Fred Hatt, crayon on paper, 2003

Living Art - BodyPainting
by Paula Davis

The practice of body adornment has roots reaching back at least 30,000 years. Evidence at archeological sites in Africa has uncovered forms of body modification, including flesh permanently marked either by a knife or tattoo needle and elongated earlobes and necks. 3 These and many other practices have fascinated the Western world for years; the body decorations are seen as exotic distortions, which served numerous purposes in various cultures.

Cultures cite different reasons for body adornment and celebrate the body as "a ground on which all cultures inscribe significant meaning." 3 Hewitt explains that body mutilation has long been part of non-Christian cultures, as a positive mark of identity, while in many modern Western cultures permanently marking the body has been considered degrading or deviant. 2 While discussing the role that body art plays in today's Western society, it is imperative to realize the influence it has in every other culture.

The history of body art is rich in older civilizations, as illustrated by the Burmese women who traditionally wear brass rings to elongate their necks (see picture above). The longer the neck, the wiser and more beautiful the woman, so tradition says. Not only did cultural traditions influence people, but religious institutions had an even stronger bearing.

Many people illustrate confirmation of and devotion to their religions by marking their bodies. A prominent example of this is the Judaic custom of circumcision. Pilgrims of Coptic, Armenian, Abyssinian, Syrian and Russian descent received tattoos to observe their journey to the Holy Land. Tattoos also were used as symbols of passage to a new level of spiritual existence.

BodyPainting VIDEO SPECIAL: explicit artistic content  BodyPainting at The BLISS CLUB: explicit artistic content

Fred Hatt, a prominent body painter, explains in his essay "drawing life" that painting the body goes back to the roots. It goes back to where the arts are not separate branches. It is both visual art and performance, both decoration and ritual, both symbolic and real.

He goes on to say that painting on a living surface is completely different from painting on a flat, inert ground. The alive body is the playground, the landscape, the theater for the painter. The tactile element of painting comes to the fore as the form guides the brush. The painter is working in relationship with the body, who responds to the touch, who moves, who speaks. Thus life comes into the painting through the process, and the painting comes to life through the body, and moves.

Brew Turner at The Bliss Club

While the focus of body art in today's society may not be as extreme as former practices, the degree of body mutilation remains controversial. Humanity seems unlikely to discontinue this very personal act of creativity simply because religious or cultural authorities decree it unnecessary. "The spiritual meaning of body mutilation has been lost at times due to cultural and religious changes, and yet people incessantly and instinctively return to it as a means of expressing their deepest desires and fears."

Credits:

The Bliss Club
Brew & Debbie Turner from ART WORLD 407.857.6333

Related links:

http://www.amnh.org/exhibitions/bodyart/
http://www.eroplay.com/feature/fredhatt/bodypaintings/fh_bodypaint.html
http://theblissclub.com