Tattooed living zombie
Bizarre magazine interviews a Montreal gentleman named Rick who is tattooing his entire body to look like the living dead. From the interview (photo by Neville Elder):
Zombie tattooed man (Bizarre)What look are you trying to achieve with your tattoos?
They’re about the human body as a decomposing corpse – the art of a rotting cadaver. It’s also a tribute to horror movies, which I love.
What influenced your tattoos? When I was a kid I was a big fan of the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, and I wanted to be a ninja turtle and live in the sewers. But as I got older I fell in love with zombies and wanted to become one. Oh, and I love George A Romero’s Living Dead movies.
Anyway, the closest thing I could get to becoming a zombie was to get tattooed like one.
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Attention 'ho
If someone else is interested enough to do this, I would suggest saving up, and going to an artist who can DRAW on your body with dark markers, etc... Then have some great pictures taken, and enjoy the experience until it wears off.
The pictures will be your forever, and later, if you live long enough, you will not look like a SAGGY rotting corpse.
congratulations. a lifetime of high paying jobs await you.
His mama must be SO proud.
I would like to read a more detailed analysis of people with extreme "body modificatons" like this. What are the underlying reasons? What personality traits do they have in common? WHat would a psychologist have to say?
It certainly takes courage to do this, so much respect on that front.
On the other hand, he'll look great if his next of kin opt to give him an open-casket funeral.
It's the I LIKE TURTLES kid!!!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CMNry4PE93Y
Wow. I'm not really surprised by the initial disrespect on something like this, but it still saddens me that when someone takes the time and effort to do something like this, it is because they are an 'attention whore' or 'they sure will regret their saggy corpse looking body when they're 90'.
Seriously?
Having only a tattooed forearm myself, I'd put forth the opinion that personally I would rather be an individual than a cookie cutter suburbanite. I suppose it must be difficult for some people to break out of society's mold of what should or should not be.
It's an old saying, but if people are going to hate you for what's on the outside instead of what's inside, then you're better off without them. And honestly, I'd say this is a great way to filter out time-wasting people.
@#3, you're right. High paying jobs only come to people who look and dress in business suits everyday.
Here is a link to another interview with him back in March at BMEzine.
http://www.bmezine.com/news/guest/20080318.html
The tattoos are really impressive, the person that adorns them...not so much.
:(
He'll be fine and can grow up to president some day if he works hard and is honest and, most importantly, WEARS A FLAG PIN.
@5 You can find some of what you are looking for on BME (www.bmezine.com) but you have to sift a bit. I have done sessions with psychologists a few times for various tv shows - one in particular summed things up nicely by describing me as unusual looking but better adapted and successful than most and in no need of counseling.
@most of the rest of you - I'm not at all suprised by you lame and shallow jusgements but if you'd like to see rebuttals for the attention whore, parents and employment comments read a few of my articles on BME -
www.bmezine.com/news/lizardman-all.html.
Lizardman, thanks for the links. Very interesting stuff.
I find it saddening that most responses quickly dismissed the man as an attention seeker. Tattooing is done by multiple cultures for multiple reasons -- most of which involve enhancing one's spirituality, identifying one as part of a social group, or expressing one's inner nature. 24 hours of painful, expensive, tattooing isn't indicative of someone who just wants to be looked at (he could put on a dress and carry a bouquet of bloody tampons and get the same shocked looks without the pain or expense), it's more symptomatic of someone who is struggling to evolve a personal identity. Most people take a more beaten path to self-discovery, but who are we to judge what is the correct state of being for any one individual. If the man was only after attention he have found a quicker fix earlier on.
@ LizardMan,
I saw you on the Jagermeister Cincy Type-O/Hatebreed show. Your speech about responsible drinking was a riot.
I think what a lot of people are responding to with this particular individual is not his extreme modifications, but his lack of articulation. Someone like Lizardman seems to have put considerable thought and time into the unusual path he's chosen. The same for many other well known extreme body-modders, such as the man turning himself into a tiger and other performers like Enigma. They've expanded their desire for a non-mainstream appearance into a platform to comment on those aspects of their own personality and of society. That's not the impression I take away from Zombie after reading this and the bme interview. He doesn't really offer much in the way of thoughtful commentary other than "Zombies are cool."
