From Ornamentation to Modification

It’s hard to think of an interesting angle about the body because lets face it, it has all been done to death.

Body issues; body as a sexual/aesthetic entity; body as a vehicle for movement from A to Z; even the structure and decomposition of the body as corpse has been studied and experimented on until there is nothing left to enquire about.

So it is not surprising that today, the body itself acts merely as a canvas for our own artistic imaginings.

Fashion has long been used as one such tool, but whereas the function of fashion is to drape and clothe the figure in interesting and alluring ways, there has been other more direct approaches toward re-creating a novel way to infuse the body with some of the mystique that has long been lost.

The ever increasing popularity of make-up, body paint, henna applications and tattooing has reduced their power as a mode of individualistic self-expression. More of the younger generation than ever before have adopted tattooed insignias and piercings as merely a fashion statement. Even full-length Yakuza style tattoos have become main stream. And attempting to find a spot on the body that will be considered unique for a piercing is almost impossible. In fact, body ornamentation is so commonplace that its shock value is no greater than that of clothing.

In an ever-increasing attempt to counteract this fashionisation (if I may coin the word) of the historical symbols of counter-culture, many people have retreated to the generic as statement. Still another portion of the population has steered away from the generic trend of Ikea furniture and Cotton On clothing to embrace an even more radical experimentation in the form of body modification.

Where the average person’s rebellion stops at a nipple ring and a butterfly tattoo, the avant-garde are looking to our ancestors and sci-fi novels for inspiration. Symbols are now not simply tattooed but branded onto the skin to achieve a unique raised effect or, alternatively, gouged out of the flesh by the removal of several skin layers to realize a sunken result.

Ancient techniques like scarification, scratching and sub-dermal implants are also making a powerful come-back. But the most innovative of changes are borrowing freely from the sci-fi works of such cyber culture icons as William Gibson and Samuel R. Delaney where mere ornamentation is denigrated by the prospects of complete body modification.

Tongue piercings are being replaced in favour of tongue-forking whilst teeth are being filed into sharp fangs. Though this in itself has precedence in the infamous foot-binding, neck-stretching, lower lip-elongations of previous cultures, a more inventive movement has switched focus to making modifications useful.

Apart from the concept of chips embedded under the skin and corsets sewn into the fabric of the flesh, now you can have your glasses embedded into the bridge of the nose. Or even more practical still, have your contraceptive devices embedded under the skin where you can forget about preventative measures from year to year, knowing that Implanol will take care of things all too well.

The advent of such innovations is still in its infancy but the future is drawing close and people are increasingly more willing to experiment with their original capsules. From piercings, tattoos and plastic surgery to the concept of useful modifications, the convenience of a fusion of technology and organic matter is increasingly becoming the norm and in essence shaping the future of the human race.

Cyborgs away!

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