Editing Modern primitive

{{Short description|Alternative subculture based on body modification}}
{{Other uses|Modern Primitives (disambiguation)}}
[[File:Scarification by Lestyn Flye.jpg|thumb|[[Scarification]] is one form of modern Western body modification, allegedly derived from what adherents consider "traditional", non-Western cultures.]]
[[File:Arnizsanz.jpg|thumb|Facial piercings and facial tattoos are popular among those who see themselves as outsiders to [[Mainstream society|mainstream]] [[Western world|Western society]].]]

'''Modern primitives''' or '''urban primitives''' are adherents of an [[Alternative lifestyle|alternative]] [[subculture]] in [[Developed country|developed]], [[Western world|Western countries]] who engage in [[body modification]] rituals and practices inspired by the ceremonies, [[rites of passage]], or bodily ornamentation in what they consider "traditional", non-Western cultures.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20060428105606/http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2004/12/1210_041210_tattoos_2.html National Geographic - Ancient and Modern Tattoos Celebrated in Photography Book]</ref> These practices may include [[body piercing]], [[tattooing]], [[play piercing]], flesh hook [[Suspension (body modification)|suspension]], [[corset training]], [[scarification]], [[Branding persons|branding]], and [[Self-harm|cutting]].

== Origins ==
Roland Loomis, also known by his chosen name [[Fakir Musafar]], was one of the founders of the modern primitive movement.<ref>[http://gauntlet.ucalgary.ca/story/5541 Gauntlet – decorating the Modern Primitive] {{webarchive|url=https://archive.today/20070520193215/http://gauntlet.ucalgary.ca/story/5541 |date=2007-05-20 }}</ref> The 1989 [[RE/Search Publications|RE/Search]] book ''[[Modern Primitives (book)|Modern Primitives]]'' is considered as one of the first studies on of the concept of modern primitivism.

Modern primitives identify with a connection between what they see as "the primitive" and authenticity; "in opposition to the corruptions of mainstream society".<ref>{{cite book |last1=Benson |first1=Susan|editor-first1=Caplan|editor-last1=Jane|editor-link=Jane Caplan|title=Written on the body: the tattoo in European and American history|article=Inscriptions of the self: reflections on tattooing and piercing in contemporary Euro-America|date=2000|publisher=Reaktion Books Ltd. |location=London: United Kingdom |isbn=978-0691057231 |pages=234–254 |edition=Jane Caplan }}</ref>

Modern primitives may have a loose set of beliefs about their way of life, including
* Modification of the body in order to sculpt their self-image.
* Activities which reject society at large. Exploring the self is a personal statement, which society rejects.
* Resisting what they see as colonialism, and identification with [[Anticolonialism|anti-colonial struggles]].<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Rosenblatt |first1=David |title=The Antisocial Skin: Structure, Resistance, and 'Modern Primitive' Adornment in the United States. |journal=Cultural Anthropology |date=1997 |volume=12 |issue=3 |pages=287–334 |doi=10.4135/9781526440211 |url=https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1525/can.1997.12.3.287/abstract |access-date=16 June 2019|isbn=9781526440211 |url-access=subscription }}</ref>

== Criticisms ==
Urban primitivism has been suggested as [[cultural appropriation]] and misrepresenting or "bundling" cultures together in a "primitive" setting.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.howtotalkaboutarthistory.com/uncategorized/art-history-101-primitivism-cultural-appropriation/ | title=Why Primitivism was Cultural Appropriation | date=26 October 2016 | access-date=31 May 2022 | archive-date=25 October 2021 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211025083801/http://www.howtotalkaboutarthistory.com/uncategorized/art-history-101-primitivism-cultural-appropriation/ | url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Rosenblatt |first1=David |title=The Antisocial Skin: Structure, Resistance, and 'Modern Primitive' Adornment in the United States. |journal=Cultural Anthropology |date=1997 |volume=12 |issue=3 |pages=287–334 |doi=10.4135/9781526440211 |url=https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1525/can.1997.12.3.287/abstract |access-date=16 June 2019|isbn=9781526440211 |url-access=subscription }}</ref> These have been debated, with adherents believing that these criticisms are based largely on the views of Roland Loomis rather than the culture as a whole.<ref>{{cite journal |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/272274147 |doi=10.1386/ejac.30.2.99_1|title=The myths of modern primitivism |year=2011 |last1=Lodder |first1=Matt |journal=European Journal of American Culture |volume=30 |issue=2 |pages=99–111 }}</ref>

==See also==
* [[Noble savage]]
* [[Paleolithic diet]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

== Further reading ==
*{{cite book
  | last = Vale
  | first = V.
  | author-link = V. Vale
  | author2 = Andrea Juno
  | title = Modern Primitives
  | publisher = [[RE/Search]]
  | year = 1989
  | isbn =978-0-940642-14-0 | title-link = Modern Primitives (book)
 }}
* {{cite book
  | last = Pitts
  | first = Victoria L.
  | title = In the Flesh: The Cultural Politics of Body Modification
  | publisher = [[Palgrave Macmillan]]
  | year = 2003
  | isbn = 978-1-4039-7943-8
  | url-access = registration
  | url = https://archive.org/details/infleshculturalp2003pitt
  }}

==External links==
{{commons category|Modern primitives}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Modern Primitive}}
[[Category:Modern primitive| ]]
[[Category:Cultural appropriation]]
[[Category:Body piercing]]
[[Category:Tattooing]]
[[Category:Sexuality and gender identity-based cultures]]
[[Category:Lifestyles]]


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