APP 2024
Last month, June 23 to 27, I attended APP 2024, the 27th Annual Association of Professional Piercers Conference and Exposition in Las Vegas. This was my first year attending any APP conference, so I had many expectations, anxieties, and a lot of excitement. I’m incredibly thankful for being able to finally attend this year, and for the opportunity to share my thoughts and feelings on this experience.
Eight other staff members from Infinite from different positions attended, including piercers Amelia, Noël, Sacoon, and Ursula, along with a majority of our office staff: Ariana, Maddie, and me, alongside our operations manager Jes, and Infinite’s owner, James. Thanks to the rest of the Infinite crew for holding things down while we worked the week away from home, and thanks to our guest piercer and friend throughout that week: Bambi from Leviticus Tattoo & Piercing who helped with clients while we were away.
Join me in reflecting on this APP 2024 recap from my very own non-piercer, queer, POC point of view. I hope that some of this brings perspective to other newcomers of this convention in the future.
Arrival and Settling In
I had never been to Las Vegas before this event. I was warned prior to arrival that not only can Conference be overstimulating and potentially overwhelming, but Vegas itself can be an experience like no other. After a very early flight on Sunday morning, we arrived at Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino, and our first collective task was to make sure everyone was comfortable. On the way to Whole Foods on our pre-Conference supply run, I was so mesmerized by the city; it reminded me of some sort of Pee-wee’s Playhouse universe in the desert. We scrambled to get our rooms situated, our fridges filled with snacks and water to get us through the week, and to find some time to decompress. As this was my first time in the chaos of Vegas, along with the mayhem of Conference preparation, I needed it!
After some time to settle in, several of us went to get some sun by the Planet Hollywood pool. I immediately saw very many familiar faces of friends I’ve made, either online or in person, as well as so many other industry folk all in one place. I had never been part of this before. It was refreshing to be in a space where you don’t have to be overly conscious of being a heavily tattooed person with decorative implants, scars, piercings, etc. What was most special to me was that I felt immediately comfortable in my queerness, despite my body being so exposed. As someone who’s still exploring the social aspects of the queer experience, being invited by others to uncover scars of similar gender-affirming surgeries as my own was huge. The solidarity I felt in that moment was magical.
Registration
Later that afternoon, it was time to pick up our badges at registration. It was such a validating experience to finally have my own badge and recognition of attendance certificate after so many years of wanting to be here. A couple of us got drinks afterwards to end the night, where Vivi Madero, a piercer and founder of Fox Labyrinth, approached me to give me a “Piercers of Color” badge. She said something like, “I know you’re not a piercer, but you deserve this.” It was an extremely tender gesture that I feel was a beautiful foreshadowing of my conference experience to come.
The First Day of Classes
My first class on Monday was Restorative Practices and the Piercing Studio, taught by Nash Bryant from Industrial Tattoo and Piercing. Nash’s presentation was extremely useful and engaging, while being a topic that is so deeply necessary to discuss, whether it be at APP events, within our own studios, or in our everyday lives. This class covered many different aspects of the everyday piercing studio environment and internal workings from the lens of transformative justice values that I wish everyone across the piercing industry could hear.
The modern piercing industry is not exempt from systemic oppression and power imbalances—in fact, there is a lot of history of perpetuating just that. I’m excited to see what we learn and act on going forward as we continue having discussions like this.
The Opening Party
Monday night was the conference’s opening party, and it was a blast! Everyone got together to journey over to the Flamingo Hotel’s pool down the street, where the vibes were very much Harmony Korine’s “Spring Breakers.” I got to finally meet so many online friends I’ve known for years, as well as making a lot of new friends too. It was truly the best way to get down after how overwhelmed I felt from the intensity of the conference environment in general. As much as I love my job it was really nice to just exist with the people you care about and have fun without thinking of work!
The Jewelry Exposition
Tuesday was the first day of the jewelry exposition. We grouped up to cover our favorite company’s booths, and we were so stoked to shop and bring goodies back to Philly! There was a time in my life where I was really inspired to make gold body jewelry, and at that time I met a lot of amazing other small makers who helped me achieve this dream (and one that I’d like to revisit someday). Piercing jewelry is absolutely one of my favorite parts of this job, which in many ways has stemmed from my adoration of Filipinx jewelry and the cultural significance of gold.
It was lovely to finally meet so many online friends: Lanie from Hialeah Fine Jewelry and my Ate (sister) Marybelle with Tawapa. I caught up with jewelers who I met through the process of making a few gold ends on my own: Huck from High Noon Handmade and Stray from Dusk Body Jewelry. There were other familiar friends I was happy to see again too: Corey from Seasons Handmade and Noorann (until recently Infinite’s assistant operations manager) who was slinging jewelry with Tether! I also have a new love for some companies I haven’t personally been as familiar with, like Regalia Jewelry, a Filipino-owned company, where I often found myself quietly staring and obsessing over medieval-weaponry-inspired ends and charms.
I’m so excited for y’all to see what we brought home from the expo!
POC Meet and Greet
Tuesday evening I attended the Piercers of Color meet and greet. As I entered the event space, I noticed how seating was arranged with chairs that filled each and every wall, where we would all be facing each other and there would be nothing between us, literally and figuratively. There was no podium where someone would lead some sort of discussion, and instead the center of the room was completely vacant and allowed an unreserved platform for anyone to be authentically themselves. I was immediately moved in such a personal way. This was the first time I had ever been in a completely POC environment related to the piercing industry. It was as if, for just a couple hours, we didn’t have to mask, and were free to express these very tender and vulnerable emotions that aren’t typically heard or understood. It’s also worth mentioning that we were told this was the largest amount of POC attendees the APP Conference has had yet.
