The Idiocy of Sunburn Art

Photo Gallery Follows the Text

There’s a new trend going around and here at the Inked office we can’t seem to wrap our heads around it. People have taken to a fad called “sunburn art,” where they draw on themselves in sunscreen and then allow themselves to burn in order to have the drawing stand out on their skin. In case you’re thinking, “Who the hell would do something so stupid?” just know we’re thinking it too. In the gallery below you can see some examples of people who have actually done this and judge it for yourself.

It should go without saying that we are huge supporters of various forms of body art: tattoos, henna tattoos, piercings, and so on. But we absolutely do not support this. The risks involved are obvious (at least they should be), with skin cancer being the biggest. According to the American Academy of Dermatology,one in five Americans will develop skin cancer at some point in their lives and taking precautions, such as the proper use of sunscreen, could prevent more than 3 million cases of skin cancer a year. Is the payoff of a piece of “art” that will fade from your skin in a few days really worth a nasty and painful sunburn that increases your chances of getting cancer? Of course not.

While skin cancer is absolutely the most pressing potential side effect of “sunburn art,” there’s definitely additional damage that can be done. For our friends hoping to get inked in the future it’s important to remember that excessive sun exposure accelerates the aging of your skin making it more difficult to tattoo. For those of you who already have tattoos you should remember that sunburns will easily fade your existing ink. These purely cosmetic reasons should be enough to dissuade you from getting any “sunburn art.” If you’re still considering it we must remind you once again, skin cancer. Why in the world would you put yourself at greater risk of a potentially fatal cancer so you could have cool tan lines for a couple of days?

Please do yourself a favor and apply your sunscreen the right way so you can preserve your skin and your awesome ink.