One of my APP highlights has to be teaching
in Spanish at the seminars in Mexico a few
years after moving to the country. Another
was being roasted at a conference banquet.
One of the male board members entered the
huge, crowded room as a caricature of me. He
wore a flamboyant outfit in my signature purple,
a bald cap over his hair, my tattoos drawn on
him, sparkles stuck to his face where I have my
piercings, etc. It was a riot!
I’ll also never forget the flood of emotions I
experienced watching Jim Ward play harp for a
room full of spellbound piercers at conference.
Knowing Jim’s origins and his role in piercing
history, witnessing that gave me chills. Jim and I
have often spoken about how neither one of us
could ever have imagined that piercing would
become so mainstream and widespread, no less
become a profession common enough to warrant
a conference! To fully appreciate this, read his
book, Running the Gauntlet—An Intimate History
of the Modern Body Piercing Movement. It is
absolutely fascinating, and a must-read for every
piercing practitioner, and all history buff piercees.
SD: When did you open your first studio and
where?
EA: Following my departure from Gauntlet, I
remained on good terms with Jim Ward, and
wanted to open my business as far as possible
from any of his studios, which were in Los
Angeles, San Francisco, and New York City. The
location I picked was the French Quarter of New
Orleans, Louisiana, where I opened Rings of
Desire, Inc., in 1992. It is the only studio I’ve ever
owned.
We specialized exclusively in piercing (no
tattooing, which has been prohibited in the
‘Quarter since the 1980s). After over 12 marvelous
years there, I closed in the aftermath of Hurricane
Katrina and moved to the Yucatan in Mexico.
Interestingly, I had purchased my house just a
few weeks before the storm. I can hardly believe
I have been living here for 10 years already!
Now I do guest piercing around the US at the
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