Earrings, nose-rings, prince alberts, dydos, palangs, bangles, bracelets, rings, tattoos, makeup, body and face-paint, studs, nose-pins, nostrums, blood, hair, ochre, gold, silver, lip-plates, ear-weights, branding, scarring, tucking, sucking, squeezing, shaping: across all sections of society and across cultures people decorate and transform their bodies.

Body Art explores the many different ways, both temporary and permanent, in which people modify, change, decorate and adorn their bodies. It covers the what, why, how and where of 'body art'. Who does it, how do they do it and why do they do it? Themes covered include: universality, diversity and antiquity of styles; concepts of beauty; identity and transformation; meaning and significance of symbols; and pain, endurance and rites of passage.