Body as Canvas

Body modifications reflect a deeper cultural shift toward individuality and aesthetic authorship, turning ink and piercings into symbols of personal style and identity.

Marc Jacobs via Interview Magazine. © All rights belong to their respective owners. No copyright infringement intended.

Upon reaching adulthood, one may want to quantum leap towards autonomy and independence from parental figures. Such is observed through the desire to act on parentally discouraged undertakings – like permanently inking your body, or elevating your piercings from a sixteen to a ten gauge. Growing minds seek to digress from likeness into unconventionality.

Zoë Kravitz at the Met Gala 2021 Available via Byrdie Courtesy of THEO WARGO / GETTY IMAGES © All rights belong to their respective owners. No copyright infringement intended.

Thus, the interplay between body modifications and fashion has increasingly gained traction in the industry of self-expression. Tattoos and piercings have become vastly more common in modern culture; it has become more likely than not to encounter bodies stamped with dot work and realism than bare skin. Specifically, these modes of practice contribute to the customization of styles at an individual level.

However, we cannot discuss the advancement in this form of expression without acknowledging its key players. Celebrities from different scopes of fame – whether that be actors, singers, or even sports players – have contributed to the acceptance and backing of body modifications. Namely, in our present generation, Miley Cyrus has been flaunting full sleeves of ink and cartilage piercings all over the red carpet.

Miley Cyrus sporting her tattoos in a sleeveless, black gown at the Vanity Fair Oscar Party (2025). Available via Vanity Fair. © All rights belong to their respective owners. No copyright infringement intended.

Reaching fame as a television star and musician in her youth, Cyrus sets the stage for other young creatives to step out of the limelight and into their own comfort zone of uniqueness. Mainly seen parading in sleeveless outfits at award shows, Miley Cyrus truly exhibits the power of body mods as accessories. Each piece of jewelry chosen for her ears, and each work of art permanently stenciled into her skin, tells a story completely of her own. There is something about a forever alteration of yourself that cannot be replicated. It’s crucial that we commend this as bravery, rather than rendering it tacky.

So, let’s delve more into the power of styling tattoos and piercings. If ten tattoos and two nose rings are enough to warrant my credibility, then gather round and listen closely. My five-step guide to styling body modifications and accepting them as a part of what makes you you is as follows:

Learn to bask in discomfort.
Regardless of its increasing popularity, the likelihood that you will receive dirty looks after getting a new chest piece or eyebrow piercing is high. People may not understand you, but the important thing is that you do. Take the time to love yourself and accept your body and its new art with open arms. At the end of the day, the only person impacted by your choices is you.

Photograph via author Gianna Mountroukas. © All rights belong to their respective owners. No copyright infringement intended.

Tap into what makes you confident.
As in, modify your body in a way that will make you more self-assured rather than hesitant to confidence. If you like your legs, think about getting a thigh piece that accentuates your muscular quads. If you’ve been looking to give your belly more love, bejewel your navel with a studded barbell and a crop top.

Be rebellious in your choices, take risks.
A trend doesn’t have to exist before it can be executed. Try the things that make you nervous, that make you itch a little. This might come in unconventional forms – it could be bunching up a maxi skirt with a hair tie to display a bit of ankle, a bit of ink. It could be mimicking the Sailor Moon hairstyle to parade your favorite combination of ear cuffs and hoop rings.

Strip yourself of the fear of ‘doing it wrong’.
There is no right or wrong way to ‘do’ body modifications. You can have a traditional American tattoo, or a fine-line quote, a large gauge ear piercing, or a cartilage stud, and each remain valid forms of expression. Along this same vein, you don’t have to dress a certain way after getting a body mod. There is an unspoken assumption that piercings and tattoos equate to goth culture. But, just as likely as that, is a fully tattooed woman accessorizing with a bow and pastel colors.

Don’t knock aftercare.
Yes, body mods are fun to have and style, but they also must be taken care of with great diligence. Listen to your piercer and tattoo artist and ensure that you are following every step of the healing process. At the end of the day, this is your body and you want to keep it safe.

It’s time to view body mods for what they are: the true accessorizing of individualism. The forms in which these modifications were born are endless, speaking to the unbound horizons which lend expansive possibilities. In an era of replicative trends, one finds haven in singularity. This inclination towards uniqueness might just find itself in the form of a black-worked abstract design, or a sterling-silver hoop puncturing the center of one’s septum.