Throughout the event, we shared space for one another for not only very powerful introductions but also the license to feel, share, and relate. I often feel alone while navigating through the modern body modification world as a non-white person, which is something I share with many others, but I wasn’t alone here. I believe this was a defining event in understanding a huge part in why I’m passionate about this industry. I’ve thought about this event every day since leaving Vegas. I really hope I can somehow assist in amplifying POC perspectives and body modification history in the future, as well as my own. A lot of the practices and acts we see today in body modification and piercing are tied to Black and Brown culture, and that deserves respect and recognition from the piercing community. The APP and piercing industry as a whole needs to always be vigilant in bringing more inclusivity, diversity, and accessibility into what we do.
I was also able to meet such a large group of other Filipinx folks that I’ve been in contact with through the “Filipino Piercing Pamilya” group online. I had no idea there were so many of us and it’s so heartwarming to have this very family-oriented connection to others in the industry. If you’re in the piercing community and a Filipinx as well, reach out so we can all stay connected. Mahal kita!
The Remembrance Altar
Early Thursday morning, while already hyper-focused on many other complicated emotions and so drained by the overstimulating week, I visited the “Remembrance” altar. I stood in front of the long, vibrant, collectively decorated table dressed in love letters, photos, and sentimental offerings for those in and around our industry who have passed. I am very familiar with grief, and it was a lot to take in. I became overwhelmed with memories of my father who passed around ten years ago now, wondering if he’d be proud of the effort I’ve put into what I do. I thought about my Lola who passed away late last year, as she was someone who could have given me a lot of insight on how our culture aligns with the act of piercing, piercing jewelry, and modification practices. I thought about all of my supportive friends who aren’t here anymore. I also thought about what I want to accomplish before I’m gone.
I stood there and wept, and for a while I didn’t care about anything else I needed to attend that day. I needed to feel those reflections, and vulnerability wasn’t something I expected to be such a strong theme in this conference experience. I shared a lot of tight and silent hugs and eye contact made in solidarity. At the end of the day, we’re all here because we love what we do. To experience love is a gift and I’m glad we can give that gift to one another. I deeply appreciate this sacred space being offered by this event and I’m sure all of our loved ones who aren’t here anymore feel the same, wherever they may be.
Discussions of Ritual in Body Piercing
Thursday I joined the class Discussions of Ritual in Body Piercing, which was an extremely emotional experience. I was really at a point in this journey where I needed to hear such passionate words on this industry from a deeply transparent, personal, and vulnerable place. Kenneth Crespo, Jimmy Maldonado, and Clay Wanstrath joined in a three-part panel to talk about their perspective of body piercing as a ceremonial practice, and what that ritual means to them.
After the class, I followed up with Clay Wanstrath, one of the speakers, owner of Supernatural Body Piercing in Kansas City, Missouri—and former Infinite piercer. He was kind enough to share parts of his talk:
To pierce someone gives an opportunity to share time and space and humanity. To perform this Dignity Service is to recognize that they are a human being. As the piercer you don’t just put something in, you let something out. The best way you can hold space for someone is to listen. To honor someone in piercing isn’t just poking a hole in them for something shiny, it's actually listening to them. Creating a space where they are seen and heard.
The Body Piercing Archive: The Grangers
On Thursday was the guided tour by Paul King (APP treasurer, overseer of the Archive, and author of the companion book to the exhibit) and Dr. Matt Lodder through the exhibit on the Grangers set up by the APP’s Body Piercing Archive.
Ethel Granger, the Guinness Records holder for smallest waist, made some appearances in early issues of PFIQ and Modern Primitives, but for the most part was not a well known name in the modification industry. Throughout the exhibit, we got to see a broader view of her and her husband’s lives put into the context of 20th century piercing history and how their impact can be felt today.
A big takeaway from Paul and Dr. Lodder’s research was how interwoven their lives were with other big names in the piercing and tattoo industry. There were parallels drawn between their commencement of public practices and Fakir Musafar’s early self-modifying practices in the 1950s as well as photos of the Grangers with Germany’s Tattoo Samy, the subject of next year’s exhibit. To summarize, Dr. Lodder suggested, “You realize that the number of amazing people out there are smaller than you thought—and they all know each other!”
I’ve personally never been able to attend any of the body-modification-related exhibits held at the APP conference every year, so I was very excited to see that it was on extreme corseting and piercing. I actually always dreamed of corseting when I was very young but didn’t have the resources to explore it. It was exciting to be reintroduced to body modification in such a sexy and fashionable way. The exhibit itself was stunning and inspired me to think about furthering my personal exploration in what my body is capable of.
Coming Home
As the conference came to an end, I found myself flying home with a host of new knowledge, a renewed sense of passion for this industry for documentation and research, and a deeper appreciation and understanding of the cultural and historical significance of piercing and related modifications. We’ve come a long way with creating a more diverse environment within the piercing industry, but we are not anywhere near finished—and there is never really a finish line.
Building and maintaining the piercing community involves offering more education and work-related opportunities to those less privileged, finding ways to make safe piercing accessible to everyone, learning and caring for the marginalized identities and culture connected to piercing and body modification—and the list continues. Just like education in the piercing industry, the opportunities to learn more about the significance of piercing and how it ties to the concept of community is endless.
I can’t wait to see what our future holds. See you all next year!
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