Journal of Body Piercing — APP
One weekend a year in England, piercers from across the UK and Europe gath er together to share knowledge, discuss business, talk social media and get their hands on some of the world’s best jewellery. This year, we also got to throw axes at Danny DeVito.
The third annual United Kingdom Association of Professional Piercers Conference began on Sunday, 17th of September, with around 110 attendees; quite the growth from our first year, where 35 of us (including speakers and vendors) crammed into the basement of a Birmingham nightclub for one day of talks and socialising. From this small, but fun event, we grew into our second year, where we moved to a hotel and extended our event to two days of talks, due to the fact that we doubled our attendee numbers. Year three proved even better, not only with us needing to add yet another day of talks, but needing to add a second classroom as well; our numbers tripling from our first year!
In years past, we’ve been lucky to receive an incredible amount of support from the Association of Professional Piercers and this year was no different. They once again provided us with some of their fantastic speakers; UKAPP regular Ryan Ouellette kicked off day one. He presented his “Tongue Piercings” class, which had already proved a big success at this year’s APP Conference in Las Vegas. The room filled up quickly with people eager to improve their core knowledge, something that we at the UKAPP strive to implement as much as possible at our own conferences.
But he didn’t stop there. Ryan gave another talk later that day, which had the classroom once again packed to capacity: “Septum Piercings, Where Skill Meets Luck.” It’s a common subject within the UK forums, with many piercers getting “The Fear” when a client comes in asking for this particular piercing, so this talk was highly anticipated. We took a survey from our attendees after the conference and had one attendee stating, “The septums class was a game changer!”
Not to be outdone, we had our second classroom this year acting as a roundtable room, with some of the UK’s best and brightest leading discussions. Speakers included Aiden Johnson (whom some of you may have seen at APP giving his talk on Metals), our fabulous President Nicole Holmes, and a special guest speaker, Sue Hutchinson talking about self care. Sue is the mum of our lovely secretary Kim and a wonderful addition to our speaker team!
For those unfamiliar with a Roundtable, though the talk is lead by selected speakers, it’s a place to openly discuss our ideas, opinions, and offer help to each other through conversation and troubleshooting. Personally, these are some of my favourite types of classes, as they often prove less intimidating to those who may not want to ask a question in an 80 person classroom, but don’t mind so much chatting with 20 or so others in a more casual environment.
As day one came to an end, whilst some were headed to the bar or dinner, around 40 of us were gearing up for a very different event… Axe Throwing! The unofficial after party of UKAPP 2017 was organised by one of our Scottish piercers, Nikki Lloyd-Proctor. She arranged for the venue, Whistle Punks, to open its doors to us on the one day a week they were closed, so we could try our hand at some hatchet throwing. This was also a teetotal event, as we knew there were a good number of non-drinkers who may want to have entertainment other than hanging round a bar or sitting watching reruns from their hotel room.
“I’ve learned so much, and I felt so welcomed, a part of the UK piercing family! THANK YOU IMMENSELY FOR EVERYTHING!” UKAPP attendee
After a few practise demonstrations and a quick request for some more event appropriate music (pop music and piercers don’t oft go hand in hand) we got to business. This is where poor Danny DeVito comes into play! Brought along for a giggle by lovable Liverpudlian Mick Stocko, the lifesize cardboard cutout didn’t fare too well or for too long after he got hung up for target practise!
Day two was set into full swing with talks from Sala from Pinpoint discussing Surface Anchors. Paul King gave a full update on the FGM laws that are currently affecting the UK piercing scene, a subject with which he has been consulting with many of us on. There was also a welcome return of Dr. Matt Lodder of Colchester University and his new class “Myth of the Modern Primitive.” Matt has been teaching and working around the UK, specialising in tattoo art history and UK body piercing history and has an enthusiastic audience at UKAPP!
Meantime, some of our first time UK speakers took over the roundtable room, including an in depth (and invaluable) class on Social Media from Maree Fowler, Andrew Davenport, and Sebastian Wolfe Pickersgill, and a chat with Dr. Emma Spoor, a regular piercing fan who works closely with President Nicole Holmes.
However our star speaker from day two was so popular, we had to turn people away due to the room filling to capacity before it had even begun! Mike Hill originally thought that his idea would interest a handful of people, but after a gentle nudge and a couple of chats, he agreed to take on the roundtable room with his discussion “A brief introduction to disposable piercing.”
As of yet, working with disposable tools and equipment hasn’t garnered too much attention in the UK, but with the unexpected popularity of this discussion, it could soon be in the cards for a lot of piercers looking to improve their practises. Mike gave a concise and highly informative chat as well as providing goody bags to those who came along (although we all underestimated just how many people wanted to see his talk and getting a goody bag almost became a status symbol.)