His tattoos are very impressive, though.
I second both Cadfael & Cszostek's comments.
Not all of us are made to work the insurance desk and boy does Skullboy come off as a flaming, puerile dick in his interview.
Punk Rock Star was done first, better and to death over a decade and a half ago. Unless Skullboy can top Sid @ The Chelsea, John @ The Winterland Ballroom or Jim Reid at damn near every show they gigged, time to move on. He needs to live up to the great art he's done on himself instead of dragging it down every time he opens his mouth.
And, I hope he exercises his creative muscles. I'm assuming he had a large role in the work done, and if he challenges himself, could find himself living an interesting life. Even if it doesn't involve shuffling papers at an insurance company.
I love how the tats are a unified theme and then there's a plain outline of Texas on his left arm.
i saw him in the Montreal's subway and I'm happy to read this article today.
If anyone is interested, here (site extremely NSFW) is another interview with him
I have nothing against large-scale tattoos. This guy comes off as kind of an idiot, but I'm also sure he seemed that way long before he got inked.
As a girl, I'm not usually into tattooed guys (I mean, I never really cared) and I have just a small tattoo myself... BUT I think I like this guy and I can't help thinking he's beautiful and attractive in a strange way. Weird, huh?
I posted the initial photos and interview with him when I was still running BME -- the whole point behind him in my opinion is a sort of Montreal street punk nihilism... I think it really upset people that there wasn't a deep story being shared.
Shows like "Miami Ink" have given tattoos a stigma where people expect there to be a deep personal story behind everything... Many people seem to need there to be a profound "justification" in body modifications, but often, even for extreme work, there's no long weepy excuse.
Personally, I don't see that as a problem, and if anything, I'd suggest that the need for an explanation (especially in unusual work) that tattooing is "wrong" in people's minds (even tattooed people) and needs to be wrapped in these justifications to make them permissible.
I dare someone to get tattooed all over their body to look exactly like Mr. T.
#8
I got 'attention whore' from his attitude pre-tat to post-tat in the interview; he talks about hating everyone to now being happy to get invites to all sorts of things. And it sounded less like "this is the person I was meant to be" like a tranny; and more like "attention whore." It sounds like he was a anti social loner to now enjoying the notoriety his tattoos bring him.
That's an attention whore in my book. He might not have known he was an attention whore pre tat, but he certainly is one now.
He's 'a sorority girl kissing another chick in a bar'permanently.
Tattoo people are a funny lot. Not many of them will cop to a crappy tat (on them or anyone else to their face at least,) every tattoo artists they know (read did work on them) is the best eva, and it's always this deeply personal, meaningful and soulful experience. It's not always.
There's an elephant in the room when someone's got a crappy tat and you're not allowed to point it out that you think it sucks for whatever reason. It's an art, but you're not allowed to critique it without getting personally attacked yourself as a square or whatever.
@Peaceflag2007, why must someone have psychological issues that make them want to get modified?
What was once acceptable (discriminating against people because of skin colour or religion (ie black people or jews) ) is much the same against those who discriminate because a person has tattoos.
I really need to know : So what if your investment banker or lawyer or CEO has a visible tattoo?
Does this make them any less intelligent? Any less competent?
Judge on ability and attitude alone.
f nt, y'r n bttr thn klnsmn n lynch mb.
Cadfael: You say this:
"Having only a tattooed forearm myself, I'd put forth the opinion that personally I would rather be an individual than a cookie cutter suburbanite."
And then this:
"It's an old saying, but if people are going to hate you for what's on the outside instead of what's inside, then you're better off without them."
Sounds like you do the same thing; judging people by their tats or lack thereof and then decrying it.
I didn't think this guy was any sort of person on way or the other, until I read the interview.
I would be more impressed if someone jumped off the tattoo cliff and did a unified full body piece skeleton from the start off with a clean slate, and used a full body xray of themselves to begin with. Now that would be cool.
@25
Except most people don't have a choice to be black. Or Jewish. So there's that.
