Body art, practiced across the world cultures and throughout history, is the most intimate art form, linking the self, the senses, and the social and political. In recent years, it has proliferated in an unprecedented way, borrowing motifs and practices from many different traditions. Explore their role in expressing personal and cultural identity; their longstanding associations with ritual, theatricality, criminality and beauty; and their recent resurgence via the Modern Primitabe movement and the work of contemporary artists such as Marc Quinn and Rebecca Belmore. The diversity of body arts is chronicled here: from Australian and African traditions of painting and scarification to Chinese footbinding, Russian prison tattoos, Harlem drag balls and the inked designs worn by celebrities such as Tupac Shakur and David Beckham.
This resource is supported by the Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act as administered by State Library of Iowa.