Day three came around all too soon, but boy did we go out with a bang. Not only did we have one President, oh no, we had TWO. Former APP President Brian Skellie and current President Jef Saunders both made an enormous effort to join us this year, with Jef travelling directly from the Fakir Intensives in the US to Birmingham UK and teaching within 12 hours of landing. We didn’t let him off with an easy day either, Jef gave a fantastic talk on Nipple Fundamentals in our main classroom. He also co-presenting two more talks in our roundtable room, along with Ryan Ouellette and rising star of the UK scene, Lola Slider from Glasgow, Scotland.
Brian Skellie, as anyone who has ever met him will verify, is more like a vast calm sea of knowledge than a fountain of knowledge. He once again provided us with a fascinating talk on Bevel Theory, in which there’s always something new to be gained from his engrossing explanations. He also provided us with more of his brain power by co-presenting an anodizing class with Lola. It is evident from the influx of anodizing posts on UK forums that this class was a big success.
Lola Slider, as aforementioned, is one to watch in the piercing world, not only for her precision and dedication to quality piercings and jewellery, but the way in which she presented her classes this year. Her natural ability to hold the attention of 30 odd piercers packed into a small room, swarming around her to see her needle bending techniques was something to behold. She held her own amongst industry heavyweights and we cannot wait to see where the future takes her next (and we hope that will be with us again next year at UKAPP 2018!)
“In the short time the UKAPP has been going, it’s taking on a life of its own, we love you all, great job”–UKAPP attendee
We were happy to see even more vendors this year, both homegrown and international! From independent jewellers such as Alice Ruby, Stonewolf, and Danila Tarcinale, to Naga Jewellery, Sacred Symbols and the team from Lovely Lobes and Maya. Special thanks goes out to the amazing gang from Industrial Strength UK, headed by fearless leader Patrick Kielty, who even spent his birthday with us at conference! Paddy has constantly shown support for the UKAPP and has made ISUK a gateway brand for many of the UK piercers who had not previously had the opportunity to see the jewellery up close and personal. Without the loyalty and love shown to us all from this bunch, UKAPP wouldn’t be the same!
Now, it may be known to some of you that piercers occasionally like a party; well, the UK crowd is certainly no exception! This year we held a Rocky Horror Themed party at the bar of our venue hotel, The Radisson Blu, with fancy dress encouraged! We were not disappointed by the outcome either (you’ve reallynot lived until you’ve seen how great Paul King’s legs are in fishnet stockings.) Although there was no ‘Best Dressed’ award, incredible outfits were worn by Becky Crossan of Inkhaus Tattoo, Peter Monckton (our Vice President!) and the gorgeous bunch from Adorn Art Gallery!
This year was a year of firsts for a number of reasons. Our members grew into double digits! We’ve been accepting Members into the UKAPP for the past year and have grown from the 6 Board Members, to over 20 current Members (with all but two in attendance at conference this year!) We’ve already got a few applicants ready for when the Board reopens the application process and we look forward to welcoming more members from the UK and from overseas as well. You can see more details about membership via the ukapp website www.ukapp.org.uk. We also introduced the Mentor Program this year, where people could ask to be buddied up with another attendee. As an industry, a large number of us suffer from anxieties in one form or another, often social anxiety, and whilst we do what we can to help ease these anxieties, we thought that attendees may benefit from one-on-one mentoring. We had a separate registration section on our conference floor, a half hour introduction and mingle with our assigned mentors and mentees and a bit of quiet away from the crowds towards the entrance of the floor. It went well and we hope that this is something we can keep going for next year.
It’s been a crazy year. Myself and the other Board Members were thrilled with how it all came together. We want to express our deepest gratitude to the APP for their unwavering support, the volunteer team who helped keep the conference running as smoothly as possible, and to the friends and family of the Board Members who helped keep us cool as cucumbers in the run up to an event which holds a deep and special meaning to us all.
This past July, I had the honor of attending and teaching at the very first major educational conference in Brazil, the three-day GEP 2017 Conference (Grupos de Estudios de Piercing). The GEP was started in São Paolo by body piercer Andre Fernandes, initially involving small seminars held on Sundays with one or two invited instructors. This year, Andre decided to try for something larger, not just to educate more people, but to bring Brazilian piercers together for the betterment of the Brazilian piercing industry.
