to celebrate each other at all. It’s pretty sad. Although they may mean
well, they can be quite harsh, and ruin the chances that the person
being made an example of will ever publicly seek advice or a critique
again. As an example, I was in a conversation the other day and a
piercer told me they didn’t care for another piercer because he was
“too nice.” Really? No joke. After I wrote this, I had a conversation with
a piercer I respect and I was reminded that when I was apprenticed,
there were no social media forums, and at that time the person who
was teaching you was the only one who’s opinions mattered at all.
It wasn’t easy, and if you screwed up the consequences were swift
and hard. There was definitely not a lot of coddling going on. Today,
younger piercers are being apprenticed in the court of public opinion,
and if they post bad work or unsafe practices, then they should get
their asses handed to them to an extent. I’m just not going to be the
one to do it, I am an old fart, my asshole days are over, and I have
other work to do.
Sean: Where would you like to be in 5 years (pertaining to life and
business)?
Julian: In five years, I hope to still be where I am, piercing, running the
shop, and raising my fam ily here. I hope to still be an APP member
and help to serve the professional piercing community any way I can.
I would eventually like to have a second location, and I’d love to see
more people wearing and more shops selling my jewelry designs.
Sean: What is your favorite piercing to perform, and why?
Julian: I am happy, stoked, and honored to do any piercing I can, but
if I was forced to pick one it would be septum. The reason is that for
so many years in the beginning of my career, they scared the crap
out of me because it was always a challenge to nail them perfectly
every time. Now, not so much and I think they really do a lot to change
people.
Sean: Are there any procedures that still make you nervous to perform, and why?
Julian: I still get the heebie jeebies and really take my sweet time with
most triple projects. Spacing and placement perfection is difficult to
achieve every time.
Sean: Do you prefer to pierce with tools, freehand, or a
combination?
Julian: I don’t use many tools. I was apprenticed “freehand.”
The general definition of “freehand” has changed a bit for
some people over the years, but to me, it means that I don’t
use tools that control or manipulate tissue. Many years ago,
I was turned onto the use of curettes for piercing from Cliff
Cadaver. A curette is like half a forceps. I do use an occasional curette as a brace, but as I am learning to do more
procedures inside out, I am using them less and less.
Sean: What do think is something positive that comes from
the piercing industry, if anything?
Julian: The piercing industry is carrying on an ancient,
archetypal human practice of body modification. The benefits
to the individual or group are great and varied, whether it be
cultural, spiritual, or merely personal expression. To me, in
a modern context, it serves as a link between people that
transcends race, culture, and social class. It is something we
can all share and participate in and find as common ground,
if we choose to.
InkSpiredMagazine.com
159