HDN@ 26 - yes, once I read the interview, I concluded that the guy was a bit of a dick, or at the very least, maybe a bit inarticulate. The tatts have nothing to do with that, and frankly, I've run across un-modded people who are twenty times worse than this fellow.
@#25
"...you're no better than [a] klansman in a lynch mob."
Let me get this straight: If I refuse to do business with a tattoed man, then I'm no better than a lynching KKKlansman?
What am I if I refuse to take seriously a person who makes such a witless analogy?
Wow, Shannon posting on BoingBoing. It's like blogging worlds colliding.
Having only a tattooed forearm myself, I'd put forth the opinion that personally I would rather be an individual than a cookie cutter suburbanite.
A lot of people feel that getting a tattoo is more of a cookie-cutter choice than not getting one. Although I'd have a pretty difficult time describing this as a cookie-cutter tattoo. When I was a child, only old guys had tattoos, and everybody thought that it was gross. It seems likely that we'll cycle back to that point in a decade or two.
I've run into him a few times around Montreal and I always tell any friends that are with me that the guy is an internet celebrity. They give me weird looks.
@23
Your comments make me wonder if you actually have any real experience of tattooed people and/or the community & industry which they make up. Go to a reputable convention and you will see the exact opposite of what you describe
@33: That's been my experience too with tattooed friends (full disclosure: no tats. Sorry, just long hair and crazy facial hair). The guy I know with the most tattoos has them because he had a few friends going to art school to become tattoo artists. He let them practice on him. He freely admits that he has a lot of not-so-great tattoos.
Oh, and he also has a very respectable engineering position at a large, well-known software company.
For that matter, I have (and had, some moved on to other, better positions) numerous coworkers (fellow engineers, &c.) who have plenty of tattoos. I work at a well-known high-tech company. Tattoos won't stop you from getting some of the better paying jobs in the country.
All things aside, honestly, I think it is really, really sexy.
I like turtles!
Surgeons must love him.. easy to know just where to make the incision.
I think the tats look kinda cool. Agree its going to be hard to be 'normal' when you look like that but hey, to each their own. If I saw him in a club I'd probably say 'nice tats' just like I would to anyone I cross paths with who has a well rendered tat. At least its not generic flash crap.
its pretty cookie cutter to get, say, a rose on your bosom, or chinese characters. Full body zombie regalia?
Not so cookie cutter :P
I can totally appreciate someone expressing their individuality and uniqueness by getting tattooed.
Just like everybody else.
Screw the trolls, this is nature we live in. Post modern tribalism for cannibals if a fine ticket to ride if you drink enough GIN. No, not DJINN you God fearing tossers. Screw your heads on straight. Did you read the guys interview at Bizarre? I would never do anything like that, but at least this guy has a reason to... Maybe he'll be hit by a car or die of some foreign, alien disease, or join the war in Afghanistan and really fuck shit up.
Antinous, you beat me to it. I don't know where #8 lives but in my town it seems like everyone has at least one tattoo. I assume as my generation's skin decays folks will reconsider getting full body zombie suit tattoos. At any rate, I'm fairly certain my kid won't be getting inked up as a form of rebellion; too many grown ups got 'em, and it's not just for Russian prisoners anymore.
In western popular culture zombies have come to represent the nameless, mindless consumer (in an overstated way) masses. Why chose to represent that? Why zombie kid?
In the interest of disclosure, I went to art school in the 80's. I have quite a few tattoos (but mine are cool).
I don't know, threejeff-anyone at your office got a facial tattoo? It can be distracting. I don't mean to be rude, but after the initial shock wears off, you are left thinking "so... that's still on there, huh?"
Why think anything of it? Why not just accept it as part of who they are? :P
The thing I'm most curious about for people like this is... what's everyday life like? For someone like Lizardman, there's the life of an entertainer, but for "just some guy who likes zombies", how does he support himself? Does he get served in restaurants? Does he have trouble getting a cab? Does he even hope to find a 9-to-5 job someday, or is that just out the window?
Amusement park ride operator, tax collector, undertaker, complaints department window person...
