body arts

Collective term for the range of artistic decoration and embellishment applied to the human body for purposes of beautification or self expression. It includes such forms as scarification, tattooing, body piercing and painting, hair styling, and the wearing of jewelry. Distinct from "body art" which refers to works produced since the 1960s that employ human bodies as the medium of expression; may be in the form of performance art, or the artist using his own body as a focus or theme.