I spent my adolescence in the 90s in São Paulo, and started to get interested in body arts influenced by bands I listened to, like Red Hot Chilli Peppers, Janes Addiction, Faith no More, Prodigy, NIN, among others… My first show was Beastie Boys at the extinct Olímpia concert hall, in 1994. At that time I got my first tattoo at the O Polaco studio in the city center, (the brazilian law prohibiting minors is from 1997, so with the permission of those responsible I was able to do it without problems). My uncle was a neighbor of the studio and my cousins had already gotten tattoos there. I remember that the style was more transgressive than aesthetic, the intention was to shock! I frequented clubs like Hells, Nation, Lov.e and U-turn, to name a few. I caught the beginning of raves on the beach and hidden places, I went to punk shows and I wore my hair colored and with dreadlocks. Taking on this lifestyle is very challenging because there is a whole prejudiced and straight society that does not accept certain stereotypes and freedoms. Our first barrier is usually our family. We know that there are few times when the most conservative parents support attitudes considered “out of the norm”, and my family was not very different, so I had a lot of arguments and I started to think about what I had to do to be independent and assume my style, my identity. I was dating a tattoo artist who planted the idea of applying piercings, there were few body piercing professionals known at that time, my contact with piercings until then was the infamous pharmacy "guns" and self-piercing without any technique. He knew Zuba (Brazilian pioneer piercer), and I had already seen her working at Mercado Mundo Mix, a super alternative variety fair, so we went to her studio in Pinheiros and she agreed to be a kind of mentor and direct me in this area. The year was 1997, access to information was scarce, the beginning of dial-up internet, hours of downloading any image, there were only foreign publications, and I confess that I suffered a little until I began to understand what I was doing. I sold a computer and bought some jewelry from Mr Sérgio Pisani (Serginho's father from Tattoo You) who sold Wildcat. I started to apply piercings on friends and they started to give referrals. I started to work with some clients in the studio of tattoo artist Claudia Macá, and shortly afterwards I started working every day in a studio in Itaim Bibi. I still have clients from that time to this day!
In 2001 I was invited to be part of the Body Piercing Clinic team, the first and only one at the time fully specialized in piercing in Brazil, under the command of master Andre Meyer, with whom I had the wonderful opportunity to live and learn a lot! Always a visionary, he developed countless models of jewelry in gold, glass, stones, an endless source of inspiration! Without forgetting, of course, my fellow piercers Carolas and Marcelo who were by my side on this trajectory and taught me a lot, they went every year to the APP congress and always brought new techniques and learning. I am immensely and eternally grateful for their friendship and teachings!
In this year 2022 I will complete 25 years as a piercer. I can say that it was not easy to get here living from piercing, but I can say that I work with what I love and that I am happy to have met amazing people on this journey! I am today satisfied with the progress of our profession, proud of people who dedicate themselves and make our industry grow, be recognized and accepted more every day!
The opinion of the columnist is not necessarily an opinion of the Coletivo Sala Solidária.
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Bianca Gattoni
São Paulo - Body Piercer since 1997