The romanticization and glorification of death and putrescence is completely juvenile. Believe me, as you get older you don't look on death as something grand and taboo--something that people need to be reminded of. As a teen I was kind of morbid and this would have struck me as "the coolest thing" (although I wouldn't do it myself.)
To see a walking reminder of death--a living memento mori, is something I do NOT need. I have enough problems internalizing the mere fact of it, let alone the breathing embodiment of it staring at me and asking for a cig..
"staring at me and asking for a cig.."
That's another career possibility! Cigarette vendor.
I agree that the glorification of death seems juvenile, and the whole tattoo thing is not for me. But getting past personal opinions about tattoos, he utterly lost me when he talked about getting his nose cut off. That's insane.
If only there weren't minimum age laws about getting tats. He could look like a Ninja Turtle right now. The good thing is, he was still a blank slate when he was mature enough to make this great decision.
http://www.bmezine.com/news/pubring/20080401.html
I'd also just like to say he looks like Richmond from the IT Crowd. And that...well, that is hot.
@#25, Flynnfx:
Should you ever happen to present your theory of body modification and discrimination to a Jew or a black person, do not be surprised if they bring a historical perspective to the discussion or place emphasis on the distinction between compulsion and free will.
Is Judaism not a religion? It seems odd to me for people to compare being black to being Jewish. One chooses a religion, but not a skin color.
I have drawn tattoos on people with various pens over the years. Its fun to draw cute little characters on ladies arms(with their permission of course), they are usually most pleased with the results and seem to enjoy the temporary nature of it. I got all kinds of flack from co-workers in the mid-nineties for drawing a large SAS crest on my arm.
#54, being Jewish is also an ethnicity. You can convert to Judaism as a religion, but you can't change your ethnicity.
#51, who knew Sesame Street or "where's your nose" would inspire such a bizarre reaction?
@#54, Torporous: Judaism is a religion, but it's also an ethnicity. In any case, in the context I alluded to the point is moot: I've known children of Jewish parents brought up as Christians specifically to avoid persecution and it didn't make one iota of difference as far as the Nazis were concerned.
Why chose to represent a zombie?
Perhaps zombies have come to represent the nameless, mindless tattooed masses.
Let's all express our individuality just like every other tattooed goof on the planet.
Plus you can't really tattoo yourself up to look like a sheep.
"Some people might look at you and think you’re mentally ill. They might do, but I’m not. I think I’m very on the ball."
The mentally ill never recognize the fact that they're nuts.
What a shame the carnivals have eliminated the freak show from their sideshows.
Cause that's where this guy belongs.
@ Shannon: Great to see you and I'm glad you chimed in. Can't imagine many folks with as much pure knowledge and insight as you.
The fact that Zombie guy is an asshat as well as tattooed is pure coincidence.
Personally, I used to have an interesting piercing, but lost all interest in such after failing reconstruction following bilateral mastectomies. Enough modification for me, thankew. And I wasn't 40 yet...
@9:
In the pictures to that interview you can see an "Es lebe Deutschland" tattoo on his stomach.
Nazis are sooo edgy!!
I read his interview. I think that before a nose and ears would rot off, a dead mans' penis would have been awol for a while already. Just saying this so he can add a bit more realism to his look.
I do have one small, rather unnoticeable tattoo, and I like zombie movies & games. Although this, for me, would be overkill, it's his body, so I say let him decorate it as he pleases... vn thgh h snds lk dchbg n hs ntrvw. (I'll save you the trouble, mods.)
Realistically, it is limiting what you can do with your life, but that's just how society is. I don't understand why someone would want to do it, and I'd never do it myself, but if that's what makes him happy, and as long as it isn't hurting anyone else, good...
I did think this was kind of funny:
"If I get my eyes blacked in I’ll get my nose removed. "
But then you couldn't have that septum ring, dude.
Also, Lizardman, I saw you at a Hed(pe) show several years ago. Hullo!
I just cant help wondering if hes going to be as passionate about zombies in 20 years from now. He was into the TMNT when he was a kid and now he's into this. What's next?
