We’ve talked previously about piercing as a means of self expression (read the blog here). This month we aim to further our mission to educate and celebrate by talking specifically about how queer communities have shaped the piercing industry as we know it today.

Disclaimer: Some of the content in this blog is intended for people 18+.

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Disclaimer: Some of the content in this blog is intended for people 18+. 〰️

The modern piercing industry originally emerged in the 1970s gay/BDSM/kink culture, and the interest cultivated a way for people to safely get the piercings they desired for themselves no matter where that desire stemmed from. We owe a lot to the queer beginnings for industry advancements in jewelry, tools, and safe piercing procedures. We also owe a lot to the people that were willing to put themselves out there and be who they really wanted to be, especially when queer identities have been subject to so much prejudice.

This month we want to celebrate a few of the incredible queer people that worked so hard to make piercing what it is today in the United States. The brief descriptions presented here definitely don’t do these amazing, impactful, and educated individuals justice, so we encourage you to use the links below to learn more about them and their contributions to piercing.

Fakir Musafar

Fakir Musafar’s impact on the piercing world is far reaching and continues to resonate to this day. He was a corsetier, an advertising executive, a dance instructor, and so much more, but his passion for body piercing and other types of body play in his spiritual pursuits shaped the industry as we know it. Fakir wore a lot of hats, but his work in promoting, educating, and connecting people in body piercing continues to positively impact the piercing industry. He established the “Fakir Intensives” that still educate piercers after his death in 2018, continuing his legacy and teaching piercers around the world.

Learn more about Fakir here: https://www.fakir.org/about/

Jim Ward

Jim Ward is often cited as the “granddaddy of the modern piercing movement” and opened The Gauntlet, the first piercing only studio, in 1975. He wrote Running the Gauntlet: An Intimate History of the Modern Body Piercing Movement (Stay tuned for a giveaway of a copy signed by Jim Ward himself to celebrate International Piercing Day, celebrated on his birthday!) His work at the Gauntlet was pivotal to the piercing industry as we know it today. The Gauntlet is responsible for many of the innovations in modern piercing, offered piercing seminars, and trained many notable piercers who are still practicing and spreading their knowledge today.

Learn more about Jim Ward: https://runningthegauntlet-book.com/

Elayne Angel

Elayne Angel trained as a piercer at The Gauntlet and was the first Gauntlet Master Piercer. She had her own shop after that in New Orleans called Rings of Desire. She wrote The Piercing Bible: The Definitive Guide to Safe Body Piercing, educating people, piercers or not, on anatomy and considerations for all piercings and is an authority in the industry in her knowledge and education. She specializes in adult genital piercings for all genders and maintains the Piercing Bible website as an accessible resource for everyone wanting to learn more about intimate piercings.

Learn more: https://www.piercingbible.com/elayne-angel

Paul King

Paul King apprenticed under Elayne Angel and worked for the Gauntlet as well. He co-founded Cold Steel America, and outside of being a Gauntlet Master Piercer is also a body art historian and educator. He created the Body Piercing Archive , whose mission “is to select, collect, document, preserve, exhibit, and interpret the personal, social, and material evolving histories of Body Piercing to ensure these artifacts are available to present and successive generations.” His work sharing the history of piercing is invaluable and is an amazing resource for those wanting to delve deeper into the world of piercing and its queer roots.

Learn more: https://www.bodypiercingarchive.org/

In an interview in The Point magazine, (read it here) Paul King talks about the piercing industry, where he started, and gives a lot of context to the people mentioned here. He talks about the queer roots of piercing and answers the question, “If not for the gay/BDSM/kink culture, could body piercing as we know it today have formed in the first place?” Of course there can be no definitive answer, but the impact of queer people on piercing is undeniable.

Queer communities utilized piercing as a tool for self expression well before the industry existed in its current state. The impact of these communities still resonates today, and in so many ways. Some people get pierced as part of their gender affirming journey. Piercings might be a way to view one's body in the way it truly feels right to them. They can be a way to help someone feel more masculine, more feminine, more in their body, or more queer. Some people may view piercing as a way to show their communities who they are, or a callback to queer communities of the past that resonate with their values or aesthetics.

We want to celebrate people’s differences, and piercing can mean so many different things for different people. Let’s continue to come together and celebrate those differences, at the same time celebrating the communities we form along the way.

Queer Piercing History