Body art trends raise in popularity
By Jamie Organski
Staff Writer
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Photo By Nora Hicks, ASSOCIATE NEWS EDITOR |
Ah, body art — almost always igniting lively and controversial conversations. Tattoos and piercing, whether you have them or not, have probably made their way into your mind or conversation at some point.
There are three tattoo studios in Brockport: Pink Armadillo (previously known as Extreme Graphix), at 5 Market St., Bare Apple Art Tattoo, at 14 Market St., and Go Ask Alice, at 73 Main St.
It seems that today all the rage is once someone comes up with an original idea, everyone begins to follow suit, transforming the personal masterpiece into a full-blown trend.
Craig Hayes, tattoo and piercing artist at Pink Armadillo said the list of cliché tattoo designs and places to get them continues to expand with each passing day. What or who is to blame for instituting trend after trend?
“The media,” Hayes said. “Any new tattoo design or piercing you see on TV or on the Internet is guaranteed to be printed out or drawn and brought into the studio. People see a little bird or a cross on their favorite celebrity and want the same thing.”
The greatest craze in tattoo designs is “a star,” Hayes said. “Whether it’s a row of stars, a clump of them or just one, it seems to be the biggest thing right now. Flower designs would be a close second.”
As for tattoo placement, Hayes said he has gotten numerous requests for long strings of stars, flowers, petals, initials or important dates down the side of the ribcage. If that sounds excruciatingly painful, it’s because it is.
“Down the ribcage has to be one of the most painful places you could get a tattoo,” he said. “If you’re looking to get a tattoo in a not-so-painful spot, steer clear of any place on the body where the skin is sensitive. Also, soft spots tend to hurt.”
It is inevitable for some people to get tattoos just to say they have one. There is usually a deeper motivation to get body art though, said Hayes.
“If people take the time to explain to me why they chose a specific [tattoo] design it’s usually because it’s in remembrance of someone,” Hayes said. “I’ve also gotten people coming in wanting to get their wedding date or their child’s name tattooed on them.”
Brockport senior, Ashley Shufelt, said it was the adrenaline rush she would experience after getting a piercing that won her over.
“I used to have a labret, snakebites [two lip studs on the bottom lip], my eyebrow, my nose and my bellybutton pierced,” she said. “I only have my belly pierced now.”
What was Shufelt’s motivation to continue with piercing after piercing?
“Well, it wasn’t the ‘cool’ thing to do at that point,” she said. “I remember watching “The Real World” on MTV years ago and seeing this girl with an eyebrow ring. I thought it was really pretty. It didn’t hurt too much, but I got an adrenaline rush afterward. I think that’s what drove me to keep getting something pierced.”
We’ve been told that college is supposed to be a time to reinvent yourself and try new things, but when the cash flow runs dry and employers seem to be looking for that perfect new talent that’s when issues occur. For Shufelt, all of the above halted her piercing craze.
“Honestly, I hate to spend money,” she said. “It’s probably what is holding me back from getting a tattoo or piercing now. Also, other priorities are taking hold. Obviously, it doesn’t look so great to go in to job interviews with a bunch of piercings on your face.”
Speaking of money, Hayes said Pink Armadillo’s prices are both competitive and affordable. The minimum price for a tattoo is $40, which is the equivalent to about an inch-size design. Piercing prices range anywhere from $25 to $50.
Stereotypes will always be in place, but the reality is that everyone and anyone can get body art.
“Everyone is getting a tattoo or a piercing,” Hayes said. “The old biker-dude stereotype is no longer in effect today. We get groups of 50-year-old people coming in here. Sometimes entire golf clubs will come in to get some work done.”
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