I always wanted a tat, but my tastes change over the years and being 47 they have changed many, many times. God I couldn't imagine getting a body tat representing my feelings at his age, and how I would feel about my choice now.
I think it would be cool if there was some type of ink that would fade in 5-10 years, or better still, could be easily reversed. or he could have done it in black light ink, that would have been awesome, zombie dude by black light and something a little less comprehensive by day.
And BTW, I love checking out tat work and think its a beautiful form of self expression, I'm just saying...
As this man obviously has a right to do whatever he pleases to himself so to do the internet masses have the right to declare it hideous/admirable/stupid/ whatever without someone calling them prejudiced.
IMHO, I'd say that it seems to lack foresight. The dude is 22. The person you are at 22 is rarely the person you are at 25 or 30 or onward. Having a full body zombie sleeve may not be that awesome for him down the road. The nihilist tendencies that fueled this process for him might not be the most lasting values.
In spite of all this, the tattoos themselves are pretty well realized. I bet he cleans up in the deathcult/goth club scene.
Whether or not something is chosen is mostly irrelevant when speaking of discrimination - there are plenty of freely chosen beliefs and behaviours that we do not allow/accept to be the basis of discrimination the most prominent probably being religious beliefs and behaviours.
Yes, being tattooed is different than being black or ethnically jewish but that difference does not make your discrimination justified. If you don't like tattoos that's fine - don't get any, but don't be an asshat to those of us who do either.
It's so funny that people still consider getting tattoos as an individuality thing when most nights I go out, I'm the only guy in a bar or club without one. I feel like Sid fuckin' Vicious.
Let me see if I've got this straight:
You don't want to be seen as like any one else, hence the tats, but then when you're treated differently because of the tats you're crying to be treated like one of the herd you strove to break free from?
You didn't see this coming? It might not be right, but you can't be surprised.
@Lizardman #33: As it happens most of the people I work with, the majority of my friends, all heavily tattooed. And a friend of mine owns a shop in SD, CA. They're pretty much ubiquitous. As it's been mentioned; the new individuality is no tattoos. But I'm not going to go investigate the "scene"; I'm sure it's pretty much like every other "scene", if it's got people in it, only the vocabulary changes.
@67
You don't have it straight
Individuality or uniqueness is the natural state that none of us can escape. Every single person that is, was, or will be is a unique individual - anything you do to try and make yourself different is a redundant effort at best because you are already different. Getting tattooed (or any number of other activities) is not to be different but rather to express ones self. Given that this form of self expression is not harmful to others, it seems unfair or at least being an asshole to discrimnate against someone for it. It does not stand to reason that peopel who choose to believe jesus are protected from discrimination while negatively affecting my life in real ways on a daily basis but it is ok to discriminate against me because I express myself (among other ways) by modifying my body.
As for not investigating the 'scene', fine but don't speak from ignorance then - bad tattoos get called out and criticized without hesitation more often than not. No tattoos is no more or less individual than completely tattooed - at most it is a statement of not wanting to use tattooing as a medium for expression.
You're free to do whatever you want. And the rest of us our free to say something about that however we want.
If you didn't expect ramifications for what you've done, that's your fault not ours. The world isn't fair, it will never be fair. You're more than welcome to fight for fairness, just know it's going to be a long fight.
Already we've seen body modification going from a small negative thing to a multi billion dollar industry which now pumps out cliched body mods by the metric assload, so that everyone can an individual just like everyone else. But now you've got more and more numbers on your side, so good luck.
You've got everything staked on it, and I've got nothing and right now is the end of my intere
We all wear costumes, permanent or not. Sometimes, the impermanent become permanent through repeated use.
I would not, however, be on board with hiring someone with a facial tat or visible facial piercing in my office. Different costume required.
Many years ago I got a small tattoo on my right bicep. Got it in a small shop on S. Alverado Street in Los Angeles. It's a heart with a signature wreath that says 'tattoo.' I think I got it in the spirit of Andy Warhol. No matter now; it's a faded blue smudge and it looks awful. Besides, it hurt. Fuck that.
He'll fit in fine after the oil runs out and we're all living like Mad Max.
