Piercing Looks
story by Cris Comp and Maydeli Borges, photos by Andy Rios, design by Madilyn Larsen (with contributions by Gunner Stuns and Lily Montgomery)
When you first step into the shop, you are greeted by the smell of cleaner and the buzzing of tattoo guns. Like an army of mechanical bees, ink is worked into clients’ skin at a calculated pace under the watchful eyes of tattoo artists as piercers in the back of the shop prepare hollow needles and jewelry to adorn their own customers.
Tattooing and piercing are forms of body modification, permanent artistic changes made to someone’s body. Tattoos, piercings and alterations tell stories not only of the artists who create the pieces, but of the individuals who proudly wear those markings and jewelry as a means of self-expression.
Inking as an Art Form
“I've always been into tattoos and I've always been an artist, in one form or another,” says Meara LaFrance, a CWU alumna and tattoo artist at The Roost tattoo parlor in downtown Ellensburg. “When I was a teenager, I kind of dabbled in tattoos and apprenticing and whatnot. [I] got quite a bit of tattoos when I was a teenager. So I guess I just kind of got into it.”
LaFrance attributes her tattoos to the need for self expression and art. She always had the itch to be an artist and even got an art degree from CWU. According to LaFrance, her first tattoo came about by dipping her hand in paint and then tracing the outline before it was placed on her back. “It was supposed to be like a representation of being an artist,” LaFrance says. This experience was LaFrance’s first step into the world of becoming a tattoo artist, eventually taking steps to receive education, as well as earn the necessary license and certificates.
LaFrance estimates that her body is about 70% covered in tattoos now. You can see the style that she portrays in the black and gray designs of flowers that cover her arms like overgrown statues. According to LaFrance, the best way to get a tattoo is to find an artist that you can click with.
Building Bonds
Glenn Helm is a tattoo artist through The Union tattoo parlor in Ellensburg and, like LaFrance, he dedicates his career to making tattoos that his clients enjoy. His work invokes traditional Japanese styles with deep, complex colors and stunning visuals. Helm strives to create relationships with the people that come to him for his artwork.
“I think that's definitely the most rewarding thing, for me,” Helm says. “Having really genuine connections with my clients, and feeling their trust… They know that they're gonna get a good tattoo from us.”
Helm shares that acquiring new, permanent body art is not the only reason that people come to him and other artists for tattoos and piercings. “It's kind of cliche to say, but tattooers do sometimes assume the role of a therapist,” Helm says. “You're putting a person through a painful experience, and you're kind of making them feel comfortable and natural.”
Receiving tattoos can be a grueling and painful process, and depending on the size and placement, can take many hours and be very painful. However this pain is only temporary, and as it turns out, may come with some positive side effects. When your body experiences pain, your brain releases chemicals called endorphins. These endorphins help reduce depression and help alleviate stress and anxiety, according to the Cleveland Clinic.
Professionalism with Piercings
Kam Schindewolf-Broyles, a fourth-year student in media and journalism and Asian studies, draws inspiration for their own tattoos and piercings from a wide variety of sources. 10 piercings and 11 tattoos adorn their body, accentuating their style and allowing them to express themselves in unique ways. The first of these was acquired when they were 15 years old.
“A lot of the bands and people who I style myself after had lip piercings,” Schindewolf-Broyles says, pointing to their spider bite piercings, studs on either side of their bottom lip. “Originally my goal was just these two lip piercings, the spider bites, but I had to start off with just the one. That’s what my mom would agree to at the time.”
Schindewolf-Broyles has two jobs, one through CWU another off-campus. For their off-campus job, they are not allowed to wear their facial piercings because of the nature of the work and stigmas associated with body modifications and professionalism.
“I work weddings and events where I have to look really presentable and nice,” Schindewolf-Broyles says. “And I'm allowed to have my tattoos out but I can't have my piercings in because to my job, it makes me look unprofessional. The main thing I really hate is that…a lot of people don't take me seriously because of my piercings and my tattoos.”
Schindewolf-Broyles adds that they believe body modifications like tattoos and piercings should not hinder anyone from being offered or completing jobs. “To me, it’s literally the exact same as wearing a necklace or wearing a ring or something like that,” Schindewolf-Broyles says. “It’s just jewelry.”
