Various civilizations, however, are different in their representation of human figures and the reasons of the art representation are also different. To understand these motives only visual analysis is not enough but learning the cultural and historical shreds of evidence behind these artworks is necessary. I chose two artworks to analyze, Marble Statue of a Wounded Amazon and Hatshepsut Seated.

Modern popular media has a significant impact on defining cultural norms in our society. The rise of smart phones and other personal devices means that we are inundated with images on an ongoing basis. So many of these images represent women in an ideal form that is unattainable form most individuals. Cosmetic surgery, along with image enhancing techniques, are used to erase imperfections, sculpt he body into a more desirable shape and erase signs of the aging process in so many of the images that we see on a daily basis. This inundation has led to our society and me personally have a more accepting view on cosmetic surgery.

Everyone has a unique way in expressing themselves in ways that they depict truly define who they are. Body Art written by Lynne Carroll, elaborates on the idea of tattoos and piercings becoming a popular practice for people in the world and the different perspectives of body art pertaining to individuals. “Tattooing and body piercing have become increasingly prevalent in popular culture over the last 30 years” (Carroll 1). Many different motivations for body art, as well as the explanation of this idea of art are also mentioned in the text. I agree that each are reasonable ideas that provides logic reasoning and sensible ideas that corresponds with the motivation of body art and the engagement of these practices.

Marketing campaigns have been structured to encourage cosmetic surgeries in ways that attempt to generate demands. For example since 1983 in the USA, the American Society of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgeons (ASPRS) has attempted to expand its services of cosmetic surgery through a marketing campaign of press release that showed pre and post operative pictures as well as educational brochures (Gillespie 1997, p.76). In addition to that since costumers don't decide to undergo surgical procedure over night, providers need to keep a high profile by increasing advertisements and awareness through women magazines, local news papers and other types of communication (Gillespie 1997, p.76). Cosmetic surgery, which aims to improve individual’s body physique, encourages women to see imperfections as illness (Gillespie 1997, p.74). This form of ideals, that embraces only certain types of female bodies as normal and feminine in accordance to size, weight, shape and often color of the body, ignores natural diversity of women. The normalization of cosmetic surgery not only supports the capitalist system and enforces gender norms into society but also transforms normal body parts and the changes the natural process of aging into abnormal. For example nowadays it is very common to hear someone saying that an individual is ugly or fat and therefore needs to undergo plastic surgery; or questions why someone who is so wealthy would not pay for cosmetic surgery to fix certain parts of their body, which are considerate to be unattractive or abnormal according to the cultural norms. Consequently, the more people select to have cosmetic surgery procedures to create a beautiful face and body, the more ordinary looking individuals will become to be perceived and evaluated as ugly (Morgan 1991,

Performance Art transforms art from something a person views, in to something one can be a part of. One part of Performance Art is Body Art, where the artist uses the body to convey the message of their work. Marina Abramovic is a Performance artist who makes Body Art where she pushes herself to the limits, testing her endurance. Abramovic’s prolific creations, including Rhythm 0 and The Artist is Present force people out of their comfort zones and to think critically about the world around them. By analyzing Rhythm 0 and The Artist is Present it becomes clear that Abramovic can make a big statement with her work.

Body modifications, with the focus of tattoos, have existed in our society for centuries and the way in which it is perceived has changed somewhat over the years, yet certain dishonors still remain our modern day. Like most body modifications, tattoos are an often misunderstood form of body modification. Despite the stigmas, tattoos have become a unique object of desire to endless diverse groups of people. But are the popular assumptions of tattoos out of sync with the true meaning behind them? Further explanation and exploration of the history will reveal the social and cultural practices of tattooing and the causal connection between the mind and the tattooed body, in addition to providing answers as to why tattoos stimulate uneasiness

Throughout the process of her artistic exploration and expression, ORLAN created a manifesto that encompasses the intent of her work surrounding her body, which she calls Carnal Art. Not unlike its traditional definition when speaking of strong physical desires, ORLAN’s use of “carnal” reflects the natural human need to change and reform. The fact that she uses the word in conjunction with “art” also shows both that she believes this process to be beautiful and challenging to society. Perhaps the simplest way to explain ORLAN’s Carnal Art comes directly from the artist’s website where she states that it is a form of “self-portraiture;” an examination of control and of the self in relation to the body. ORLAN is best known for her work with plastic surgeries, an element of Carnal Art also outlined in the