I've been trying to find out laws and how to get a license to become a scarification artist. Does anyone know the laws for ohio? Or any idea how I could find them?
Very few places have licenses, or even laws in place. Maybe the number in america has increased but I think its still quite a rarity. If you want to be an body mod artist.. Do you have a shop? You should know enough about the industry to have a good knowledge on the laws surrounding it for your area at the least. Dont be stupid about this; you cant just fill out a form, get a license, pick up a scalpel and expect to be an artist. Do you know about aspectic technique? Do you have a sound knowledge of anatomy? Do you know the effects of cutting through a specific amount of layers of skin compared to a different amount? Do you know how to do with someone when they go into shock during cutting? (ive gone into shock during cutting once.. kinda lucky i had a pro working on me to deal with it) Training. Training training training work work work. This isnt an easy industry to get into, especially due to the ridiculous amount of people without a clue who want to get in, and you have to do a lot of shit that may not be your ideal. There are not too many people who live off scarification. Most cutters and branders are piercers by trade, and that is their bread and butter. Without lip, navel and ear piercings most cutters couldnt live. If you want to cut professional, work your ass off and sell your soul to get into a piercing studio. Do all the bitch jobs and be an apprentice. Learn your way up. If your mentor doesnt cut, learn on yourself and trusting friends. Seek out cutters and try to find a mentor for that. Go to scarwars etc, learn the crowd, the big players. Make yourself known and show youre serious. Go to the APP convention in vegas, they do plenty of short courses there teaching a variety of things. Gotta be a member first though of course, need to be part of a credible shop for that.. If what ive written sounds like too much time or effort, then stick to cutting yourself and only yourself.
Atropine speaks the truth; this is the only way to "cut professional," which is also the only responsible way to cut. TBH, the fact that you have to ask this question on a fairly tame "body mod" forum suggests that you are not ready to be a cutter, but, that could just be an assumption. BMEzine.com has a section where you should start looking; it is the best. So, not to dissuade you or insult you, but there is alot to consider. If we are jumping the gun in labeling you "not ready" to consider this, my apologies. There are a lot of immature yahoos wanting into the business for all the wrong reasons; forgive us for being jaded. Anyway, to answer you question, very few(if any) US counties license for "cutting." In fact, in the eyes of the law, cutting is generally considered illegal under the "practicing medicine without a license" clause because it involves scalpels and surgical instruments. Most cutters work by word of mouth and at the risk of legal reprisal. So, you are unlikely to be able to open a "cutting shop" or even advertise. Any body mod shop should have the following certificates, training, and licensing at minimum: business license, blood born pathogen training/licensing, CPR/First aide for the healthcare provider(at minimum, EMT is highly recommended for cutting), spore testing for you autoclave. Specific courses and licenses vary by state and county. Cutting is a much "heavier" mod than say tattooing or even large gauge piercings because on top of the body substance isolation and artistry of tattoo and standard piercings, there is the added factor that scarring is unpredictable and imprecise AND the fact that you are doing significantly more trauma which increases the risks of shock, blood loss, and infection.