The conference was held in conjunction with São Paolo’s largest tattoo convention, Tattoo Week, with the classroom overlooking the convention floor. This made it easier for attendance, since many had planned to be in São Paolo for the convention already, with many travelling 20 plus hours by bus from the opposite end of Brazil to be able to attend. It also made for an interesting time, as many of us had not seen a convention as large as this. Some booths were even two stories tall, others with water features and marble floors! They even had a decent sized play area for children, with soft Nerf like material jungle gyms and trampolines. All of the above led to 127 piercers from all over Brazil (and a few surrounding South American countries) attending, an impressive number for a first time conference.
The conference’s speakers represented many different countries, with Jef Saunders, Ryan Oullette and I from the USA, former APP and LBP Board Member Danny Yerna from Mexico, Matias Tafel from Argentina, Gladix Porca Miseria from Spain, Jesus “Sala” Salaverria from Norway, and Javier Guerra from Colombia. Topics covered almost every aspect of body piercing, from the Brazilian history of body piercing all the way to sterilization, and everything in between. Live translation was provided by the wonderful Emilia Aratanha from English to Portuguese, and by either Andre or Matias Tafel from Spanish to Portuguese. The Conference also had a small expo area, with vendors such as Industrial Strength, Dinamica, Namaste, Sacred Symbols, Kiwi Jewelry, Biometal, Kraken, and Painful Pleasures Brazil. The event came to a close with a lovely banquet dinner at a small private restaurant, and with a beautiful and immersive performance put on by La Negra, an Argentinian performance and suspension artist, and Thiago Soares, her Brazilian counterpart. Everyone attending left happy with the overall experience, and extremely appreciative to have access to so much knowledge from so many different piercers from around the world. With Portuguese being so different from Spanish, many Brazilian speaking piercers have a tough time absorbing and understanding classes in English at APP, and classes in Spanish at LBP. I can attest to this difficulty in language, as I attempted to learn as much Portuguese as I could in the months leading up to GEP, and I still found myself having a very hard time understanding Portuguese, and Spanish is my first language. This makes an event like this very important to piercers in Brazil. I can say that I personally felt a massively warm reception from everyone I interacted with during my time at GEP.
Andre and his small team (Tatiana Rodrigues, Emilia, and Thiago) did an amazing job organizing this conference. What they achieved in such a small amount of time left me flabbergasted. Muito obrigado a Andre e sua equipe de pessoas maravilhosas!
When I got the message during the LBP asking if I wanted to write this article for The Point, I didn’t even consider no as an answer. I simply couldn’t.
Initially I felt like getting personal by writing about my perspective and telling a story about my experience throughout the years participating in the different conferences I’ve attended here in Mexico. Then, the feeling of having to do a more journalistic type article took over; to simply report the facts and leave my story aside. But since we are a tight community it just feels fair to include a personal touch to it, and I will do my best to express an experience that feels like you have to really live to understand.
The Facts:
The Asociación Latinoamericana de Body Piercing held its fifth annual conference October 30 through November 3 in the beautiful town of Taxco, in the estate of Guerrero, Mexico. During the event there were approximately 200 people from all over the world including countries such as Mexico, US, Argentina, Chile, Guatemala, Costa Rica, Brazil, Uruguay, Venezuela, Colombia, Peru, France, Spain, Canada, Russia, and Honduras. There were 115 attendees, 20 speakers, 9 volunteers, and 18 jewelry companies.
The event also hosted a host of different activities, like the traditional walk around town where 150 people enjoyed music and drinks. There was also a suspension show held inside a pre-Hispanic mine that was recently discovered inside the hotel. There was a jewelry expo with all the vendors.
Almost 50 people took a trip to a virgin area of Taxco, where Ramon Perez “Tigre” and Nick Wolak prepared a sweat lodge, or Temazcal, which lasted 4 hours. There was also a banquet dinner during which Katia “Esperanza” Tirado, Mexico’s first female piercer, gave a performance titled “Instrucciones Bajo La Mesa”. The raffle prizes were given away, as well as the LBP awards, and it was an incredible night that ended with fireworks.
Overall it felt like a successful event and everyone seemed to have had a great time.
My Experience:
First things first, I really feel the need to go as far back as 2006, when Danny Yerna organised the first official APP Conference in Mexico. This really was our first big break into the industry. We got so much exposure to how things were being done in the US, and speaking from a very personal perspective, this even introduced me to piercers who, to this day, I hold very dear to my heart; people like Luis Garcia, who was actually at this year’s LBP and has maintained his commitment with the Spanish speaking industry throughout all these years. I want to take this opportunity to really bow down and thank Danny Yerna, not only for the personal friendship that we share, but because I really don’t know what piercing would be like in Mexico right now if it hadn’t been for him and everything that he has endured to bring the standards of our industry up and put us on the map. So, gracias Danny!