@69
Your interest may have ended but I will respond anyway along with noting that most people lose interest rather than admit they are wrong often with accompanying straw men like those you included.
There is a big difference between being free to voice an opinion about someone and discriminating against them.
Just because you can see discrimination coming (or even if you can't but most can and do) it does not justify the discrimination. I knew what assholes I was potentially going to deal with by tattooing my face but that doesn't make it ok for them to be assholes.
Body modification has never been small (except in the isolated view of certain cultures at certains times and even then only with an exceedingly narrow definition of body modification) and your describing it as negative belies your prejudices. My opinion: Your are ignorant and resistant to learn for fear of losing a pet prejudice
And for the record I have nothing at stake with regard to the body modification industry/community because I win either way - less makes me a rarer more valuable commodity professionally while more makes things easier for me in daily life.
I've heard that in British Columbia you can get on provincial disability pension if you have a facial tattoo - for exactly the reason echoed here, that it renders one unemployable.
@75
A similar rumor / legend exists in the states but the only documented support for it comes from Jack Dracula (an old coney performer) displaying and talking about his disability checks. Turns out Jack was employable (worked sideshows but probably paid under the table) and at best his facial tattoos were cited as an additional factor to more common and accepted reasons to award benefits.
The idea that one can no longer make a living (much less a decent living) is a popular one to reinforce fears and prejudices about tattoos but has never been born out by facts. That is not to say that certain jobs would likely be closed to you but employment is there and has been there. Anyone who is unemployable with facial tattoos was unemployable without them.
"Anyone who is unemployable with facial tattoos was unemployable without them."
At last, the ring of truth. A personnel manager ought to be grateful for tattooing; the applicant wears his or her weirdness openly, thus saving a lot of time and maybe avoiding a bad hire.
Buddy66 @77: Because hidden weirdness is so much easier to handle and plan for.
#78, Are you being cryptic in some way?
Referring to an hypothetical, unspecified "facial tattoo" does not really take in the full freakiness of skullface here. It does sound like he'd be unemployable either way, as per Lizardman's suggestions, but will that always be the case? People change, but his face sure won't. At least not without a lot of expensive and painful reverse body modification.
As far as thinking you can have a skullface tattoo and think that someone discriminating against you is totally unjustified, that's a bit of a reach. We all make judgements about everybody else all the time based on people's behaviors, choices, and presented priorities. If those priorities and choices seem thoroughly out of wack, we will judge them as such. Not to be a conformist douche, though. I'm gonna judge some dipshit driving a hummer or some plasticized, inflated woman much more harshly than zombieman. Him I mostly just feel kind of bad for, cause I'm pretty sure he's going to really regret this someday.
How is this any different than obsessive plastic surgery (giant boobs, lips, different face, etc.)? To my mind, not so much. It seems to be an expression of a certain kind of self-loathing. Which is kind of sad. In general, people would do better to work harder on accepting the genetic heritage of their outsides and if they want to feel different realize that this happens on their insides.
If age brought wisdom, as someone once remarked, then the paving stones of London would be wiser than any man; but you're going to have to trust me on this: If you are in your 20s or 30s (not to mention, God forbid, your teens), YOU WILL NOT BE THE SAME PERSON twenty years from now; and the world WILL NOT BE THE SAME PLACE. If you have done something to your body that you cannot change, you will be sure to regret it. And the worst part is ... it will no longer be hip. Nobody, except maybe another doddering old fuck, will say, 'Nice tats.' Try not to mess yourself up too much.
Buddy: "..you will be sure to regret it."
That's a bit of black and white..
@Arkizzle: Well ... okay ... unless carnival sideshows revive in popularity and the tattoed man & lady once again are gawkable attractions.
My assertion that everybody changes excludes, of course, true idiots, who seem to carry the same personalities (usually quite pleasant) all of their adult lives. But of course no idiot would undergo extreme tattooing in the first place.
Correction: "...COULD undergo..." They do not suffer pain gladly. After all, idiots aren't crazy.
No, I think you are right, everything does change. But that includes the world and it's prejudices.