So, the APP Conference in Mexico went on each year from 2006 to 2010, and then again in 2012. It was at this very conference where the LBP really got started! Basically at some point during the event, discussion started about the need for an organisation that catered more directly to the reality of Latin American countries; then Board Members were named and a new association was born. Just like that!
This is the fifth annual conference, and I have missed two, but I can honestly say that I will try my hardest to not miss this event ever again. This year felt different; I really can’t figure it out but from the very start, when we all met at Estudio 184 everyone was happy and we were all excited to see each other and to meet people for the first time.
Once we were all registered, we got on three different buses and made our way to Taxco. A few hours later we were at the hotel, and then we had the greeting ceremony. Already there was a lot of emotion. The Board Members introduced themselves and made some announcements. Then the classes started.
From that point on, it is all kind of a blur, I must say…. I was taking, translating, and teaching classes, and on top of that I was also in charge of documenting the event, so needless to say, it was a busy week for me. But everything seemed to flow. Everything felt right. And though I’m having a hard time putting into words what I’m trying to express, hopefully the video that I will put out on the event coverage will be able to transmit the feeling. Everyone was just such a treat to be around. We all interacted with each other, we all got along, and there was just a vibe throughout the whole event. I still can’t shake the sense of unity that was really evident this time around.
To Wrap Things Up:
I really want to give thanks to all the organisers, speakers, and the following volunteers:
I’d also like to thank all of the jewelry companies, and of course, all of the attendees.
It only seems fair at this point to include the names of the speakers: Nick Wolak, Ramon Perez, Luis Garcia, Bethrah Szumski, Andre Fernandes, Matias Tafel, Nicholas Adams, Jason Pfohl, Miro Hernandez, Mauricio Torres, Alejandro Hernandez Salazar, Javier Fingazz, Danny Yerna, Brian Skellie, Emmanuel Rodriguez, Aldo Booth, Sergi Tinaut, Paul King, and myself.
I really wish I could put into words how much was experienced and shared. I want to wrap this up by inviting you to next year’s conference. If you have ever thought about coming to Mexico, this is a great way to experience it. A lot of the attendees speak English and even if they don’t, everyone always tries their best to communicate with each other. It’s a great opportunity to interact with piercers from a bunch of different countries. Really, don’t miss out!
“The Association of Professional Piercers (APP) is an international health and safety organization. It is a nonprofit voluntary alliance dedicated to the dissemination of information about body piercing. Governed by a voluntary elected Board of Directors, the APP is a united group of piercing professionals that freely shares information to help fellow members, piercers, health care professionals, legislators, health inspectors, and the general public get the best and most up-to-date information about body piercing.”
You’ve probably seen the preceding text so many times that you may already know it verbatim. As a piercer interested or involved with the APP, you aren’t surprised by what our mission statement is. But have you really considered the importance of that mission? I can tell you, as a Board member, that the Mission Statement is a compass that always points to the kinds of decisions we should be making. The Association of Professional Piercers is a health and safety education organization. Our job is to openly share with anyone who might care to learn. This is a powerful mission, and one that touches me deeply.
Fakir Musafar speaks about body art, and body piercing specifically, in a way that few others do. To him, modification of the body isn’t just a fun thing we get to do to ourselves, it is an innate human right. That is something far deeper and far more important that can get lost in the day to day routine of a piercing shop. But I like to think about this art of ours the way Fakir taught me to think of it: a human right.
That puts our mission as an educational organization in a very unique light to me. By providing education in so many forms, we are trying to assist the entire planet to safely express themselves. What a responsibility! Yet, so many from our community rise to the occasion again and again. Some of us provide education at the Association’s annual conference, of course, but there is so much out there for piercers and the public alike. From sister organizations, to independent schools, and even online forums; our community has embraced the mission of the APP and run with it.
Imagine where we might be if the earliest members of the piercing community had attempted to keep their techniques entirely secret? If they had refrained from writing magazines, publishing books, producing tutorial videos, and making piercing schools? The piercing community wouldn’t be anything like what it is today.
In this issue of The Point you will read about body piercing education not only through the APP Conference, but outside of our organization as well. To those who have given so much of their hard work to help improve the art of body piercing, we say thank you.
Post Script: I am writing this just a few days after the passing of a career-long educator, Rick Frueh. Rick was an APP Board Member, an instructor for our conference, an instructor for Health Educators, Inc., an enormous part of the 2013 APP Procedure Manual, creator of the Body Modification Learning Forum, and a friend. He’s left a legacy of body piercing education that we have all benefited from in one way or another. He will be missed.
English Version
The twelfth edition of the SusCon took place this year September from the 18 to the 20 in Tirrenia, Pisa, a convenient location we have used for a long time. The Conference was good, with 45 suspensions facilitated as well as pulling between six people. On a highly positive note, 30% of our suspendees were newbies, a sign that the cultural practice of corporal suspension is expanding.
Besides Italians, we had participants from Germany, Spain, Norway and New Zealand. The suspension groups that made the whole event possible were APTPI-ST and Wings of Desire (from Norway), whose leader Havve Fjell will officially be presenting the 3rd Symposium on corporal suspension, which will be held in Berlin this May.
As usual, during the three days of the Conference, theoretical lessons were offered. This year we had the honor to host Paul King; professional body piercer since 1991 and one of the few to hold the title of Master Piercer, given by Jim Ward in 1996. He is an active member of the APP and an avid student of ethno-anthropology, as well as the anthropology of the body modification community, having lectured on these topics at various universities.
Paul presented the “Traditions of Hook Swinging in South Asia,” “Suspension of Belief and Piercing Rituals of Plains,” and “Sundance.” The subjects were very interesting and much appreciated. They highlighted other points of view on the practice of suspension, especially with regard to the ritual purpose. Another novelty for this year saw some of the attendees participate in a social and anthropological study, led by the anthropologist Federica Manfredi. She is researching the reasons and feelings involved for those who suspend. From this research they will produce 12 individual projects, all different and all unique and personal.
A special “thank you” to all of the participants in our SusCon, speakers, sponsors, and especially all the volunteers that make this a reality each year. At every event, we see a lot of passion and dedication, rewarding us all with an emotionally engaging gathering.
We can’t wait for next year, with even more surprises planned!
Italian Version
La dodicesima edizione dell’Italian SusCon si è svolta quest’anno dal 18 al 20 settembre a Tirrenia, Pisa, comoda location ormai da molto tempo.
Ancora una volta la partecipazione è stata buona, con 45 sospensioni effettuate durante il convegno ed un pulling tra 6 persone. Nota altamente positiva, il 30 % dei suspendees erano neofiti, segno che la cultura della pratica della sospensione corporale si sta espandendo, anche e soprattutto tra i più giovani.
Oltre agli italiani, si segnalano partecipanti provenienti da Germania, Spagna, Norvegia e Nuova Zelanda; i gruppi di sospensione che hanno reso possibile tutto l’evento sono APTPI-ST e Wings of Desire (Norvegia), il cui leader, Havve Fjell, ha presentato ufficialmente il 3° Simposio sulle sospensioni corporali che sarà tenuto a Berlino nel maggio 2017.
Come di consueto, durante i 3 giorni del convegno, si tengono anche delle lezioni teoriche: abbiamo avutol’onore in questa edizione di ospitare Paul King, body piercer professionista fin dal 1991 ed insignito del titolo di Master Piercer da Jim Ward nel 1996. Membro attivo dell’APP, è anche avido studioso di etnoantropologia e di antropologia delle modificazioni del corpo e su questi argomenti ha tenuto diverse lezioni in varie Università.
Da noi ha proposto: “Traditions of Hook Swinging in South Asia,” Suspension of Believe and Piercing Rituals of Plains,” and “Sundance;” gli argomenti sono stati molto interessanti ed apprezzati, ed hanno messo in luce altri punti di vista sulla pratica della sospensione, soprattutto per quanto riguarda la finalità, non ludica ma rituale.
Altra novità, alcuni partecipanti hanno realizzato un progetto a sfondo sociale ed antropologico, condotto dall’antropologa Federica Manfredi, che ricerca i motivi, ma anche le sensazioni, che intervengono in chi si sospende. Dopo aver contattato alcune persone, ha stabilito una consegna: cercare, attraverso un’opera artistica, di rappresentare cosa, o come, la coscienza elabori l’atto di sospendersi. Sono stati così prodotti 12 progetti, tutti diversi e tutti unici e personali nel taglio e nella realizzazione, che ha coinvolto molto intensamente isoggetti.
Doveroso ringraziare tutti i partecipanti al SusCon, i relatori e gli sponsors, ma soprattutto tutti i volontari che rendono ogni anno tutto questo una realtà.
Vedere e sentire tanta passione e dedizione per una pratica apparentemente poco usuale e male accettata dalla comunità, ricompensa da ogni fatica e contribuisce a rendere questo evento così emotivamente coinvolgente dal punto di vista umano e culturale.
Vi aspettiamo alla prossima edizione, con altre sorprese!