Everyone is saying that everybody seems to have tattoos these days. If that is the case, then everybody will have tattoos in the nursing home, so all the talk of "how awful he will look when he's old" will be moot.
Again, if everybody has a tattoo these days, then the older/authoritative generations of our future will be those people. The landscape will have changed with us, and tattoos wil be regarded differently.
I presume that tatoos will be completely uncool to the kids of that generation though, because old people have them.. so it'll be something else next time, and it'll all come round again.
Ooohh, shame on the man who pursued her,
That villain who wickedly wooed her;
She fell in a faint when he whipped out his paint,
And before she came to, he tattooed her.
Zombie boy, i salute you! seriously speaking, i have been scifi and fantasy geek my whole life and would love it, if people in everyday life would dress like out of Mad Max or some cyberpunk movie. So thanks for bringing my dream a little closer to reality!
Okay, I am a 39 year old female with one one year old tattoo (which I love) and this is what I have gathered from my tattoo experience. If you are of adult age and are one hundred percent sure you are getting a tattoo, know that you are getting it to satisfy YOU and not the rest of the world because they tend to be very personal for the most part permanently attached. Zombie boy, if you like what you see when you like what you see in the mirror everyday more power to you. I would like a few more myself. Oh! also truly consider a reputable tattoo artist.
I tried to talk my wife into getting William Blake's poems, 'The Marriage of Heaven and Hell,' tattooed on her back (with illustrations) so I would have something to read while we were doing it dog fashion; but she said I could watch TV like I always did. I think she was just afraid of the needle.
The one thing that’s always stopped me from getting any kind of tat is my fluid & evolving sense of what’s cool. I mean, what I thought was meaningful and significant ten years ago is definitely not the same as I what I think is today.
Add the fact that cultural symbols are constantly changing meaning – I know a guy who was really proud of his Ozzie tattoo in the 90s. Now? Not so proud. Those tribal Maori tats that were so hardcore years ago? Hmmm. Like it nor not, one’s appearance at least somewhat determines one’s identity, or why would you get any kind of body mod in the first place?
I think this whole alt vs. suburbia mentality is a total farce. The two are totally dependent on each other. Alt loves to shock suburbia with its difference. Suburbia loves to be shocked and titter and point fingers. It’s a cultural feedback loop.
It's nice work. Will he regret it? Probably not. You get used to the choices you make - whether they're visible or not. Do I regret going into IT and taking a life of Dilbert cube hell? Getting married? Having mackerel instead of falafel for tea last night? Of course not.
And we'll all leave ugly corpses. In a way that's part of Zombie Boy's message - here you go, this is you in ten, twenty, forty years time. I get a squirm off his ink, and it's the same squirm I get from the very, very old: it's the vertigo of the edge between "people" and "meat".
Worrying *now* about whether you'll be green and saggy or pink and saggy a gazillion years from now, that's just vanity. :)
That's effin awesome. :D
getting a tattoo makes the assumption that I will always feel this way, thus assuming I will never change, grow, or mature.
So I would only do so, if my mind were closed to change, I was unable to recognize that I was imperfect, or I lack the ability for imagine my self in the future as a different person.
In a few years, I may become someone very different from who I am now, I will not be hindered by my outward appearance, but who I am will be dominated by my growing and changing desires, abilities, knowledge.
Zombieboy and Lizard man will be zombieboy and lizardman for the rest of their lives, and never anything more but simple variations of that chosen theme.
But they aren't so different from any one else whose mind is is closed to new ideas or knowledge. And there are plenty of them out there.
The only difference is that Lizardboy is so insecure about himself that he has to dedicate a whole website to himself whining about how shallow people are, and continually begging or insisting for the world to accept and love him in spite of how much he damages himself.
"Would you still love/accept me if I was green? Had a forked tongue? Funny teeth, etc."
Dude I'm sorry you have to go to such lengths to prove to yourself that you are a person that deserves your mother's and father's love.
He's turned himself into a work of art. I respect that.
What's more, he isn't hurting anybody by doing it. He's doing what he loves, and he's taking his passions a step further by getting them permanently inked to his body. I think it's impressive, personally.